Since 2000, while most college students are
reveling in the sun and surf during spring break, Indiana
University School of Dentistry (ISUD) students and faculty members
headed south to work with rural populations in Mexico and Haiti.
This Alternative Spring Break Program was an effort to give
students an opportunity to engage in a service-learning experience that
could not be accomplished within the four wall of a dental school.
 The group that
goes to
Calnali,
Mexico is part of an interdisciplinary team composed of students and
faculty from Indiana University Schools of Medicine, Nursing and
Dentistry. Students
accepted for the Mexico program are able to communicate in Spanish.
While in Calnali, students have no clinical facility to work in, so
they provide educational presentations, sealants and simple
clinical procedures using field equipment.
Dr. E. Angeles Martinez Mier, who was raised in Mexico, is the
IUSD faculty mentor for this group.
Dr. Timothy Carlson, who was a
volunteer dentist in Haiti for two years and speaks Haitian Creole, leads
the Haiti group. The team is
able to provide full restorative services by working in the Christianville
Mission, which has a well-equipped dental clinic.
Both Faculty mentors have had
extensive experience in their respective country, are fluent in the local
language and provide preparatory classes on culture, language, health
issues and political issues prior to the students' departure.
Both groups have close communication with local healthcare providers
during the program planning and implementation stages, and the teams' presence was by
invitation of the local communities.
 Students
are responsible for fund
raising and receive generous support from Indiana Dental Association,
alumni members, families, friends and local organizations.
They also hold raffles and pizza and are successful in
fully funding the program.
After returning, students provide
a presentation for IUSD students, faculty and staff.
This exercise encourages the teams to reflect on their experiences
and identify the parts of the experience that are most meaningful and
educational for them and that provide the greatest service to the
communities they visited. IUSD
plans to continue offering Alternative Spring Break to students to provide
service to underserved communities and to enhance students' global
awareness, and cultural competency.
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