Last year, students worked in St. Bernard Parish. They'll return this year to continue the rebuilding effort.

Many college students look forward to spring break in warm climates and exotic locales. But for 70 UNC Asheville students headed to New Orleans, Bolivia and the Bahamas next week, their travel plans are focused on volunteer efforts in three of the world's neediest communities.

Some 49 UNC Asheville students will travel to New Orleans to continue work on homes and communities devastated by Hurricane Katrina. This is the University's second trip to the area. UNC Asheville students will join hundreds of other college students from around the nation for Habitat for Humanity's Collegiate Challenge, a program that provides opportunities for students to spend a week of their school break working on houses.

Senior atmospheric sciences major Erin Ball traveled to New Orleans last year and was so inspired that she is serving as the student organizer for the 2008 service trip.

"When I went on the trip last year, I was surprised to discover that New Orleans is still completely demolished," Ball said. "There is still a ton of work to be done."

This year, students will again help out with a wide range of chores in Habitat for Humanity's Musicians' Village, including painting, putting up siding and installing cabinets. They will describe the work and their reactions to volunteerism during the trip online at www.springbreakunca.blogspot.com.

Other students will head further afield to lend a hand.

Some 14 students will travel to Montero, Bolivia, to volunteer at the Highlands Bolivian Mission (HBM. The charitable organization, based in Highlands, N.C., operates a medical and dental clinic, foster home, house building program, prison outreach and woodshop in Montero, Bolivia. UNC Asheville students will lend a hand to all aspects of HBM's work. In addition, UNC Asheville's Lead Poisoning Prevention Program Coordinator Linda Block will accompany the students and HBM medical teams into the community to provide free lead testing to local families.

"The students will be working hard helping others but I know they will get a lot out of the experience themselves. Volunteerism is a two-way benefit," Block said.

The students' trip to Bolivia is funded, in part, through UNC Asheville's new Mountains to the World Travel Fund. The Fund was created in fall 2007 through a grant from the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina to make international volunteerism a reality for UNC Asheville students. The $100,000 anonymous gift provides a stipend for travel to destinations around the globe, allowing students to experience new cultures while volunteering to help the neediest people in those countries. The work is meant to be tough as well as eye opening.

Another five students will travel to Andros Island in the Bahamas with the University's United Methodist Campus Ministry. Though Andros is the Bahamas' largest island, poverty plagues its communities. Bahamas Methodist Habitat works to provide housing for the island's poorest residents; UNC Asheville students will be helping with the program's roofing projects.

Jennifer Martin, UNC Asheville United Methodist Campus Ministry director, said that students are very excited about the trip and the opportunity to help the island's residents.

"This is the first international trip for four of the students, which makes this spring break very special," she said. "It will also be a good reminder for our students that their lives on campus are very different than the lives of many people in the world. I hope the students will grow in their understanding of the global society we live in and will get a chance to know the Bahamians as people, not just people in need."

As Ball was wrapping up the final details on the New Orleans travel arrangements, she said she believes these three spring break trips are important, noting that volunteerism has made her a more well-rounded student.

"Our liberal arts education here at UNC Asheville has taught me so much about social justice," she said. "But it's one thing to have that information and another to do something about it. I'm proud we are applying action to our knowledge."