Impact DR

Impact DR

Overview

This summer, USY is partnering with Cambio Trips in the Dominican Republic. Participants will engage in various community service projects, including teaching English, leading art projects, and facilitating sports games. 

Basics

  • June 29-July 10, 2025
  • 9th-12th graders
  • $4,099

What's Included

✈️ International Flight from NYC

🚌 Land Transportation

🏨 Accommodations

🥙 Meals & Snacks

🎫 Programming & Entry Fees

🌴 40-50 service hours

Volunteer in the community – past Dominican Republic volunteer trips have created volleyball courts, painted murals on fences, cleaned the Jewish Cemetery… but the trip favorite is always working with the children at the local summer camp! Take cooking and dance lessons. Relax on beautiful beaches. Kayak and paddleboard.  Learn about Dominican Jewish history at the Sosua Jewish Museum. Practice valuable Spanish skills.

Frequently Asked Questions

June 29-July 10 ( please note that we meet at JFK and stay overnight on the 29th and fly out first thing in the morning on the 30)

The number of participants range from 12-20.

The group is accompanied by a team of madrichim (counselors). In the past, staff on IMPACT DR have been year-round USY staff members, and Jewish youth professionals. Information on our staff members will be sent to participants a few weeks prior to departure.

Our group flight will leave out of and return to JFK Airport in New York City. Participants are responsible for arranging travel to and from JFK to their home cities. During the group’s time in the Dominican Republic, they travel by bus with the same bus driver for the entire duration of the program.

Participants on IMPACT DR will enjoy local delicacies that include many fruits and vegetables. All meals throughout the week are vegetarian and include fish and beans. Salads, pizza and pasta are also provided. On Shabbat, we are provided with meat meals thanks to the Chabad of Santo Domingo. All of the meals take place in local restaurants.

The group stays in the same hotel throughout the entirety of the program. The hotels have air-conditioning, Wi-Fi, a pool, and hot water. All of the hotels we have stayed at in the past have been eco-hotels – hotels that have made improvements to their structure in order to minimize their impact on the environment.

USY is partnering with Cambio Trips this summer while in the Dominican Republic. Our groups will work on various projects with local community members, including working at a camp teaching children English, leading art projects, and facilitating sports games in local villages. Past projects have included building a swing set, repainting a school, planting a vegetable garden and trees for shade, and building a volleyball court. Participants have also cleaned and repainted tombstones at the Jewish Cemetery in Sosua. USYers will leave the DR having completed 40-50 service hours.