College earns C+ in 2009, an improvement from 2008's grade of C
Though it’s not yet the end of the semester, F&M has already received its report card. The Sustainable Endowments Institute issued its 2010 report card on Oct. 7, assigning the College a mark of C+, an improvement over the C grade the College received last year.
Diplomatic Congress Update
The Diplomatic Congress is turning its focus to interactions with the department of Public Safety, coordinating student events, and athletic support. The student government organization comprised of nineteen students has already succeeded in assisting with the expansion of the shuttle service—the Lancaster Loop began operating last month—and is in the process of discussing food option reforms with the administration.
After more than a half-semester’s hiatus, Ben’s Bucks are once again functional at off-campus locations. “Ben’s Bucks were offline [off-campus] from mid-summer through Oct. 15,” said Barbara Wilson, manager of Auxiliary Services.
Rossano striving for accreditation of department
Three weeks since his first day on the job, Michael Rossano is already in the swing of things. The director of Public Safety can be seen on shift as late as 3 a.m., an ode to the 16 years he spent with the Philadelphia Police Department as a patrol officer and detective.
The Lancaster Loop, the shuttle service running to various locations on Friday and Saturday nights, has experienced success in its inaugural weeks. “The Loop is going really well,” said Kelly Haas, director of the Office of College Programs.
F&M students have the opportunity to knock cancer out of the park. The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation will hold a 5K Run/Walk at Yankee Stadium Nov. 15. Dale Frey, chairman of the F&M Board of Trustees, is sponsoring a bus for F&M students to attend the event.
Distinguished alumna speaks about coeducation, politics
When F&M entertained the idea of going coed in the late 1960s, overwhelming student support facilitated a speedy implementation of the policy. The administration established a coeducation task force to report on the necessary provisions—about one year of planning, a pool of qualified female applicants, and $186,600.
Feedback has been positive
A few months into the semester, students are content with the effectiveness of the new Emergency Medical Service (EMS) program. The student-run program, instituted by Josh Rosen ’10 and Dennis Malamut ’09, provides medical assistance to students from 7 p.
The dedication ceremony of the Armstrong Phase of the Lancaster Northwest Gateway Project on Friday featured distinguished guests and a special surprise at the end. Near the ceremony’s conclusion, John Fry, president of the College, who made the evening’s opening and closing remarks, announced that earlier that morning, the College’s Board of Trustees, in conjunction with Thomas Beeman, president and CEO of Lancaster General Hospital, voted to name the commemorative building on the property the “Keith A.
Lancaster City’s latest distinction as “the nation’s most closely watched small city,” brought on by the 165 security cameras blanketing its streets, has stirred quite a controversy. The $3 million project has recently attracted the attention of journalists from The Los Angeles Times, ABC’s “Nightline,” and CBS’s “Evening News,” and has spurred disgruntled citizens worried about their privacy to form protest groups and Web sites dedicated to removing the cameras.
Congress makes progress on remaining goals
The Diplomatic Congress is making quick progress on their four remaining goals. The student government organization comprised of nineteen students held its third General Assembly meeting this past Thursday to discuss the issues—dining options, a unified campus calendar, student-Public Safety relations, and weekend entertainment.
Last Saturday, students, faculty, administrators, and the Board of Trustees gathered in the Barshinger Center for the Musical Arts to dedicate the Patricia E. Harris ’77 Center for Government, Business, and Public Policy. “The arrangement reflects the way the world works today,” John Fry, president of the College.
The fifth weekend of the semester has passed, and 15 students have gone to the hospital as a result of alcohol consumption. This number marks an increase from recent years at F&M. “Since the beginning of the semester, 15 students have required emergency room services for acute intoxication,” wrote Kent Trachte, dean of the College, in an Oct.
Though the H1N1 flu continues to affect the campus, Appel is diagnosing fewer students with influenza-like symptoms than in past weeks. “Currently, we’re diagnosing approximately 15 to 20 new cases each week,” said Kent Trachte, dean of the College.
To smoke or not to smoke? That is the question currently facing College Row residents. The apartment buildings' management team is currently deciding whether or not to make the buildings fully non-smoking residences, according to Allison Reilly-Fisher, community manager of College Row.
Stops include Central Market, Regal Cinemas, Park City mall
A different kind of shuttle service will be offered to students beginning Friday. “We’re beginning a pilot shuttle for students at their request to various places around Lancaster,” said Steven O’Day, senior associate dean of the College.
Sixteen-year veteran of Philadelphia Police Department selected
A badge will accompany the newest face of the F&M community. Monday, Oct. 12 marks Michael Rossano's first day as director of Public Safety. Rossano, a 16-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, was selected from about 200 candidates by a search committee after former director Maureen Kelly's decision to resign from the position last March.
With a new school year underway, most students are busy getting a feel for their classes. The members of the Diplomatic Congress, however, have been working on ways to advocate for the student body. The Diplomatic Congress, F&M’s student government organization consisting of nineteen students from various facets of campus, held their first General Assembly meeting Thursday in Booth Ferris at 8 p.
The addition of the fifth College House is on the horizon. The construction originally set to begin this past March will instead begin this October, and is projected to be complete spring of 2011. The new House, yet to be named, will be situated behind Weis Hall and the Ann & Richard Barshinger Life Sciences and Philosophy Building (LSP), on the current practice ground for the football team.
Budget cuts for the current fiscal year have forced all departments at the College to make necessary reductions—including the libraries. Campus libraries no longer offer the $10 printing allowance provided last year, so students will be charged for all printing jobs, beginning with their first.
F&M's student Emergency Medical Service (EMS) is now on call.
A group of approximately 9 F&M students certified as Emergency Medical Technicians are riding bikes and responding to medical emergencies affecting anyone in the College community, beginning this past weekend.
At the close of last semester, the College community was shaken by a racially charged attack on F&M students. Two F&M students—one Asian and the other Asian American—were confronted on Nevin St. by a larger group of F&M students on April 19.
Last year the Drug and Alcohol Task Force convened with two goals in mind. “The first [goal] was to accurately identify culture at F&M in terms of alcohol consumption,” said Steven O’Day, senior associate dean of the College. “The second was, assuming we identify a culture, to determine ways of combating high-risk alcohol consumption.
College focuses on containment and control
F&M is ready for anything. Last year, the College updated its Emergency Response and Crisis Management Plan. Now, the College has developed a plan for managing the spread of the H1N1 virus, commonly referred to as the swine flu. Though an outbreak of the H1N1 flu on campus to some extent was to be expected because of its disproportionately high rate of occurrence in college-aged individuals, the plan focuses on containment and control, according to Marianne Kelly, director of Health Services.
Lambda Chi Alpha to return to F&M, fourth sorority
This year marks 40 years of coeducation at F&M, but it also happens to be the beginning of an initiative to bring a coeducational aspect to Greek life. The Harbaugh Club, which has been in existence for five years at F&M as an all-male eating club, will begin to recruit women and additional men this year, according to Kent Trachte, dean of the College.
When the Phi Kappa Tau house was condemned and removed from the list of College-approved housing at the start of last semester, the administration implied other Greek houses might not be far behind. “I believe, and the President believes, that what happened at Phi Tau could have very easily have happened at any of the other alumni [owned] houses,” said Kent Trachte, dean of the College, in the story entitled “Fry closes Phi Tau house due to failed health, safety inspections” in the Jan.
This is the first in a series of stories examining and discussing 40 years of coeducation at F&M. Stories will focus on the shift to a coeducational college, alumni interviews, classroom dynamics during the transition, and gender perspectives. A male-exclusive F&M is likely a foreign concept to current students—with a female majority in the class of 2013, NCAA women’s athletics, and the recent construction of the Harris Center for Business, Government, and Public Policy (named for Patricia Harris ’77), gender disparity seems a figment of the far past.
F&M graded on output, on input
Forbes ranked F&M number 36 on its list of America’s Best Colleges released earlier this month, placing the College above fellow liberal arts colleges Colgate and Bucknell, big name universities Tufts and the College of William and Mary, and even Ivy Leaguers Cornell and the University of Pennsylvania.
After pleasing results in an experiment on nearby streets, the city of Lancaster converted nose to tail parking to angular on College Ave. “Back in April, the city did a test on Lemon St. and College Ave. to see what it would look like, and they were pleased with the results,” said Barry Bosley, associate vice president for administration.
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