Summer 2018
ALTERNATIVE
SPRING BREAK
Jennifer Sibal, Alumni Director
This spring, Western Nebraska Community College offered its
first Alternative Spring Break – a partnership between Student
Engagement and the Alumni Association. For one week, nine
students shared the same mission – lead for the cause, not
the applause. Instead of leaving for spring break, students
immersed themselves in service throughout WNCC
campus communities.
“It was great to be able to continue to give to society and the
community that has been so helpful, and so welcoming to
us as students,” said Tolu Adedoja, who participated in the
weeklong event.
The students kicked off the week Monday by helping with
registration at Scottsbluff Public Library, as well as stocking
and staffing the foot pantry at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church.
Tuesday, they shopped for homebound seniors in partnership
with the Scottsbluff Volunteer Center and Panhandle Coop,
before serving a lasagna lunch, which they made, at the Lakota
Lutheran Center.
Maro Aghoghovbia serving lasagna
at the Lakota Lutheran soup kitchen.
The group called WNCC alumni and donors on Wednesday
morning to thank them for supporting students, before
baking and delivering thank-you cookies to WNCC staff and
renovation construction workers on campus. They also went
into the community and did random acts of kindness,
like leaving free detergents with uplifting messages at
local laundromats.
“This project was a unique opportunity to connect with
community organizations, many of which were led and staffed
by Cougar alumni, to foster meaningful relationships,” shared
WNCC Alumni Director Jennifer Sibal. “Part of the mission of
the Alumni Association is to engage with current students, so
they can develop an understanding of the rich history of our
college and cultivate the core values of the Cougar spirit.”
On Thursday, the students helped with the Southern
Panhandle Sophomore Career Fair in Sidney and on Friday,
they had breakfast and discussed campus involvement
with representatives of the local domestic violence
organization, DOVES.
“One of the things I enjoyed about the week was watching us
work as a team, come together, and become a family,” said
WNCC student Jeremiah Marchington.