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A different kind of spring break
ON ALTERNATE SPRING BREAK — Eight students from
Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida are busy working at
Staunton River State Park this week. Shown above are front:
Alice Fuldauer, Kate Rost of Cincinnati, Ohio, Caitlin Brett of
Napa, California, Jocelyn Angel of Brookline, New Hampshire,
Nathan Younger, SRST Chief Ranger, and back row: Grace Olson of
Monticello, Minnesota, Cal Dorough of Atlanta, Georgia, Sam
Patterson of Birmingham, Alabama, Adam Layman and
Reed Stanley of the Park system, Toni Darling of St. Petersburg
and Brent Shepherd of the Park staff. (SOMcL photo)
While it's somewhat traditional for college students to head to the
warm beaches and sunshine of Florida for their Spring Break, a group
of
students from St. Petersburg, Florida is reversing that trend this
week.
Eight students from Eckerd College are spending this week, working
on
various improvement projects at Staunton River State Park. The
students
arrived at the park on Saturday, March 15 after a twelve hour drive
from St. Petersburg.
And they've been busy ever since. One of their first projects was to
create a habitat for fish in Edmunds Lake, part of the park's newly
acquired property. Using old Christmas trees collected by the Town
of
South Boston, the group made the artificial habitat on which algae
grows, providing food for fish as well as a hiding place from
predators.
On a sunny Tuesday afternoon members of the group were busy staining
the exteriors of the park's rental cabins and still facing more
challenges over the next several days, including landscaping and
trail
maintenance.
One member of the group, Alice Fuldauer said she just "wanted to do
something productive" during her spring break. And Chief Park Ranger
Nathan Younger responded that park employees were mighty happy to
have
the bunch. "They do a really great job and get done so much of the
work
that we staffers have little time to carry out," he said.
Mike Robilotto, who serves as Director of Residential Life for
Eckerd
College and was the leader of the group, said the private, liberal
arts
school places an emphasis on innovative programs and leadership
development. This program, aptly named the Alternative Spring Break,
is
one that the college has embarked upon for a number of years with
students participating in projects all across the nation, as well as
internationally.
This year, Robilotto said, 130 students are carrying out projects in
a
number of places, one as far away as Ukraine, another in Peru.
"We actually had more students sign up to take part than we had
spots
for them," he said, noting that the college plans to expand the
program
in coming years.
Students receive no pay for their effort. In fact they pay to
participate in the program, being responsible for their
transportation
costs, as well as for their food. The director said the cost for
his group's trip to Staunton River runs about $150 each.
Robilotto said he chose Staunton River State Park over several other
localities because he had earlier gone to the state park at Claytor
Lake and another time to Smith Mountain. "It's a great place to come
to," he said.