ASB’s presence on the Vanderbilt campus is extraordinary. Everywhere you look, you’ll see fliers, posters and banners advertising the program and warning students of the deadline to submit applications. When it gets closer to Spring Break, it’s practically guaranteed that at least some of your friends will be talking about their upcoming trip with ASB. But what exactly is this massive organization? And what do they do? Here, you can find out about both ASB and the woman behind it all, co-chair Megan Twomey!
1) What exactly is ASB?
ASB is currently the largest student-run organization on the Vanderbilt campus, sending over 450 students each March to serve in communities both domestically and internationally. However, ASB is so much more than a weeklong service trip. In ASB we have something called “the triangle.” The three components of this triangle are education, service, and reflection. We make it a focus of our organization to integrate all three of these components into our pre-trip meetings, our on site service, and our post-trip enterprises. As an organization, ASB is really just a platform for Vanderbilt students to get involved and exposed to a ton of different social issues which our world faces in the hopes of creating active citizens who will go out and become local advocates and instruments of social change in whatever community they visit. ASB is all about learning and reflecting on the service you do in order to create an experience that is utterly unforgettable. And at the end of the day, it is the people who make up ASB who define what this organization is: a group of respectful, open, and immensely compassionate college students who want to learn and have an amazing time committing to service.
2) What is your role within ASB?
I am one of the two Co-Chairs of ASB (Trevor Geller is my amazing counterpart). However, at the end of the day, I am just one of twelve executive board members who this year will make ASB happen. All of us live and breathe ASB not because we have to in order to send over 450 students domestically and internationally every year, but because we all simply love this organization and the people involved in it.
As far as being a Co-Chair goes, Trevor and I are the main contacts between Vanderbilt Administration and the larger ASB community. Our main job is to facilitate the logistical side of ASB. Essentially, we love working behind the scenes to make sure that everyone has the best time before, during, and after their spring break trips.
3) What kind of places do ASB volunteers get to go?
Well, this year we have 39 amazing sites that we will send roughly 450 Vanderbilt students to over spring break. These sites are all over the US (from Portland, OR, to Brownsville, TX, to Boston, MA, and even to White Oak, TN) and we even have a few international sites (Nicaragua, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico). Our Site and Service Development Co-Chairs (Danielle Larsen and Ann Goodrich) worked tirelessly over the summer and into the school year setting up all of these amazing service opportunities. While the locations are amazing, allowing Vanderbilt ASBers to experience new cultures and ways of living domestically and internationally, the variety of service on each site is what really distinguishes our organization on campus. We learn about and do direct service, involving a multitude of societal issues ranging from homelessness, to human trafficking, to environmental preservation. All of the places ASBers travel to over spring break are unique and special in their own ways. I’m just so sad that by the time I graduate I will have only gotten to experience 4 of these amazing sites.
4) What’s the best ASB experience you’ve had?
That is the hardest question to answer because every ASB experience I have is so different and yet equally as amazing as the next. The one I thought of off the top of my head was during my sophomore year, when I was a Site Leader for the ASB site Follow Me in White Oak, TN. While we were getting to know the White Oak community, my Co-Site Leader and I took our group to “the library” for what we thought would be a concert by local musicians. When we showed up, however, it was actually just a group of about 5 musicians sitting around in a portion of the local library practicing and playing music. They graciously invited us in and through the course of a two-hour practice session, our ASB group began to sing and play with their “band.” It was an incredible way to get to know the community that we were serving in from another viewpoint. So much about ASB is learning how different social issues are connected and having the chance to interact with locals in a nontraditional setting. It really opened up the door for us to become emotionally invested in the community and the individuals we worked with all week. Sitting back and listening to my site, all surprisingly musically inclined, sing and have a great time with these locals was a life-changing experience. I am so thankful to the White Oak community for welcoming us into their lives that week, and it all started with a Monday night band practice.
5) What made you want to get involved with ASB/when did you start?
I came to Vanderbilt wanting to get involved right away, but I didn’t really know how. Actually, I applied for ASB on a whim after having a conversation with an upperclassman who encouraged me to apply because it is on the “Vandy Bucket List.” I had been involved in a lot of service in high school, but getting involved at the college level seemed like a much larger commitment, so initially I was hesitant. Either way, I applied my freshman year to be an ASB participant. From day one, I was sold. That year I met some incredible people (freshmen and upperclassmen alike) who I keep in contact with today. The service contact from that site actually is someone who I am hoping to graduate and work for come May (fingers crossed!). Anyway, seeing how much work my site leaders put into facilitating such an amazing group dynamic my freshman year, I knew I wanted to apply to be a site leader. I was fortunate enough to get to serve as a site leader for both my sophomore and junior years, helping to facilitate the education, service, and reflection of my groups in White Oak, TN and Kansas City, MO. In the beginning it was the service component of ASB that lead me to get involved; the people I have met and the relationships I have formed, however, are the reasons I keep coming back.
6) Why should students participate in ASB?
For me, one reason students should participate is that ASB is first and foremost a community. It provides a place for service-minded individuals to come together, share and build their personal passions, and advocate for all of the different social issues that ASB works with throughout the year. Secondly, ASB creates a platform for students to learn and grow as individuals. I personally have become so much more aware of different social issues, and regardless of what career path I choose, my experiences in ASB will help me to make socially conscious decisions in my future. Finally, ASB allows for the creation of amazing relationships both in the communities in which we serve and on the Vanderbilt campus. The ability to get to know 11 other people better than you know some of your best friends is an incredible opportunity that this organization affords its members. Ultimately, ASB is such an incredible way to get involved on campus, allowing you to meet amazing, inspiring individuals while gaining a global service perspective. Get involved; light up the world for what you are passionate about!
7) How do students get involved?
Well, the best way to get involved is to apply today!! This year our participant applications are due on October 11th at 5pm to the new OACS office on the second floor of Rand. Applying to be a participant is also a great starting point for all future involvement in the organization (you can serve as a site leader and even as a Board member). But, to get involved, you have to apply… get an application off of our website today!