TAMPA, Fla. -- A group of teens from Roland Park K-8 Magnet School in Tampa are getting ready to take a life-changing journey to Central America.
- Students to build bathrooms for handicapped students
- Teens raised $20k for trip
- Students depart Sunday morning
They're headed to Costa Rica to build handicap accessible bathrooms at a high school where 10 percent of the students are disabled.
It's not an easy job.
"I don't have very much experience with this," said 14-year-old Asher Montgomery.
But the possibilities are exciting to the teens. It's why they raised more than $20 thousand for the trip.
"Really I just want to help," said 14-year-old Alex Fleischmann. "I want them to be in a better situation than they are now."
It is the second time Roland Park students have left the country for a service project. Last year, a smaller group volunteered in the Dominican Republic.
"It felt really good to make a strong positive impact on other people's lives and something that just made me feel good on the inside," said 15-year-old Charles Davidson.
Administrators at Roland Park K-8 Magnet School began planning the trips as a way to give students exposure to international service and provide an edge when applying to college.
Assistant Principal Cara Von Ancken said some students were having problems getting into state colleges because of the lack of international service.
"Everyone is doing beach clean ups, everyone is helping on a local level, but what are kids really doing on a global level?" said Von Ancken. "Are they really going outside of their comfort zone?"
The students leave for Costa Rica on Sunday morning.