Keuka College’s Alternative Spring Break Blends Service, Stewardship, and Snorkeling in Puerto Rico

For students around the country, spring break is a chance to escape routine and bond with friends. For some students at Keuka College, it’s also an opportunity for community service and cultural immersion through the College’s Alternative Spring Break (ASB) program. 

This semester, eight students joined Chaplain and Director of Community and Belonging Eric Detar and Director of Community Standards and Student Intervention Tim White on a weeklong trip to Puerto Rico. 

From their home base at a communal retreat center in the coastal town of Luquillo, the group set out across the northeast portion of the island to take on a variety of service projects and hands-on learning opportunities.  

On their first day, the KC contingent volunteered in community gardens, learning how to plant, prune, and compost. The next day, they took their newly sharpened land-stewardship skills into El Yunque – the only tropical rainforest in the national forest system – where they helped to clear hiking trails and restore habitat. El Yunque is home to several endangered species, as well as indigenous rock engravings that date back many centuries. 

The next few days saw the group participating in a beach-monitoring project in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), painting a house, and volunteering on an equine therapy farm.   

Their final day in Puerto Rico was given over to relaxation and exploration. The students and staff snorkeled amid coral reefs and strolled through Old San Juan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the oldest city in the United States and its territories.   

The Rev. Eric Detar and Tim White have been leading the ASB program at Keuka College since 2010. Over the years, they have organized trips in partnership with the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor in Ohio, a KC alumna in Costa Rica, and small-scale coffee farmers in Guatemala, among many others. This was their third time partnering with Community Collaborations International in Puerto Rico, with prior visits in 2019 and 2024. 

Rev. Detar notes that the College has also forged connections with local faith-based and charitable organizations, which have provided financial assistance to make these mission-aligned initiatives possible. 

Many students who take the plunge and sign up for ASB are inspired to do it again. Victoria Guevara-Crysler, a senior Psychology major, was one such repeat participant this year; last spring, she traveled to Virginia’s Appalachian Highlands to join in conservation efforts with the American Hiking Society. 

“These were two of the most valuable experiences of my life,” she said. “I was able to build relationships with my Keuka College peers and witness the impact of our work to support the environment and people in need.”   

Jillian Case Doores, who is graduating with a Master of Social Work this May, was one of this year’s first-timers – and also the first online student to participate in the program’s 15-year history. 

“I wanted to get involved with the College community in a more direct way,” she explained. “It strengthened my sense of pride in belonging to KC. I’d definitely tell other students – especially online students – to go for it.” 

Study Locally. Act Globally. 

For more than 125 years, Keuka College has fostered the ideals of the humanistic tradition – knowledge of self and service to others – with a unique emphasis on experiential learning in the neighborhood and around the globe. Find out more about Alternative Spring Break, service-based Field Period® options, and other mission-driven programs at KC.