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.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: A Strategic Priority
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.
learn more »Getting Involved
The African American Alumni Council
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.
Clubs & Organizations
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.
Faculty and Professional Staff Affinity Groups
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.
International Life
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.
LGBTQ+ Life
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
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.
Spaces to Gather
Alice Drum Women’s Center
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.
Black Cultural Center
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.
Joseph International Center
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.
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.
Dedicated Offices
Academic Support
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.
Counseling Services
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.
Community & Belonging
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.
Faith & Meaning
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.
International Student Services
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.
LGBTQ+ Life
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.
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.
Anti-Racism Resources
Articles
- Message to White Allies from A Black Anti-Racism Expert: You’re Doing It Wrong by Dr. David Campt
- How George Floyd’s Death Changed College Campuses by Evan Thompson
- “America’s Racial Contract Is Killing Us” by Adam Serwer
- My Life As An Undocumented Immigrant by Jose Antonio Vargas
- The intersectionality wars by Jane Coaston
- “Where do I donate? Why is the uprising violent? Should I go protest?”: Answering White People's Most Commonly Asked Questions about the Black Lives Matter Movement by Courtney Martin
- Oppression and resistance: An analysis of Muslims' experiences of structural violence by Rakhshanda Saleem, PhD; Zenobia Morrill, EdM, MA; Madeline Brodt, MS; Marta E. Pagan-Ortiz, MS
- Anti-Semitism in the United States: An Overview and Strategies to Create a More Socially Just Society by David R. Hodge and Stephanie Clintonia Boddie
- Pandemics and prostests: America has experienced racism like this before by Jennifer D. Roberts
Books
- Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor by Layla F. Saad
- How to Be An Anti-Racist by Dr. Ibram X Kendi
- White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism by Dr. Robin DiAngelo
- The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
- Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race by Beverly Daniel Tatum
- Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon
- The Next American Revolution: Sustainable Activism for the Twenty-First Century by Grace Lee Boggs
- When Affirmative Action Was White: An Untold History of Racial Inequality in Twentieth-Century America by Ira Katznelson
- Teaching Community: A Pedagogy of Hope by bell hooks
- Redefining Realness: My Path To Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock
- This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color by Cherríe Moraga
- Subtle Acts of Exclusion: How to Understand, Identify, and Stop Microaggressions by Tiffany Jana and Michael Baran
- Overcoming Bias: Building Authentic Relationships Across Differences by Tiffany Jana and Matthew Freeman
- Erasing Institutional Bias: How to Create Systemic Change for Organizational Inclusion by Tiffany Jana and Ashley Diaz Mejias
- My Grandmother's Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies: by Resmaa Menakem
- Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- Sure, I'll Be Your Black Friend: Notes from the Other Side of the Fist Bump by Ben Philippe
- Eloquent Rage: A Black Feminist Discovers Her Superpower by Dr. Brittney Cooper
- The Fire Is Upon Us by Nicholas Buccola
- The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison
- Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
- Islamophobia in America: The Anatomy of Intolerance by Carl W. Ernst
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Islamophobia: What Christians Should Know (and Do) about Anti-Muslim Discrimination by Jordan Denari Duffner
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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
Podcasts
- How To Turn White Privilege Into Antiracist Allyship
- 1619 (New York Times)
- About Race
- Code Switching
- Intersectionality Matters! Hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw
- Pod for the Cause from The Leadership Conference on Civil & Human Rights
- Pod Save the People (Crooked Media)
- Seeing White
- Momentum: A Race Forward Podcast
Websites
Community & Belonging at F&M
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.
December 13, 2024
Building Community: Two Campus Clubs Celebrate 20 Years
Two vibrant student organizations on campus are celebrating 20 years at F&M: Intelligent Men Purposefully Accomplishing College Together (I.M.P.A.C.T.) and Sophisticated Intelligent Sisters Teaching Excellence Responsibility and Success (S.I.S.T.E.R.S.).
October 14, 2024
Teach for America: F&M Alumni Share Their Stories
As F&M students catch their breath during fall break, eight May graduates are experiencing the other side of the classroom through Teach for America. Current and past Teacher Corps members share their experiences.