Community & Belonging
Where All Belong
It is our mission to create an inclusive academic experience and an environment where all students are celebrated and feel like they belong. We have worked diligently to make meaningful progress — and we acknowledge there is always more good work to be done to bring to our campus students and employees with myriad talents, expertise, and world views.
F&M’s Office of Community & Belonging leads several initiatives and partners with
a host of offices and clubs at F&M to coordinate their work. Recent milestones and
accomplishments include:
- Receiving the Higher Educational Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from Insight Into Diversity magazine in 2022, 2023 and 2024. The HEED Award is a
national honor recognizing U.S. colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding
commitment to diversity and inclusion.
- Becoming one of 64 institutions hosting a Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT)
Campus Center. TRHT Campus Centers play a vital role in the national TRHT effort to
address historical and contemporary effects of racism by building sustainable capacity
to promote deep, transformational change. As a TRHT Campus Center, F&M hosts programs
on racial healing.
- Partnering with F&M Library to build a list of anti-racism resources.
- Hosting Inclusion Week and Day of Dialogue, two programs offering workshops and opportunities for dialogue around an annual theme. Past themes have included “Back to Basics: Engaging in Empathetic Discourse," “Vitality @F&M: Feeling Value & Worth,” and “The Intersectionality of Our Identity.”
- The Legacy Project, a group of F&M staff, faculty, and students researching our campus history. The Legacy of Slavery report has been completed, but it is a living document located in the archives of our library. Students and employees are able to add research to this folder when they find new information concerning our history either through an independent study or by joining our Legacy Project committee. Coinciding with this work will be research done by the Legacy Project on F&M and the Civil Rights Era. We will be adding to this research oral histories of our alums who were students on campus during this era.
Bias Incident Response Team
As per Franklin & Marshall College’s Mission Statement, the College’s aims are “to
inspire in young people of high promise and diverse backgrounds a genuine and enduring
love for learning, to teach them to read, write, and think critically, to instill
in them the capacity for both independent and collaborative action, and to educate
them to explore and understand the natural, social and cultural worlds in which they
live.” In addition to the student experience, we are also committed to a working environment
where employees can work with dignity and respect.
In order to actualize this mission there must exist a climate of inclusion and respect
that is free of acts of bias-related behavior. F&M’s Bias Incident Response process
aims to support the College’s commitment to creating a welcoming, inclusive and respectful
campus community where everyone can thrive — an F&Mily where everyone is treated with
civility and respect!
More information about bias incident response can be found on our Campus Bias Incident Response at F&M page.
All community members, including students, faculty, and staff, may use this online
form to make the College aware of these incidents.
Please note, this form should not be used to report allegations of sexual misconduct.
Those reports should be made using the Sexual Misconduct Reporting Form.
F&M’s bold and strategic five-year plan (2022-2027), Leveraging Excellence, Accelerating
Discovery (L&AD), was created with the input of hundreds of faculty, staff, students,
trustees, and alumni, and is designed to advance the College and secure its position,
in perpetuity, among the finest liberal arts institutions in the country. One of our
five goals is to center diversity, equity, and inclusion as institutional values,
transforming F&M’s culture to create a safe, welcoming, and equitable community in
which all students, employees, and alumni feel a sense of belonging and are heard.Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: A Strategic Priority
Founded in 1989, the African American Alumni Council (AAAC) is open to all F&M students
and graduates of color, as well as supporters of F&M’s community of color. AAAC engages
current students and alumni in a network that connects them to the College and each
other through effective and rewarding communication, programs, and events. We know a vibrant campus life is a major contributor to your academic experience,
and there are many opportunities for you to get involved at F&M. F&M clubs include
the African Caribbean Association, the American Sign Language Club, Asian American
Alliance, Black Student Union, FEM&M, Hillel, International Student Advisory Board,
Mi Gente Latina, Model UN, Muslim Students Association, Sexuality and Gender Alliance,
and many more. F&M understands that its faculty and professional staff thrive with the right resources
and support groups. Among those are The People of Color Alliance, the Queer+Trans
Alliance, and DisabilityFPS.Getting Involved
The African American Alumni Council
Clubs & Organizations
Faculty and Professional Staff Affinity Groups
There is a strong global presence at F&M, with 17% of our students coming from countries
outside of the U.S. We value the perspectives of students from different cultures
and the richness and texture they add to our campus community. F&M LGBTQ+ faculty, students, staff, and their allies are committed to working toward
greater awareness, visibility, and inclusion of the LGBTQ+ community. The Office of
LGBTQ+ Student Life; the Alice Drum Women’s Center; Sexuality and Gender Alliance
(SAGA); and the women’s, gender and sexuality studies program provide educational,
cultural, and social support for LGBTQ+ people at F&M.
Mindfulness at F&M is a program that works with students, faculty, and professional
staff to promote well-being, compassion and a renewed sense of awareness across campus.
International Life
LGBTQ+ Life
Mindfulness
F&M’s Alice Drum Women’s Center was established in 1992 to promote dialogue and action
around women’s issues and to create a campus of equality and inclusion. Today, the
center continues its mission toward broader goals of inclusion and advocacy along
the intersections of race, class, sexuality, gender, and disability. The Black Cultural Center is operated and maintained by F&M’s Black Student Union
and the African Caribbean Association. It is a home away from home for holiday dinners,
Kwanzaa celebrations, cook-outs, and group meetings. The heart of F&M’s global community is the Joseph International Center (JIC), a campus
space dedicated to bringing the F&M community together across borders, cultures, and
languages. The JIC is the primary hub for off-campus study, international student
services, and the international studies academic program.Spaces to Gather
Alice Drum Women’s Center
Black Cultural Center
Joseph International Center
Religious Spaces on Campus
- Klehr Center for Jewish Life
- Multi-Faith Room
- Muslim Prayer Room
- Meditation Space
Dining
- Simple Servings, a gluten- and allergy-free station on campus that serves a variety of delicious meals that don’t include any of the top allergens, with the exclusion of fin-fish. The entire dining hall is a nut-free facility, and gluten-free options are available in our retail locations.
- KIVO (which stands for Kosher, International, Vegan, and Organic), if you keep Kosher or Halal, we have an area in the dining hall. This space is a Star K certified kosher dining facility.
- Trellis, our entirely plant-based dining option.
A constellation of tutoring and academic support services are available to you at
F&M, many of which are located in one central location on campus. We offer academic
coaching, writing support, peer advising, subject-specific tutoring, and much more.
F&M counseling services work with students experiencing a wide variety of concerns
in a confidential and welcoming atmosphere. Our diverse staff of licensed clinicians
are experienced with and adept at addressing a broad range of challenges including
depression, anxiety, homesickness, interpersonal problems, grief, eating concerns,
and academic stress. If we cannot support your specific needs, we'll help connect
you to a specialist in the community who can.
The Office of Community & Belonging is committed to supporting all members of the
F&M community as we promote our mission to be an inclusive and equitable campus. The
office leads several initiatives, such as strategic planning and the campus climate
task force, and partners with dozens of offices and clubs at F&M to coordinate our
work.Dedicated Offices
Academic Support
Counseling Services
Community & Belonging
College is a time when students seek to deepen their understanding of themselves and
others. F&M’s Office of Faith & Meaning provides support and advocacy for religious
and spiritual life along with other meaning-making pursuits during this transformative
period of life.
As an international student at F&M, you will find an invaluable partner in our International
Student Services (ISS) team. ISS offers professional immigration support, advocating
for your academic success at F&M by ensuring you are compliant with U.S. immigration
laws and processes. Housed in the Alice Drum Women’s Center, the Office of LGBTQ+ Student Life provides
educational, cultural, and social support for LGBTQ+ people at F&M.Faith & Meaning
International Student Services
LGBTQ+ Life
Accessibility Services
The Office of Student Accessibility Services (SAS) works with students who have disabilities to determine reasonable accommodations and ensure that they have equal access to all aspects of their education.
Title IX Office
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receives funding from the federal government. F&M’s Title IX office works to ensure the College complies with this fundamental law and fosters a living, learning, and working environment free of discrimination and harassment.
Islamophobia: What Christians Should Know (and Do) about Anti-Muslim Discrimination by Jordan Denari Duffner Readings for Diversity and Social Justice by Maurianne Adams, Warren J. Blumenfeld, D. Chase J. Catalano, Keri "Safire" DeJong,
Heather W. Hackman, Larissa E. Hopkins, Barbara J. Love, Madeline L. Peters, Davey
Shlasko, and Ximena Zúñiga Anti-Racism Resources
Articles
Books
Podcasts
Websites
Community & Belonging at F&M
April 24, 2025
Michael Vasquez ’25 Found a Campus that Felt Like Home
Michael Vasquez ’25 was drawn to F&M’s liberal arts approach to academics, but it was the sense of community—on and off campus—that sealed the deal when he was deciding where to attend college. "As a first-generation, queer student of color, I was happy to know F&M was committed to ensuring everyone knows they belong," he said.
March 27, 2025
Make the Most of Your Spring Visit to F&M
When you become an F&M Diplomat, your college experience will extend beyond our campus and into the vibrant city of Lancaster. If you’re planning a visit to campus this spring, add a stop at one of our favorite spots and get a glimpse of what it’s like to call Lancaster home.
January 30, 2025
F&M Trip to New Orleans Marks Two Decades of Disaster Relief
After Hurricane Katrina’s powerful winds and storm surge devastated the Gulf Coast of the United States in 2005, a group of students at Franklin & Marshall College launched an organization to support the recovery effort. Two decades later, the Catastrophic Relief Alliance (CRA) is as strong as it’s ever been—and is still working to improve lives in areas affected by America’s most costly natural disasters.