Local College Houses Students on Cruise Ship

St. Mary’s College to put displaced students on a cruise ship

An outbreak of mold at St. Mary’s College of Maryland this fall presented a logistical nightmare: There was nowhere to put the students. Hotels are scarce around the remote campus.

Then, an alumnus of this sailing-intensive school had an idea: Put them in a cruise ship. The Sea Voyager, described on this Web site as having three bars, a restaurant and a gift shop, was on the block, and it was being moved from Maine to Virginia.

St. Mary’s President Joseph Urgo made some phone calls. The Sea Voyager is now headed to his campus, where it will serve as off-shore dormitory space for 250 students until the end of the semester.  “Over the years we have often joked, Wouldn’t it be great to have an off-shore residence hall,” Urgo said.

The ship is entering the Chesapeake Bay this morning and should reach historic St. Mary’s by Friday morning. Then there is the matter of docking it. A small college dock may prove inadequate, but a larger dock maintained by Historic St. Mary’s City should suffice. If all goes well, students will board the vessel Friday night.

Someone I know has a student at St. Mary's in the affected dorm.  His solution to the problem was to go back to living at home and use the money saved to make a significant dent in the cost of a car and gasoline for commuting back and forth.

I'll bet living on a cruise ship is no fun without an endless buffet and a maid to make animals out of your towels...