Alternative Weekend (AW) Volunteer Application Fall 2021
Alternative Weekend 2021 will run the weekend of November 12 - 14. All trips will take place in the New England area (approx. 3 hour drive from Boston). To secure a spot on one of our trips, please apply by our priority deadline, October 10, 2021, 11:59PM EST. After this, all applications will be considered on a rolling basis.

Please complete this application after you've thoroughly read the Alt Weekend Fall 2021 Information Packet:

Alt Weekend Fall 2021 Information Packet: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1k4ygv_G47pvY26CU2lReNWSYKCT_tbpgVFnBCgGjDgE/edit?usp=sharing

Your participation fee of $100 covers all transportation, food, housing, and service. Thanks to a generous gift from Community Service and Civic Engagement at Northeastern, this opportunity is provided at a significantly subsidized cost.

In this application, you will be asked to reflect upon the following 3 questions (200-300 words each):
- Why do you want to participate in Alternative Weekend 2021 and what do you hope to gain from the experience?

- Alternative Breaks is a very team-focused experience that requires all members to actively participate. Please provide an example of a time when you contributed to the success of a team.

- Community Service and Civic Engagement at Northeastern uses the Asset Based Community Development Approach to community service and engagement. Please review the following definitions and respond to the prompt below:

Asset Based Community Development (ABCD): This model holds that the university is not an “expert” bringing the benefit of its knowledge and authority to the community, but rather should see local community members as the experts on their own local conditions, resources, knowledge, culture, values, priorities for change, etc. From this perspective, the university establishes a relationship based on dialog, partnership, and facilitation. Asset-based approaches seek not to start with a problem or a lack, but set out to identify existing positive assets and capabilities of a community or group.

Deficit Perspective: The perception and labeling of communities in terms of its deficits or what it lacks – poverty, unemployment, lack of education and skills. This is a very disempowering discourse, enlisting “poor” or “disadvantaged” groups as clients into a welfare system that maintains them in a dependent position. The assumptions informing deficit approaches fail to consider the agency of community members and create and maintain a relationship of power and inequality between the university and client group.

PROMPT: After reflecting on the difference between ABCD and the deficit perspective, why do you think the ABCD approach is vital when participating in a travel-based service program like Alternative Weekend?


Email *
First Name *
Last Name *
Cell Phone # *
Major(s)/Minor(s) *
Expected Graduation Year *
If you are 21 or older at the time of the trip, are you willing to drive a rental vehicle for the program? *
The University Representative and at least one student will drive rental vehicles (booked by Community Service and Civic Engagement at Northeastern) for the weekend to transport the team. Drivers will be required to be certified by Northeastern. If you will be under 21 as of October 12, 2021, please check "No or unable."
I understand that all payments made toward my program fee are non-refundable. *
Alternative Weekend program fees are non-refundable due to the fact that these program fees are used by Community Service and Civic Engagement at Northeastern to pay for non-recoverable expenses in advance of the trips. An expense becomes non-recoverable when it has already been paid out to a vendor. Non-recoverable expenses vary by individual trip and may include, but are not limited to: airfare, housing, program fees, transportation and administrative fees. The decision to participate in the Alternative Weekend (AW) program involves an investment of money and requires a commitment on the part of the volunteer to fully prepare in order to experience the program's full benefits. Anyone interested in participating in the program is urged to plan carefully and to be completely familiar with the withdrawal policy before applying. This means we are unable to refund trips regardless of student illness or injury, change in schedules or interest or other extenuating circumstances. The AW refund policies supersede Northeastern University's on‐campus refund policies. Please initial below to confirm you have read and understand this policy.
I have read the AW 2021 Info Packet and I agree to the rules of the program, including the Substance-Free policy. *
Initial below
Would you like to be considered for a scholarship? *
If Yes: Community Service and Civic Engagement at Northeastern strives to make all service opportunities accessible to students across Northeastern. We will be working in collaboration with Student Financial Services to determine demonstrated financial need for the scholarship award process.
Clear selection
Next
Clear form
Never submit passwords through Google Forms.
This content is neither created nor endorsed by Google. Report Abuse - Terms of Service - Privacy Policy
Google Forms