Freshman
Move In (Click
Here for More Pictures...)
Class
of 2003... Student Pictures
Erskine
Greets Entering Class of 2003, Largest In Five Years
(whisper) I see freshmen. They're everywhere.
A “sixth sense” was not needed to detect
the largest freshman class in five years descending
on the Erskine College campus Aug. 24.
Erskine College has been preparing for the arrival
of the Class of 2003 for many weeks, and when the day
finally arrived, the skies opened over Due West,
breaking a long drought with cooling rain. “We
are expecting 156 freshmen today,” said Erskine
admissions director Jeff Craft, donning rain gear to
help freshmen move in Tuesday morning. “That's
up from 137 last year.”
This year's class is the largest since the fall of
1994. Asked what he thought had led to the enrollment
increase, Craft gave credit to the marketing campaign
launched last year, but also praised the people at
Erskine.
“The marketing campaign has gotten Erskine's
name out there, and that's exciting,” said
Craft. “I think we will see the effects of these
marketing efforts even more in succeeding classes.
The billboards have generated enthusiasm among
students, parents, alumni and other friends of
Erskine.
“But it's also the people at Erskine who help
enrollment. It's all the positive contacts
prospective students have with Erskine students, who
are by far our best recruiters,” said Craft.
“At least 35 students in this entering class
have already expressed an interest in helping with
Erskine recruiting.”
Erskine faculty, staff, and returning students
helped incoming parents and freshmen shuttle boxes
and bags from cars and trucks into dormitory rooms.
Nick Brookshire, a graduate of T.L. Hanna High
School in Anderson, had some help with his
belongings. “I didn't even get a chance to take
my stuff out of the car because everyone jumped in
and moved me into my room,” he said.
“Everyone is very helpful and there are a lot of
upperclassmen here helping us get settled and showing
us around.”
Commenting on her moving-in experience, freshman
Sara Langer, Sumter High School, said, “It was
wet!” and added, “The help was wonderful
and very impressive.”
Not everyone moving into the dorms Tuesday got
soaked. “It's been a lot of fun,” said
Leanne Walker of Laurens, a graduate of Thornwell in
Clinton. “We got here before the rain so we got
lucky.”
Freshmen offered various reasons for choosing the
small Christian liberal arts college. For some, it
was programs, for others, family tradition, for still
others, scholarship opportunities.
Chris Neal, East Henderson High School, Flat Rock,
N.C., knew that “the pre-med program had a great
reputation,” while Brandon Fender, Lexington
High School, observed that Erskine “had a great
reputation for pre-veterinary medicine.”
Christopher Nash, Greenwood High School, said,
“The music program attracted me in the first
place.”
Anna Brice, Greenville High School, granddaughter
of the late Joseph Wightman, 10th president of
Erskine College, said, “I thought I would do
better at a small school. It's sort of a family
tradition. My brother is here now, and my mom went
here.”
Carin Nickles, a graduate of Dixie High School,
who is from Donalds, Due West's closest neighboring
town, also invokes family tradition—many family
members have either worked or gone to school at
Erskine. She is pleased to be fairly close to home,
but also as independent as she wants to be.
“It's close enough to home that I can go home
when I need to, yet it's still a world away. It's a
very friendly place with a Christian attitude.”
Due West residents and Dixie High School graduates
Brandon Cox, son of Erskine alumnus and tennis coach
Vardon Cox, and twins John and Mac Storey all felt
the pull of family tradition. “Our grandparents
and great grandparents came here,” said John
Storey.
James Gowdy, of Lake Ronkokoma, N.Y., a graduate
of the Stony Brook School, comes to Erskine on a
baseball scholarship. His home is just outside New
York City, so the small town of Due West is a real
switch. “I like it. It's different from New
York,” said Gowdy. “I wanted to get away
from home and see something new.”
Blaire Oakley, a graduate of Salem High School,
Conyers, Ga., is from the Atlanta area, “This
was just my first choice,” said Oakley, winner
of one of this year's two E.B. Kennedy full
scholarships. “I like the small-town atmosphere.
It's totally different.”
Small size, friendliness, and Christian commitment
were cited as reasons for coming to Erskine by
several students, including Jaime Pace, Dorman High
School, Spartanburg. “I went to a big high
school, so I liked the size, and also the emphasis on
Christian commitment.”
Rick LaRoche, Mauldin High School, Greenville,
said, “A small family school is what I wanted
... I had a lot of help moving in today and everyone
was very nice. Everyone already knows who I am and I
don't even need a name tag.”
Cathey Chapman, Greenwood High School, echoed the
sentiments of a number of freshmen. “It's a
small atmosphere and everyone's really friendly. It's
like a family.” For Chapman, though, there is
another great advantage: “I can go home and eat
and my mom can do my laundry!”
Students from distant states or foreign countries,
who will not be able to go home for dinner or a
laundry run, also benefit from Erskine's
friendliness. Klaus Ritschewald, of Capetown, South
Africa, is here on a tennis scholarship. “It's
been a little hard to adjust,” he said.
“But everyone is really friendly.”
Jon An, West High School, Torrance, Calif., when
asked why he chose a school so far from home, said,
“It was different. My grandfather, who is a
pastor, knew some people here. It's a nice campus
with friendly people.”
Joshua Paine, Hillsborough High School, Tampa,
Fla., “spent a long time deciding I wasn't
coming to Erskine.” Describing an unusual change
of mind, Paine said, “But then I was in church
... I prayed about it and ended up here. I'm
thrilled.”
This year's freshman class is 42 percent men,
compared with 38 percent men for the freshman class
last fall. South Carolina residents account for 76
percent of entering students, or 119 of the 156
students, which is about the same as last year, with
students from other states totaling 34 and 3 from
outside the United States.
“The average SAT score for this class is
1100, so we are happy about that,” said Craft.
“Our SAT score averages count everyone in the
class—some schools exclude athletes, specially
admitted students, or other groups from their
averages. So we've increased our number by 19
students but maintained our quality. That's
exciting.”
