Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marhsall College

PIT: Putting It Together in the Community

Putting It Together in the Community
  • PIT 2010

Important Program Information

JUNE 8:  Application period is now closed.
All applicants will be notified the week of July 4 by mail and F&M email.
AUGUST 19-23:  Program dates
Who Can Apply:  Open to first-year students only.
Cost:   $200, to be paid upon acceptance into the program. This fee includes room, board and all activities.

PIT participants will move into the room they will be staying in during the semester. Upperclassman (PIT Planning Assistants) assist students and begin acclimating them to the campus.

There are four primary PIT groups you can choose from when you apply:

  • Let's Get Ready for School  This program is designed to help children from the School District of Lancaster, ages 5 and 6, prepare for the transition to first grade. Students will take the children on field trips as well as participate in other fun games and activities.
  • Friends for Life   Befriending seniors in adult day care is a very rewarding and invigorating experience. A typical day consists of playing games, talent shows and much more. Enthusiasm and the ability to listen are two necessary qualities.
  • Habitat for Humanity  This group spends working with the Lancaster area community  building or renovation projects.
  • Clean Air, Clean Water  "Interested in the environment" and "enjoys getting dirty" are the two main requirements for this program!
  • Other groups may be added to the program, depending upon response.

Please Note: We are unable to accept applications from any student who is not available each day of the program. Unfortunately, this includes international students and students who arrive on campus early for athletics.

2011 PIT is now a group on Facebook! Students who have been accepted into this program will be able to access this group.


Program Focus and Goals

PIT was established to help School District of Lancaster children who were starting school each Fall and has grown since then to encompass other community focus areas.

The pilot workshop was held in 1997 with the Franklin & Marshall Class of 2001. The following year, the program's size doubled from 10 participants to 21. Since 1999, we've been enrolling 50 incoming first-year students.

The PIT program has been designed to accomplish the following goals:

  • Acclimate first-years to the F&M Community by introducing them to campus leaders, club opportunities and campus life.
  • To break down the barrier between the F&M community and the Lancaster community, demonstrating our responsibilities beyond campus and the positive, powerful effects we can have.
  • creating opportunities for first-year students to be immersed in community service projects
  • nurturing the leadership qualities of students who choose to act in the Lancaster community for the sake of others
  • encouraging first-year students to think critically about social issues and human need at the individual, communal, societal, and global levels.

In 2009, PIT received over 150 applicants-the largest amount of applicants since the program's inception! We are now able to increase the number of PIT spots to 65!

  • pit
  • Let's Get Ready for School (OPIT)

  • millport
  • Clean Air, Clean Water (CACW)

  • PIT Group - Friends For Life
  •  Friends for Life (FFL)

  • habitat
  • Habitat for Humanity (H4H)