Alternative Break Project
The Alternative Break Project is a trip in which 15-30 brothers travel to an underprivileged school to engage in volunteer service. The project began in 2007 when Vice President of Chapter Development Erik Walschburger announced his plan to further increase the scope of Phi Sigma Pi's support of the organization. The inaugural trip was held at Carl T. Smith Middle School in January 2008.
Since the inaugural trip, which was held at Carl T. Middle School in Phoenix, the Alternative Break has occurred on the first week of January with applications for interested members being due in late September/Early October. During the trip, brothers have had the opportunity to build playgrounds for students, shadow Teach For America Corp Members, participate in panel discussions, and visit the local area.
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2008 Alternative Break Trip
During his 2006-2008 term, then Vice President of Chapter Development Erik "Duff" Walschburger announced plans to further increase the scope of Phi Sigma Pi's support of the organization with an alternative break that would occur in January of 2008. Plans were made for brothers to travel to Carl T. Smith Middle School in Phoenix Arizona.
Carl T. Smith Middle School
The Carl T. Smith Middle School served 420 5th through 8th grade scholars (please note that the school does not use the term students). Located at the corner of 43rd Avenue and Van Buren in downtown Phoenix, CTS serves a community made up of 99% ethnic minorities, over 90% qualify for the free and reduced lunch program, and almost two thirds are English language learners. Because of explosive growth in the area, CTS underwent a second construction phase and had recently added 13 more classrooms and 8 more bathrooms. Maximum capacity at CTS is now 500 scholars.
In the three years prior to the 2008 break, CTS experienced many ups and downs academically. In 2004-2005, CTS scholars performed well academically and thus received a favorable state label of performing. However, in 2005-2006, student achievement suffered greatly as a result of high teacher turnover, high student mobility, issues with violence and behavior, and eventual replacement of school administration. During the 2006-2007 academic year with a new, energized staff and administration, test scores raised significantly and behavior incidents nearly diminished. Behavior incidents were reduced by nearly 75%, reading scores increased by 60%, and math scores increased by nearly 80%.
The Trip
On January 6th, 2008, 13 brothers: Samantha Arroyo (Epsilon Iota), Amy Cheung (Alpha Rho), Avery Cootes (Gamma Theta), Patrick DiCosimo (Gamma Tau,) Tracy Fabian (Beta Kappa), Ashley Hardin (Gamma Zeta), Emily Hueber (Alpha Eta), Stephanie Moergen (Delta Xi), Megan Purkey (Gamma Pi), Erin Schiavone (Alpha Beta), Rachel Vasvari (Alpha Lambda), Jannette Williams (Alpha Beta), and Michael Young (Gamma Zeta) traveled to Pheonix along with Executive Director Suzanne Schaffer. From January 6th - January 12th, the volunteers assisted in various tasks such as a Teach For America discussion panel a the Phoenix Regional Office, constructed a playground for Carl T Smith Middle School, visited the local Phoenix area, and met local Teach For America Corp members.
2009 Alternative Break Trip
During his State of the Fraternity Address during the fraternity's annual National Convention and Grand Chapter, National President Jonah Goodman announced the location of the 2009 Alternative Break Project. The Project would take place at Shelby Middle School in Shelby Mississippi and was given the name "Playing to learn at Shelby Middle School."
Shelby Middle School
Shelby Middle School, located in Bolivar County Mississippi is a Public School with approximately 253 students. Currently, 99% of students within the Bolivar Country School district is eligible for the free or reduced-price lunch program.
Shelby Mississippi
Shelby, Mississippi is a city located in Bolivar Country on the western edge of the state. According to the 2000 census, the city had a population of 2,926 with the city itself covering a total area of 2.7 square miles. The population density was roughly 1,079.5 people per square mile with a predominantly African American local population. The median income per household in the city was $17,798 and the median income per family being $20,368.00. About 39.9% of families and 44.5% of the population were below the poverty line. The city of Shelby is served by the North Bolivar School District. Notable people who were born here include Fred Barnett (Philadelphia Eagles player,) and Emma Franklin (Aretha Franklin's sister).
The Trip
On January 5th, 2009, 13 brothers as well as Director of Membership Anika Jackson arrived in Shelby. The participants in the years' trip included:
Tamara Arredondo (Beta Chapter) Denise Cavanagh (Alpha Epsilon Chapter) Avery Cootes (Gamma Theta Chapter) Joseph Grissom (Beta Chapter) Julia Hansen (Beta Chapter) Lacy Kelly (Gamma Phi Chapter) Steve Mikkelson (Gamma Theta Chapter) Lauren Millerd (Beta Pi Chapter) Michelle Rodgers (Delta Kappa Chapter) Mallory Stites (Beta Chapter) Natalie Swierzbin (Gamma Epsilon Chapter) Rebecca Torres (Alpha Iota Chapter) Kyle Williams (Gamma Delta Chapter)
Between January 5th and January 10th, the corp members would begin set up of the educational pond, shadow Teach For America Corp members, assist in the organization of dominoes for an after-school mural project, have pot-luck dinners with the town of Shelby, Mississippi and TFA corp members, and tour the BB King Museum.
Funding and Contributions
The National Fraternity has set forth numerous initiatives to help brothers fund or contribute to the Alternative Break Trip. The In 2008, the Phi Sigma Pi Foundation set forth a goal of raising $10,000.00 to help fund the trip. 2008-2010 Senior Vice President Matthew Nicoletta and Karen Cohick helped to create a fundraising page on the National Website and Joshua Marder and Jonah Goodman worked to create a facebook cause page, facilitating donations from brothers to the event. These donations typically go to the purchase of playground equipment, asphalt, and playground stencils. As of September 16th, 2008, 403 brothers had joined the facebook cause, making it one of the largest Phi Sigma Pi related groups on facebook.
