Spring break
Spring break is an annual vacation period for college students in the United States, typically marked by a week-long break from classes, during which many travel to warmer destinations, especially beaches. This tradition, which has roots in ancient celebrations of fertility by the Greeks and Romans, gained modern significance in the 20th century, particularly after the establishment of competitive swimming in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The city became a popular training ground for college swim teams in the late 1930s, eventually drawing large crowds of students eager to relax and party.
Popular spring break destinations include beaches in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Florida, where festivities often involve heavy alcohol consumption and partying. However, this celebratory atmosphere can lead to serious health and safety issues, including spikes in traffic accidents and incidents related to excessive drinking. Studies indicate that binge drinking is prevalent during spring break, with many students consuming dangerous amounts of alcohol. In response to these risks, some colleges are promoting "alternative" spring break options that focus on community service, allowing students to engage in meaningful activities while reducing the likelihood of excessive partying. Overall, spring break is viewed by many as a rite of passage, albeit one that carries potential consequences that warrant consideration.
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Spring break
Spring break refers to the week when college students across the United States take a break from classes and flock to beaches in warmer climates to party. The vacations usually involve high amounts of alcohol and even drugs. Popular spring break spots include beaches in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Florida. Spring break has been immortalized in television and film since the 1950s and 1960s, which has allowed the tradition to continue to grow in popularity. Movies such as Where the Boys Are, a popular 1960 film based on a book by Michigan State University professor Glen Swarthout, who chronicled his experiences observing a group of students on spring break in Florida, helped the tradition take hold.
Overview
The tradition of a spring break dates back thousands of years to the ancient Greeks and Romans. Spring was considered a season of fertility and awakening and was usually celebrated along with the Greek and Roman gods of wine, Dionysus and Bacchus, respectively.
More modern spring break traditions got their start much later with the world of competitive swimming. The city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, built the first Olympic-size swimming pool in Florida in 1928. At that time, indoor pools were not very popular, so competitive swimmers had to wait for the weather to warm up before they could start practicing outside. As word of Fort Lauderdale's pool, known as the Casino Pool, spread, Colgate University swim coach Sam Ingram decided to take his team to the pool to train in the spring of 1936 in hopes of getting a competitive edge with the early training. More coaches soon followed suit, and the city of Fort Lauderdale launched the College Coaches' Swim Forum at the Casino Pool in 1938. The events grew in popularity, attracting thousands of college students each spring to swim—and drink.
Many consider spring break a rite of passage for college students, but it can have deadly consequences. According to a study published in 2015, spring break leads to a spike in traffic accidents and deaths resulting from those crashes. Heavy alcohol consumption on spring break can lead to serious health consequences or even death. According to Robert Glatter in Forbes, data from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism show that nearly half of all college students binge drink, and that number skyrockets during spring break. Moreover, the American College of Health found that the average male drank up to eighteen drinks per day during spring break, and the average female consumed up to ten.
The high level of drinking can lead to higher levels of rule breaking and lawlessness as well. So many arrests are made during spring break that a sheriff in Bay County, Florida, created a spring break jail right on Panama City Beach so officers did not have to transport drunk partiers to the regular county jail 25 miles away. Many cities have become disenchanted with spring breakers and the unruliness they bring to a city. Miami, a popular destination during spring break, announced new rules in 2024 to attempt to curb lawlessness after two shootings during spring break the previous year. The city's social media campaign pushed the slogan "breaking up" with spring breakers. Other Florida cities also want to curb the number of rowdy spring breakers they receive each year.
With the annual partying having such extreme consequences, many schools are offering "alternative" spring break trips to lessen the likelihood of excessive drinking. These trips often are service-related, with students and faculty volunteering for organizations such as Habitat for Humanity or soup kitchens.
Bibliography
Bohn, Lauren. "A Brief History of Spring Break." Time, 30 Mar. 2009, content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1888317,00.html. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Glatter, Robert. "Spring Break's Greatest Danger." Forbes, 11 Mar. 2014, www.forbes.com/sites/robertglatter/2014/03/11/spring-breaks-greatest-danger/#41ee15c3553f. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
"The History of Spring Break." Huffington Post, 13 Mar. 2012, www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/the-history-of-spring-break‗n‗1342353.html Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
"History of Spring Break." SpringBreak.com, 2015, www.springbreak.com/History/Spring‗Break‗History‗1.html. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Kennedy, Pagan. "Who Made Spring Break?" New York Times Magazine, 22 Mar. 2013, www.nytimes.com/2013/03/24/magazine/who-made-spring-break.html. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Padilla, Lauren. "6 Things You Didn't Know about Spring Break." USA Today, 23 Feb. 2017, college.usatoday.com/2017/02/23/6-things-you-didnt-know-about-spring-break/. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Rickett, Oscar, and John Klingler. "An American Explains Spring Break to British People." Vice, 25 Mar. 2013, www.vice.com/sv/article/qba7g3/explaining-spring-break-to-the-british. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Tolentino, Daysia. “Miami Beach Is ‘Breaking Up With Spring Breakers.” NBC News, 4 Mar. 2024, www.nbcnews.com/news/miami-beach-officials-spring-break-rules-warning-rcna141650. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Toppa, Sabrina. "The Percentage Increase in Traffic Deaths during Spring Break Will Shock You." Time, 19 Mar. 2015, time.com/3750449/spring-break-traffic-accidents-cars-alcohol-death/. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.
Zinkula, Jacob. “Some of Florida’s Cities Don’t Want Spring Breakers. With the State’s Economy Booming, Many Don’t Need Them.” Business Insider, 1 Apr. 2023, www.businessinsider.com/florida-cities-spring-break-economy-doesnt-need-them-2023-3. Accessed 18 Jan. 2025.