By Amanda Brody

Basking in the sunlight is a peaceful, serene place in which the only sound heard is the light splashing of swimmers gliding through the water.

This is not the scene of a deserted island, but it might as well be, because the Swim Center is a hidden gem on the University’s campus.

The smell of chlorine lingers in the air at this 15-foot Olympic size pool equipped with 16 blue and white lane lines and built-in starting blocks. But, you barely see any students swimming with the exception for those taking Swim for Fitness, a University course. Otherwise, the pool is teeming with wrinkly, old men in their tiny Speedo bathing suits.

When stepping inside the locker room, the sight becomes unbearable with open showers, where most of the older women decide that they should be fully undressed. This may not be the most appetizing environment for young students, because it’s definitely not a place to meet someone your own age.

“The average crowd was made up of senior citizens,” said Kate Grossman, senior speech communications major and former student lifeguard. “Every once in a while I would see a few students come in on their own, but for the most part the only students I saw were the ones coming in for class.”

According to Swim Center officials, only about 30 students frequent the Swim Center each day. For a University that has an enrollment of about 12,000 that is only three one-thousandths of one percent of the student body.

“I’ve seen a few students there, but it’s always the same people,” said Anton Karbuschev, a junior athletic training and exercise specialist major.

The pool is free for all students and alumni with an alumni card, but most students don’t even know about the pool.

“I actually knew the pool existed, but my friends would say ‘Huh, there’s a pool?'” said Karbushev.

Classes like Swim for Fitness, Swimming I, Water Polo, Scuba Diving, Aquarobics and Lifeguarding are all taught at the Swim Center. These are not required classes, but physical fitness majors must take at least one aquatics course.

“Swimming is such an important thing, especially on Long Island with all the backyard pools and beaches, swimming should almost be a requirement,” said Professor Enid Friedman.

It seems that the University doesn’t do enough to publicize the pool. It is absent from campus tours and there is limited information on the University’s Web site.

“Honestly, I don’t really know where it is,” said Erin Furman, a sophomore print journalism major. “I know we have one, but I’ve never seen it.”

If students aren’t looking for the Swim Center they will probably never find it because it is hidden behind the Physical Fitness Center.

“Most students don’t use it because they probably don’t know about it,” said Friedman.

Another reason students don’t know about the Swim Center is because there is no National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) swim team, despite the conspicuous NCAA banners that hang on the Swim Center’s walls.

“It is shameful that with such great facilities like our Olympic-sized pool we do not have a team,” said Diana La Torre, co-founder of the Swim Club who graduated this past December.

In the late 1970s it was Eve Atkins, the Director of Women’s Athletics, who was the driving force in establishing the Swim Center. It was her hope to have a pool and a team, but when she left the University, all that stood was the Swim Center.

According to the Student Government Association (SGA), in 2005 a few students established a swim club. Its purpose was to gather students interested in swimming to work on swimming techniques and take advantage of the Swim Center.

In order to establish the swim club through SGA, it needed 10 people that were interested. Many fellow students seemed to be really excited about the new club, but as soon as the club was official, people lost interest.

“A lot of times when we had a meeting only me and the president would show up and maybe some one else,” said co-founder Claudia Debelova, senior finance major. “There were a bit of people interested in the club, but they never seemed to want to practice.”

The club proposed to have competitions against other schools and take trips to other universities to watch swim meets.

“When people did show up to practice, a lot them could barely swim,” said Debelova. “Therefore, a lot of times practices turned out to be lessons.”

By Spring 2006, the club was declared defunct by SGA. Debelova and La Torre blame this on changes in SGA and the club’s small budget that ultimately led to its termination.

As for a team in the future, organization and dedicated membership seem to be the key.

“I would be really glad to hear there are students that are willing to take the next step and bring back the Swim Club to Hofstra University,” said La Torre.

The facility does not lie vacant just because there is no team. In fact, it is rented out for over $1,000 each year to the Long Island Express, a member club of USA Swimming. There are also members, mostly senior citizens, who pay over $300 per year to use the facility.

Professor Friedman suggests that because the Swim Center generates revenue, the University’s own team would not be profitable.

“We could not get income from the pool if we had our own team, which is why it is better to rent it out,” said Friedman.

Another reason has to do with the NCAA itself and the fact that a school must have an even number of men’s and women’s teams. If there was only interest for a swim team for one gender, another sport would have to be incorporated for the other.

Lacking the motivation of a scholarship, most days during a school year are too cold for students to dip their toes into the water.

Perhaps it isn’t the inconvenience or the lack of publicity, maybe swimming is no longer a youthful sport or exercise.

At the Nassau County Aquatic Center located just 2.3 miles from the University, they barely see any young students there either. Most of their recreational swimmers are senior citizens, people on their way to and from work and young kids taking swim lessons.

Considering the amount of time college students spend getting in shape at the gym, it’s a wonder that they don’t utilize the Swim Center. Besides being a cardio workout, swimming also helps to tone and strengthen almost every muscle in the body. Swimming relieves resistance that other workouts cause, which can be a great for injured athletes.

So how can the University get students to go?

The University ought to publicize the swim center and hold events there during freshman orientation. At the beginning of the spring semester or even to kickoff a new school year, student activities can host a beach party, with water games and music. Greek life and other student clubs can use the Swim Center to host swim-a-thons and raise money for charities.

The NCAA sign at the Swim Center, even though there is not a club.

The Swim Center on campus is used for class, but also open for memberships for a fee.