From service trips in Mexico to performances in Cyprus, Georgia Tech students will be all across the globe during Spring Break.

Find out where just some of the Georgia Tech community is headed next week.

Students representing all Georgia Tech Collegiate Panhellenic Council (CPC) sororities will travel to Senegal to build a school for women. Georgia Tech’s CPC is partnering with Circle of Sisterhood, a philanthropy founded by sorority women dedicated to supporting women’s education globally, particularly in nations where they face legal oppression and extreme poverty.  

“We are excited to be doing our part to help fight for women and their right to an education,” said Ana Jafarinia, former director of philanthropy for Georgia Tech’s CPC, “particularly since sorority women at Tech are strongly dedicated to their own education.”

In the past, Georgia Tech’s CPC has raised money for Circle of Sisterhood, but this is the first time students will be making the trip.

The Georgia Tech Chamber Choir has been invited by the U.S. Embassy in Cyprus to perform its first international tour. An ensemble of 24 singers will travel to the island to perform and work with area schools to facilitate a cross-cultural dialogue on higher education in the U.S.

“The embassy chose to sponsor us for this opportunity because of the unique ability of the Georgia Tech Chamber Choir members to perform extremely high-caliber music at a level usually only music majors get to do,” said Elianna Paljug, the group’s external vice president and a biomedical engineering major. “This ability to flourish in the arts and in STEM while in college is an opportunity we have enjoyed at Tech, so the embassy will be using us as an example of what American education can offer to potential Cypriot students.”

Students and staff from the Christian Campus Fellowship (CCF) will travel to Juarez, Mexico, to work with the organization Casas por Cristo to build a home for people in need. This is the CCF’s 25th year traveling to Juarez.

The Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) has a group traveling to Cleveland, Georgia, to do construction and repair projects in the area, as well as relationship-building through activities such as Vacation Bible School.

Samantha Stewart, a biology major who traveled with BCM last year, will participate again this year.

“I love the opportunity that we have to go to our communities in Georgia and serve there,” she said.

A team from Engineers Without Borders will be traveling to Uganda to implement a portion of an ongoing project. Their goals for this trip include installing a piping system and expanding infrastructure in the community. 

A group of international students, scholars, and students interns from the Office of International Education will travel to Washington, D.C. The trip will include sightseeing, volunteering at the Capital Area Food Bank, and meeting with Georgia Tech graduate and U.S. Senator David Perdue (R-GA).

The Alternative Service Breaks (ASB) group has seven different trips this spring break, both domestic and international. Places Tech students will serve with ASB this year include:  

• Concord, North Carolina: Working with Habitat for Humanity.
• Biloxi, Mississippi: Working with early childhood education initiatives including Head Start and the local Boys and Girls Clubs.
• Jacksonville, Florida: Working with Habitat for Humanity.
• Maryville, Tennessee: Working with Once Upon a Time, a wilderness retreat in Cherokee National Park, providing trail maintenance, creek cleanups, and habitat restoration.
• Oakland, California: Working with Community Collaborations addressing community and environmental needs.
• Dominican Republic: Teaching English through Outreach360, a local organization.
• Nicaragua: Service including environmental preservation and education.

Kate Vacko, marketing chair for Alternative Service Breaks, said that the trips “are a great way to meet other Tech students, and they provide an opportunity to explore new cities and cultures. I always look forward to returning to an ASB to remind myself what is really important and why I have always valued service in the first place.”

What are you doing for Spring Break? Tell us.