You'd think that a school that began its life as a Presbyterian college and was renamed for a Republican drug store magnate might be a pretty stuffy, religious place to matriculate. Wrong. Eckerd bills itself as "the only private national liberal arts college in Florida," and it lives up to its reputation for free thinking in its 1,800-student body. The college brings in a stunning array of speakers and films, including its International Cinema Series. That's not to say there is no spiritual connection anymore; the campus icon remains the Wireman Chapel, an in-the-round sanctuary where a start-of-the-school-year convocation ceremony is held for all students. Wireman is also home to the college's Center for Spiritual Life. The campus is tucked off the Pinellas Bayway among oaks that give way to a magnificent Boca Ciega Bay waterfront. Understandably, then, Marine Sciences are big, and Eckerd's facilities include a marine lab and a marine pathobiology lab. It also has its own student-run water search-and-rescue program, EC-SAR, as well as the largest college waterfront complex south of Annapolis, Md.
Top 10 Survival Tips
Get the skinny. Listen to 99.9 FM WECX, the campus' student radio station; read The Triton, the weekly student newspaper, and the EC Review, Eckerd's annual literary magazine; or just stop by the Campus Activities Office to find out about campus events, organizations, athletics and employment. ecos.eckerd.edu/clubs/media; Brown Hall, 727-864-8895, eckerd.edu/campusactivities.
Sail away. Eckerd's extensive Waterfront Program offers a wide variety of classes, including sailing, kayaking, saltwater fishing and windsurfing. eckerd.edu/waterfront.
Park it. Ah, the joy of campus parking: EC students must register their vehicles and pay $70 a year for a parking decal. Make sure you observe the parking rules or risk getting a fine. 727-864-8260, eckerd.edu/safety/parking.
Choose your style. Out of Eckerd's nearly 2,000 students, 1,400 live on campus in one of five housing styles, ranging from traditional shared rooms and common areas to apartment-style suites. Students are also able to choose from specialized dorms: all-female, community service and pet-friendly are among the options. Bonus cut: Many of Eckerd's dorm rooms overlook Boca Ciega Bay. 727-864-8899, eckerd.edu/housing.
Go Big Green. Eckerd has instituted several environmentally friendly initiatives, including its Yellow Bike program, a free bike-share for students; a student-run recycling program; an Environmental Film Festival and the Zero Waste 2008 program, which partnered with Haslam's Bookstore, Goodwill and the Ronald McDonald House to donate reusable items that students would otherwise throw out at semester's end. eckerd.edu/green.
Get your life-saving on. Founded 30 years ago as a safety measure for Eckerd's water sports, the Eckerd College Search and Rescue team (EC-SAR) is the only student-run search and rescue in the country. SAR is run by volunteer students and has grown to include a nine-month training program and, upon completion, students volunteer 12-15 hours every week. So go ahead, try the water skis: EC-SAR has your back. 727-864-8365, eckerd.edu/waterfront/ecsar.
Wear some flowers in your hair, maybe. Eckerd is known to some as a "hippie" school; High Times once gave the school an honorable mention in its Top 10 Counterculture Campuses feature. Students frequently show up to class barefoot, and for those midday siestas there's a line of hammocks on the Gulf end of campus. Got dreadlocks and a hemp knapsack? You'll feel right at home.
Bring a laptop. It's no surprise that Eckerd was named one of the best "wired" colleges. It was one of the first colleges in Tampa Bay to allow students to connect wirelessly to the Internet anywhere on campus; study-abroad students receive their own blog; and triton.CONNECT, a social networking service, rolls out to freshmen when they're accepted.
Give back. Eckerd vigorously encourages student volunteerism (students donated over 56,000 hours last school year) and provides service opportunities ranging from alternative spring break trips to Alaska, Arizona, Costa Rica and Honduras to habitat restoration, beach clean-ups and organic farming. Eckerd also has a specialized service-learning program that allows students to perform traditional classroom assignments in conjunction with service hours to create curricula that focus on learning through experience. 727-864-7512, eckerd.edu/servicelearning.
Party! There's no shortage of parties at Eckerd College. A former student gave CL the lowdown. "Kappa and Zeta — for the uninitiated, all of Eckerd's dorms go by Greek letters — each throw great parties. Certain clubs throw great parties — Eckerd's Homeless Outreach throws an underwear party, Ale Connoisseur Clubs does some classy beer tastings. Some memorable things from last year included Zeta's Halloween party and the Kappa Ball, a gender-bending interpretation of the school's official Spring Ball, which was also a great party."
This article appears in Aug 20-26, 2008.