Mason Foster/ The Johnsonian
There may be a new saying going around campus: One student’s campus is another student’s resort.
In light of Hurricane Dorian—which affected parts of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina last week—over 100 students from the College of Charleston arrived at Winthrop University on Sept. 3 to escape the incoming storm. Joseph Valle, the College of Charleston’s assistant director of the department of residence, commented on Winthrop opening its doors to College of Charleston students.
“The students were very thankful that we had somewhere to go and people to have opened up for us,” Valle said.
Winthrop President Dan Mahony was among the faces at the orientation meeting for the College of Charleston students, giving them information on getting Wi-Fi access, food and maneuvering around campus during their stay.
“Everything went smoothly, and I believe we were able to answer all of their questions and address their concerns,” Mahony said.
The orientation invited the arriving students to make Winthrop their home during their stay. College of Charleston RA Katie Miceli said that it informed them of what facilities were open to them and how they could get meals on campus.
“I felt that they were prepared for us,” Miceli said. “All the things I was worried about [were] touched right away.”
College of Charleston freshman Sam Naradowski was impressed with how Winthrop was prepared for their stay and how Richardson Ballroom was set up in two areas for both male and female students.
“They seemed to have cots already set up for us, which was really impressive,” Naradowski said. “I’m really amazed and impressed that they were so prepared and ready to open the door and let us in.”
According to the Rock Hill Herald, Mahony commented on how the College of Charleston students will be safe from the upcoming hurricane and how the Winthrop was able to provide for the students.
“Fortunately, it looks like the storm is going to miss us completely at this point, so we’re in a good position to be able to house some of the students from a place like the College of Charleston that may get hit fairly strongly by the storm,” Mahony told the Herald.
This isn’t the first time that students from the College of Charleston have made their way to Rock Hill during hurricane season. A number of students from the College of Charleston stayed in Rock Hill during hurricane Matthew in 2017. The prior relationship between Winthrop University and the College of Charleston made it easy for them to link up.
“Having an existing relationship with Winthrop two years ago, it’s the best of worlds for us,” Valle said.
While the incoming students had access to the DiGiorgio Student Center and the West Center, College of Charleston RAs were tasked with counting the students and enforcing a curfew during their stay.
“I need to make sure that everyone is here and safe, helping the students adjust to the new surroundings,” Miceli said.
One of the ways Winthrop informed its students about the arrival of the College of Charleston students and how the university prepared for their stay was in a daily announcements email.
“Sheila Burkhalter, VP for student affairs, took the lead on coordination which included working with her counterpart at the College of Charleston and with all of the key people on our campus,” Mahony said. “We have housed students from [the College of Charleston] before, so this is not [new] for us and we have a number of people with experience preparing for this.”
Although some students were unfamiliar with their new surroundings, there were other students from the College of Charleston who had stayed at Winthrop during Hurricane Matthew. They toured campus before who could help, and asked local students for help when necessary.
“I’ve been on campus here before I moved and registered to College of Charleston so I’m familiar with the campus,” Naradowski said.
College of Charleston students were able to get around campus, interact with the residents at Winthrop and make the most of their circumstances.
“We were all very happy that we were getting away from the storm and we had a safe place to go,” Miceli said.
