The college began a rapid period of growth after World War I. Enrollment
rose from around 300 students in 1920, to over 750 students by the year 1930. In 1924, the architectural firm of Klauder and Day
presented a master campus plan in the Colonial Revival style.
Dietz-Santee dormitory, Meyran-Franklin dormitory, the Mayser Physical Education Center, and Hensel Hall were all completed
within three years. Two additional dormitories were planned at that time, but never constructed.The sesquicentennial celebration of Franklin College was held in
mid-October of 1937. Student enrollment at that time was 800. A commemorative plaque
celebrating the sesquicentennial of Franklin College and the signing of the United States Constitution was presented to the college by the Lancaster County Historical
Society.In 1939, the school began an aviation
program in the new Keiper Liberal Arts Building. The Aeronautical Laboratory eventually became a government-sponsored flight school with 40 faculty members.
Two airplanes were disassembled, moved into the building and reassembled on the third floor where they were used as flight
simulators.By 1945, with the majority of young men fighting in World War II, the college population dwindled to just under 500 students and 28 faculty members. But the end
of the war brought many new students who decided to pursue their education under the G.I. Bill. By 1946, enrollment had swelled to over 1,200 students
(including four females permitted to study in the pre-med program) and there was a sudden critical shortage of faculty members.The fifties and sixties brought more
college expansion and construction to the campus including: North Museum (1953),
Marshall-Buchanan Residence Hall (1956), Appel Infirmary (1959), Schnader Residence Hall (1959), Mayser Physical Education Center
(1962), Benjamin Franklin Residence Halls (1964),
Pfeiffer Science Complex (now Hackman Physical Science Laboratory) (1967), Grundy
Observatory (1967), Whitely Psychology Laboratory (1968) and Thomas Residence Hall (1968).Like other academic institutions in the sixties, Franklin and Marshall experienced
a series of student protests during the decade that were based on important social issues, such as the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War. In April of 1961,
students rioted in front of the President's house and Hensel Hall, burning effigies and college property in protest of
administration policies.Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. visited the
campus on December 12, 1963. He spoke
about civil rights before a capacity audience of 3,300 in Mayser Center,
the school's gymnasium.In 1965, visiting English instructor Robert Mezey was suspended after being accused of
urging students to burn their draft
cards. He was later reinstated. This became known as the "Mezey Affair."In the spring of 1969, black students protested the final examination of the history
course "The Black Experience in America." Demanding an apology from the faculty for exploitation and an "A" in the course, the
students argued that no white man can test them on their "blackness." The day before the exam, the professors agreed to the
apology, but still insisted that the students take the final exam. On May 22, the day
of the exam, forty black students--many of whom were not enrolled in the course--blocked the entrance to the exam room in Old
Main. The professors attempted to hand out the exam to the other students in the class, but the protesters confiscated them.
Retreating to Goethean Hall next door, the professors and staff met to evaluate the situation. The protesters followed them to
the building, blocked all doors and exits and held them hostage. They declared that they would not release the faculty members
until they received an apology and immunity from punishment. The standoff lasted until midnight, when the professors agreed to
allow the students to grade themselves. The students relented and released the hostages. However the college's Professional
Standards Committee later overturned the decision, declaring that the professors would, in fact, have to grade the students after
all.In 1969, Franklin and Marshall College ended its formal affiliation with the United Church of Christ, becoming a secular school.Since its inception, Franklin and Marshall permitted only male students, although Franklin College had occasionally allowed
female students to enroll and women were permitted to attend summer school classes beginning in 1942. Continuing a trend in single-sex schools across the country, the Board of Trustees announced on January 17, 1969 that it had voted to admit women
to F&M, a decision that was unanimously and enthusiastically supported by male students. In the fall of 1969, 82 freshman women and 34 female transfer students were enrolled in F&M's first coeducational class.In 1970, F&M students protested the administration's failure to rehire popular
sociology instructor Anthony Lazroe and history instructor Henry Mayer. The protest, known as the "Lazroe-Mayer incident,"
culminated in the East Hall sit-in on April
30, where students took over the building for several hours.In 1976, the Steinman College Center was constructed. The building--designed by Minoru Yamasaki, architect of New York's World Trade Center--originally housed the campus bookstore and post office. Today it houses the College Reporter, the Oriflamme Yearbook, the College Entertainment Committee,
the Phillips Museum of Art, the Common Ground (a popular student hangout) and the campus radio station WFNM.On April 29, 1976, the Green Room Theatre
staged the world premiere of the John Updike play Buchanan Dying, about former President
James Buchanan, a Lancaster resident and former President of the Board
of Trustees. The production was directed by Edward S. Brubaker and starred Peter Vogt, an F&M alumnus. After the premiere, a
reception was held at Wheatland, Buchanan's Lancaster residence.In 1978, the school's first sorority--Sigma Sigma Sigma--was chartered.On March 28, 1979, the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor in nearby Harrisburg, Pennsylvania experienced a partial meltdown, forcing the college to close for a short time.The eighties were a prosperous time for the college. Construction projects
initiated during the decade included Hartman Green (1982), French House (1984), Murray Arts House (1984), Ice Rink (1984), Spaulding Plaza (1985), the Other Room Theatre
(1985), major renovations and expansions of Fackenthal Library (1983, renamed Shadek-Fackenthal Library) and Stahr Hall (1985, renamed Stager
Hall, 1988) and the Black Cultural Center (1986).On June 6, 1987 Franklin and Marshall College
celebrated its bicentennial.In April of 1988, the College's Board of
Trustees voted to no longer officially recognize the school's fraternities and sororities. This was known as "derecognition." At the time, three of the
school's fraternities had recently lost their national charters due to
various offenses. In an effort to repair the system, the college administration proposed eight specific reforms to the Greek
Counsel, which were ultimately rejected by all of the organizations. The result was derecognition. Derecognition was highly
unpopular with the student body, but it served to remove the college from any liability associated with hazing and underage alcohol abuse, issues
that were in the national public eye at that time. The experiment met with mixed results. Despite the decree, the Greek System
continued--albeit unofficially--and the college kept a watchful eye on how it developed without financial or administrative
support. No Greek chapters were closed during this time and membership was generally not affected. But after several years
unsupervised, a small number of fraternities struggled with health code
violations, fires and one unfortunate accidental death. Owing to several factors, including dwindling financial support from
fraternity and sorority alumni and legitimate concerns about student academics, health and safety, the college announced on
May 19, 2004 that it would reinstate a new,
revised Greek System beginning on September 1, 2004 after a 16 year absence.The nineties brought a major expansion to the north side of campus with the
construction of College Square in (1991). The multi-use complex housed a new bookstore,
laudromat, video store, restaurants and a food court. Other buildings from the decade include Weis Residence Hall (1990), International House (1990), Martin Library of the
Sciences (1990) and the Alumni Sports and Fitness Center (1995).