To most college students, Spring Break in Mexico means fun in the sun and a chance to party. But four Harvey Mudd College students recently envisioned a different scenario altogether: helping impoverished villagers in Mexico.

As part of the service-learning component of their Introduction to Humanities course, the students spent four days in San Antonia de las Minas—a colony set 20 miles inland from Ensenada and populated by the Mixteco, an indigenous people from southern Mexico.

In collaboration with the West Covina Calvary Chapel, the HMC group helped load and distribute donations of food and clothing, played with children from the colony and assisted the villagers with ongoing efforts to construct a church.

“This was my first experience past the United States border, and it was unforgettable,” says Trevor Ashley ‘09. “I truly did not know what I was getting myself into, nor was I excited about spending four days of my spring vacation without a decent shower.

“But by the time I left, I’d moved beyond shallow worries like hot showers and getting a good grade on a math test,” Ashley adds. “Working with the Mixteco community helped me see what’s important.”

At the end of the four-day trip, not only had the Mixteco villagers advanced one step closer to having their church, the HMC group had learned lessons that can’t be found in a textbook.

“The experience dramatically reaffirmed my optimism about the good that can come out of communities in general, and also about the possibilities that my own community back at Mudd has to offer me,” said Leah Anderson ‘09.

This change in perspective is common, says Debra Mashek, assistant professor of psychology, who traveled with the students.

“When you experience other people’s reality in conjunction with those actual people, you see firsthand that humanity is a constant,” she says.

“I’m thrilled that HMC is the kind of place where I can pursue community-based experiences with my students. It’s an amazing platform for building relationships and defining values.”