ASB adviser Kevin Schwemmin said most alternative breaks at other colleges and universities already were alcohol-free.

“Alcohol doesn’t play a positive role in the program,” Schwemmin said. “It doesn’t add anything, but it has revealed a real chance for it to have a negative impact on the group.”

Although ASB trips at MSU have never been designated as alcohol-free, the idea has been discussed in the past, Barajas said.

Every person participating in an ASB trip this year signed an agreement stating they will not consume alcohol.

Future participants also will be required to sign alcohol-free pledges.

Barajas, who is traveling to Querétaro, Mexico for an ASB, said alcohol has not been a problem on previous trips. Rather, the alcohol-free policy stemmed from concerns about liability issues and other problems that could arise when students consume alcohol on the trips, she said.

“We have students going out under the ASB name,” Barajas said. “And sometimes when they are drinking, they don’t make the best decisions.”

Discussion about how to keep groups socially united also contributed to the decision, Barajas said.

She said leaders were concerned about groups becoming divided if alcohol was involved. Differing moral views about alcohol usage between ASB participants also could make it difficult for nondrinkers to be around others who are drinking, she said.

Alyn Kiel, an agricultural and natural resource communications and interdisciplinary studies in social science and international studies senior and a site leader for the ASB trip to Adjuntas, Puerto Rico, said she agrees with the new policy.

Kiel said it’s just better for ASB participants to stay away from drinking when they should be focusing on volunteering and educational opportunities.

“It’s important to have less of the spring break party atmosphere and more of the heart to serve,” she said. “I hope I can make a small difference where I can.”