Lancaster Community
Events Open to the Community
Our Lancaster neighbors are welcome to attend any of the public lectures, art exhibitions, dances, musical performances, and theater performances F&M sponsors every academic year.
Common Hour
Common Hour is a weekly event bringing speakers to campus to present and discuss diverse and compelling topics. The surrounding Lancaster community is welcome to gather with us for this culturally and academically enriching hour once a week.
Amenities Available to the Community
F&M Libraries
Lancaster County residents are invited to become a "Friend" of the F&M libraries, which gives them access to a collection of more than 500,000 volumes, 400,000 government documents and subscriptions to 1,600 newspapers, journals and magazines.
Spalding Conservancy
The Keith and Dorothy Spalding Conservancy is a 50-acre, urban conservancy less than one mile from campus. Our Lancaster neighbors are welcome to use the small trail system for recreation.
Phillips Museum of Art
The Phillips Museum, housed in the Steinman College Center (622 College Ave.), is home to several galleries and hosts exhibitions and special events throughout the year.
Music Concerts
Several concerts are held throughout the academic year at the Barshinger Center for Musical Arts in Hensel Hall (620 College Ave.). The Barshinger Center was designed by one of the world’s pre-eminent acousticians, Lawrence Kierkegaard, and is renowned for its acoustics.
Theater and Dance
Students and professional performers alike also animate the stage at Roschel Performing Arts Center (630 College Ave.) throughout the academic year. Our historic Green Room Theatre (530 College Ave.) also hosts student productions.
Philadelphia Alumni Writers House
The Philadelphia Alumni Writers House (633 College Ave.) is a center of creative innovation on campus, drawing writers and readers from every corner of campus and the community. You are welcome to join Writers House events, including the yearly Emerging Writers Festival — a hallmark event that invites the country’s most exciting emerging authors to F&M to host readings, craft talks, and writing workshops.
Klehr Center for Jewish Life
The Klehr Center for Jewish Life (645 College Ave.) is the place to explore the academic, religious and social dimensions of Jewish culture. It enriches Jewish life on campus and in the Lancaster community, supports the College’s growing Judaic studies program and offers a place for groups of all faiths and backgrounds to gather for discussions, reading groups and classes.
Joseph International Center
The Joseph International Center (701 College Ave.) is the heart of F&M’s global community. The center hosts speakers, global lunches, and coffee hours, all with the intention of bringing the F&M community together across borders, cultures and languages.
Recreational Facilities
Community members are welcome to use the College’s outdoor track at Harrisburg and College avenues. They are also welcome to use Brooks Tennis Center, a lighted, eight-court square adjacent to the Alumni Sports & Fitness Center on Harrisburg Avenue.
Conference and Events Services
The Office of Conference & Event Services is the one-stop shop for event planning
on campus for external clients. From mid-May through early August, we specialize in
renting college facilities for conference and camp use. During the academic year,
we assist in planning conferences, athletic events, business meetings, and educational
classes.
Become a Partner with F&M
The College’s proximity to downtown Lancaster has created meaningful partnerships between city agencies and F&M. We partner with more than 100 businesses, nonprofits, organizations and schools to create meaningful off-campus opportunities for students and faculty. Each year, more than 550 students participate in local research, internships and service projects in both the city and county.Read More »
Health & Safety
Emergency Medical Services
F&M Emergency Medical Service (EMS) is a Basic Life Support (BLS) unit licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. We provide emergency response to the members of the F&M and surrounding Lancaster City community. View our coverage map (PDF).
AED Locations on Campus
We have more than 50 AEDs located across campus. If you find yourself in the middle of an emergency, you can use this map to locate where an AED is available near you.
F&M in the Community
December 5, 2024
Student Research Explores Pennsylvania History
Undergraduate research and community-based learning are key components of Reckoning With Lancaster, a curricular project at F&M supported by a Humanities for All Time Grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Students Jessica Kinker ’26 and Hallie Hushion ’25 had a chance to experience both this summer while researching the Carlisle Indian Industrial School.
November 27, 2024
Students Explore Campus and Community in History of Science Course
First-year students at Franklin & Marshall College are heading out of the classroom and into the laboratory—and surrounding community—as part of the course “A Hands-On History of Biology.”
November 4, 2024
‘I Wanted to Become Better Connected with Lancaster’: Reflections from a Municipal Internship
Ethan Grabowski ’26, a government and history major, spent his summer interning at the Lancaster County Commissioners’ Office. See a day in his life in politics.