F&M Stories

Members of the Class of 2027 took the first steps of their F&M journey at Convocation Aug. 25. The time-honored event signifies the start of the College’s academic year.

Through F&M’s Center for Sustained Engagement with Lancaster (CSEwL), faculty and city administrators have explored and developed bridges for the shared community's progress.

“The most valuable aspect of human exploration is the need for partnership,” said 2023 Commencement Speaker Jacob Bleacher ’00, chief exploration scientist in NASA's Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.

F&M senior Alethia Batchelder hopes to work in the conservation field, a goal made possible by generous financial support from donors. “Seeing that people care enough to give back… shows a level of community that we have here,” she said.

“I was 31 when I started and I was fresh out of the Army,” said City of Lancaster Arborist Rick Anderer ’99, former F&M grounds supervisor. “I just knew I didn’t want to do what I was doing anymore.” How did he end up as caretaker to the College’s abundant array of trees?

F&M partners with more than 100 businesses, nonprofits, organizations and schools in Lancaster. Each year, more than 550 students participate in local research, internships, and service projects in both the city and county.

What does it mean to be a Diplomat? Diplomats grow in community – a diverse mosaic of students and teachers learning from and with each other, sharing ideas and contributing to the collective knowledge for the betterment of our world.

Select students from the F&M admission applicant pool are invited to participate in iF&M, a 16-week program in the World Heritage City of Bath in southwest England.

The F&M community gathered along Harrisburg Avenue's College Square building to celebrate the commencement of construction for the Samuel N. and Dena M. Lombardo Welcome Center.

Senior Tracy Yang and juniors Emily Peaks and Georgia May are Hackman scholars researching robot-child interaction under the tutelage of Associate Professor of Psychology Lauren Howard and Assistant Professor of Computer Science Jason “Willie” Wilson.

An estimated 2,100 students, parents and alumni filled campus Oct. 27-29 for True Blue Weekend. The annual Homecoming and Family Weekend offered something for members of every generation.

Members of latest graduating class experienced an academic journey unlike any other, with a global pandemic that unfurled during their first full year on campus. They have emerged as leaders, scholars and humanitarians despite the challenges.

The Department of Religious Studies invited the college community to celebrate the weeklong creation of a Tibetan sand mandala by renowned artist and Buddhist monk Losang Samten.