For over 30 years, Break Away has promoted the development of quality community engagement programs through justice-based trainings, consultation, and connecting campuses and communities.

 

MISSION

Break Away's mission is to inspire and activate thoughtful community engagement through justice-based trainings and programs.


Put simply, we provide the tools and lasting support to foster successful community engagement and to help participants learn how — and why — to make the community a priority in their values and actions.


History

  • 1991

    Break Away started small, but we were founded on big ideas. Michael Magevney and Laura Mann, two Vanderbilt University students, began Break Away in June 1991. Thanks to the tremendous financial and administrative support, Break Away operated for nearly a decade as a program at Vanderbilt — growing from a fledgling alternative break resource center to the leading national organization.

  • 2000

    Break Away incorporated as an independent 501(c)(3) and was graciously housed by the Center for Civic Education and Service at Florida State University.

  • 2007

    Break Away headquarters relocated to Atlanta, Georgia as part of an arrangement with Hands On Network/Points of Light to pursue a shared goal of creating meaningful volunteer and social advocacy opportunities for recent college graduates and alternative break alumni.

  • 2011

    Break Away struck out on our own and got an office in the Atlanta area.

  • 2020

    The COVID-19 presented a unique opportunity to become a remote organization. The pandemic also was a time of expansion — we now serve all college + university programs who engage in community work.

  • 2021

    Break Away’s network continued to include of over 150 chapter schools + more than 150 community organization + housing partners, and thousands of community engagement alumni worldwide. As true believers in the power of positive change, we’re proud of our own growth and transformation over the years.

  • 2022

    We launched a new mission, vision + values after 2 years of conversations. We also updated the name of our Alternative Break Citizenship Schools (ABCS) conferences to Actively Building Community Solidarity (ABCS) conferences to better reflect our growing audience + purpose.

Staff

Our staff’s backgrounds in service learning and higher education give Break Away a unique perspective on community engagement and the role and responsibility the individual plays within the greater community.

  • Director of Education + Research

    Meg joined the Break Away team in the summer of 2019, coming in with over a decade of student affairs practitioner experience in queer and trans student services and housing at the University of Georgia (UGA), Carnegie Mellon University, Guilford College, and Warren Wilson College. They also currently hold a board position with the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS).

    Meg has a bachelors in Outdoor Leadership from Warren Wilson College, a master’s in Community Leadership from Duquesne University, and a PhD from the Mary Frances Early College of Education at UGA. Their research focuses on student activism and racial justice in the academy. Prior to their time spent in student affairs, Meg worked as a middle school teacher, an emergency medical technician, and played professional football for the Pittsburgh Passion.


Training Cohort

Former Break Away employees, interns, and other content experts make up our training cohort. These folks support the full-time staff in facilitating our justice-based leadership trainings and conferences.


Board of Directors

  • Steph Ralls | Chair

    United Way for Southeastern Michigan | Spokane, WA

  • Concetta D’Alessio | Secretary

    Berdon LLP | Tarrytown, NY

  • Mandy Wrinkle | Treasurer

    Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington | Washington, DC

  • Cyan McFarlane, MD

    UNC Hospitals | Durham, NC

  • Darrell Deas

    Davidson College | Charlotte, NC

  • Nicole Bidolli

    WebMD Health Services | Greater Detroit, MI