Office of Civic Action and Engagement

Alternative Break Program

Preliminary Proposal

Office of Civic Action and Engagement

2011-2012

The Office of Civic Action and Engagement’s (CAE) Alternative Break Program (ABP) is a student-driven, proposal-based, team service experience. The ABP helps support and guide teams of students to develop and run comprehensive domestic and international service projects over summer, winter and spring breaks. These projects will allow teams to work withcommunities on their various challenges by exploring the social, economic, political, historicaland cultural variables of those communities. ABP trips are intended to challenge participants to reflect critically upon their role in the global community through the Five Pathways of Service. After participating in an ABP-sponsored trip, students will be better able to understand their role in the global community as partners in both short- and long-term sustainable solutions to community challenges.

The ABP does not organize or lead service break trips. Instead it supports students’ efforts by providing trainings, guidance and potentially financial support. The success of any alternative break service trip depends on the leadership of the trip’s student leaders and the dedication and hard work of the entire team.

What is a Trip Leader?

A Trip Leader is simply the person(s) who has accepted the responsibility for organizing and leading a team of fellow students on a service trip; a team must have at least one and no more than two to serve in this role. A Trip Leader is not the person who does all the work or who makes all the decisions. Healthy teams should work together to share vision, responsibilities, and leadership roles. Teams have a lot of autonomy in terms of how they want to organize themselves. For example, teams can chose to use a horizontal organizational structure that uses consensus decision-making. Regardless, a team must designate a Trip Leader(s) who assumes the responsibility for working with the ABP to help ensure the success of the team and the trips.

Trip Leader Responsibilities

We’re excited that you’re interested in organizing and leading a service experience with the ABP! It could be a potentially life-changing experience for you, your team, the community with which you will work and even the communities of which you are a part.

Organizing and running an ABP trip, however, is a lot of work and responsibility. Please make sure you have an understanding of what will be asked of you.

As the group’s organizer and leader, you will be responsible for:

Ensuring the group follows all ABP policies and procedures, including adhering to deadlines and attending trainings
Recruiting and developing your team
Establishing and completing your team’s goals for the trip
Working with the sponsor organization
Building and adhering to a budget
Securing the funding required for the trip

Deadlines

The ABP has three distinct deadlines for trips over winter, spring and summer breaks. These deadlines will change slightly from year to year and are continuously updated and clearly posted on thewebsite. It is critical to the approval of your proposal that you respect these deadlines. They are in place to help ensure that you and your team have enough time to develop a quality service experience for you, your partnering organizations and the community in which you hope to work. If you need help or assistance with your proposal please allow yourself ample time to meet with the ABPbefore the deadline so you have time to make revisions.

Criteria for Approvalof Student-led Alternative Break Trips

Student InitiatedABP trips are proposed, planned and developed by individual students or student groups. They must be approved by the ABP.

I. Preliminary Proposals

Preliminary proposals are evaluated based on the following criteria:

Feasibility and safety of the proposed trip
Clearly outlined goals of the trip – including what the team hopes to accomplish in the community in which it is to work, what the team hopes to learn from the experience, and how the experience will have a sustainable impact within the community
Identification of and tentative acknowledgement from a credible sponsor organization
Composition and size of team as well as how the team will be recruited/assembled
Team and team member expectations
Anticipated budget
Travel Logistics (both to and from campus as well as travel needs while on the actual trip)
Lodging Logistics

Once preliminary proposals are submitted they will be evaluated by the ABP and mayb be moved forward to the next round of the proposal process or rejected. If a proposal is rejected before the final deadline, students may seek advice from the ABP board on how to modify their preliminary proposal and resubmit. If the preliminary proposal is accepted, students are invited to submit a final proposal.

II. Final Proposals

Final proposals may beaccepted with financial support, or accepted without financial supportor rejected.

Final proposals accepted with financial support will be awarded an ABP matching grant that is based on the team’s final proposal. Teams that accept the ABP matching-grant are considered ABP-sponsored trips and therefore are required to follow the ABP policies and procedures, attend the trainings and to work with the ABP on developing and leading the trips.
Final proposals accepted without financial support will be invited to participate in the ABP trainings and will be able to access the ABP for guidance and support. These trips, however, are autonomous from the ABP.
Final proposals that are rejected may be resubmitted as long as revised proposals are submitted by the deadline.

For more on the Final Proposal or any other aspect of the ABP, please refer to the ABP website.

TRIP LEADER INFORMATION

Name(s):______

Recognized Student Group Affiliated(if applicable):______

Phone Number(s):______

E-mail(s):______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of why are you interested in leading a trip. ______

______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of your previous experience organizing and leading a service experience? ______

______

PRELIMINARY TRIP PROPOSAL

Dates: ______

Destination: ______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of the community/people whoyou want to serve: ______

______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of the service in which you want to engage: ______

______

Are there any safety concerns and if so, how do you plan on addressing those concerns? ______

______

Please describe how you anticipate the student team will travel to and from campus. ______

______

Please describe what the travel needs will be while on the trip and how you anticipate the team will meet those travel needs. ______

______

TEAM COMPOSITION INFORMATION

Approximate number of participants: ______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of how the team members will be recruited and selected: ______

______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) description of team and team member expectations: ______

______

Please provide an initial budget as well as estimated cost per team member (lodging, travel, supplies, organization fee, etc.):

______

SPONSOR ORGANIZATION INFORMATION:

Sponsor organization: ______

Name of contact: ______

Position: ______

Phone: ______

Email: ______

Sponsor Address: ______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) explanation of what work the sponsor organization does with the target community you seek to serve?______

______

Please provide a concise (40 words or less) explanation of how working with this organization can help you accomplish your team goals. ______

______

How do you plan to work with this organization? What contact has been made? What plans have been discussed?

______

Signature of Trip Leader #1: ______Date ______

Signature of Trip Leader #2: (if applicable) ______Date ______

Helpful Timelines

Spring Break Trips

September/October:

Students begin to research the issue which they want to address during the ABP-sponsored trip and location/communities in which they hope to serve
Students may meet with the ABP to reviewproposals
Preliminary Proposal for trips scheduled forspring break 2012 is due on Friday, October 21, 2011 at 5pm.
Review of applications will take place during the end of October and meetings with applicants will be set up if needed.
Applicants will be notified on Friday, October 28 2011 by 5pm.

November:

Student Trip Leaders begin to work on their Final Proposals, including but not limited to recruiting/assembling team, finalizing arrangements with sponsor organizations, etc.
Final Proposals Due: Friday, November 18 by 5pm

December:

Final Proposal Decisions are released on Friday, December 2 by 5pm.
ABP Welcome Meeting for all team members: Tuesday, December 6 at 7pm
Logistics and Fundraising Training: Thursday, December 8 at 7pm
Establish fundraising launch plan
Map out logistical planning, establishing deadlines, etc.
Establish team expectations/roles including, but not limited to, team weekly meeting time for Spring semester
Meet with ABP student advisory board member, establish plan for weekly meeting Spring semester

January:

TeamBuilding and Conflict Management training: Thursday, January 19 at 7pm
Based on the weekly meeting plan created at the end of first semester, begin meeting with your ABP student advisory board member
Based on the weekly meeting plan created at the end of first semester, begin meeting with your team
Continue fundraising plan
Continue logistical planning
Maintain contact with your sponsor organization
Inform/remind team of immunization and VISA/passport requirements/recommendations
Monitor travel advisories
Schedule a post-trip debrief meeting with your ABP student advisory board member

February:

Team Reflection and Cultural Sensitivity training: Thursday, February 9 at 7pm
Continue weekly meetings with team and ABP student advisory board member
Continue to monitor travel advisories
Maintain contact with your sponsor organization
Finalize any last-minute logistics
Finalize reflection plan pre- and post-trip as well as while the team is on the trip
Finalize academic study of community you seek to serve
ABP Difficult Situations Training and Final Logistics Review: Thursday, February 23 at 7pm

March:

ABP Final Send-off Meeting: Thursday, March 1 at 7pm
At last weekly team meeting before the trip go through the ABP Pre-Trip Check List found on the website
Spring Break, March 10-18

Post-trip:

Hold post-trip de-brief with your ABP student advisory board member
Continue your weekly team meetings including holding your team post-trip debrief and your planning sessions on post-trip project
Financially reconcile trip
Post-trip Celebration on Thursday, April 5 at 7pm