As spring break nears, student plans vary

With spring break only a little over a month away, students are preparing for their college getaways.

Spring break for USD students begins on March 6 and goes until March 16. Students’ plans range from going home to going out of the country.

First-year Lauren Giandinoto is planning on going on a surprise trip with her father.

“I have never been on a plane before so my dad and I are planning on taking a trip somewhere that I can experience having to fly to get there,” Giandinoto said. “We are thinking about going to some place warmer like Arizona or Colorado. It’ll be nice to get a break from this cold weather that we have been having.”

She said she’s most excited to be able to experience new places with her dad.

“Since I don’t get to see my dad as much as usual, I am really excited to get to spend some quality time with him,” Giandinoto said.

First-year Nikona Monkelien is also looking to escape the South Dakota cold — she’s taking a road trip with friends to Colorado.

“Over spring break I am going to Colorado with some of my friends that live on my floor,” Monkelien said. “It should be really fun.”

Monkelien is looking forward to experiencing the beauty of the Rocky Mountains.

“Since we are road tripping down there, I can’t wait to have a week to explore Colorado and explore the mountains with my friends,” Monkelien said.

Some students are choosing to take trips a bit closer to home, such as first-year Hanna Varilek.

“I plan to go to the Black Hills and explore the town of Rapid City with some friends and go hiking for a few days,” Varilek said. “Then I’m go down to Lincoln, NE and visit our other friends that attend UNL,” Varilek said.

There are some students that aren’t doing anything extravagant for spring break. Holly Hayden, a sophomore, gets to spend her break at home working and catching up with family and friends.

“I don’t have anything too exciting going on for spring break,” Hayden said. “I am just going home Canby, MN to milk cows at my job and to hang out with my family and friends.”

Attending USD keeps Hayden fairly busy throughout the year, forcing her to have late nights and early mornings.

“Being able to sleep in is probably what I am most excited for,” Hayden said. “When I am here at USD, I don’t get to sleep in very much or go to bed too early because I am constantly studying for classes and working as an RA. It’ll be nice to be able to catch up on my sleep which I’m sure other students are looking forward to as well.”