Campus & Facilities

Gettysburg's campus includes more than 85 buildings, totaling 1.6 million gross square feet. Pennsylvania Hall, the original College structure dating from 1837, is listed on the national register of historic sites and anchors the campus. The current construction of the Center for Athletics, Recreation and Fitness has provided an opportunity for the College to showcase its strong commitment to sustainability efforts. When completed, the building will comply with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.

In the past four years Gettysburg College has also completed three major building projects: the renovation of the Majestic Theater in downtown Gettysburg (mentioned earlier); the renovation of the former Eisenhower House on Washington Street as the new on-campus headquarters of the Eisenhower Institute, and the construction of a new childcare center, Gettysburg's Growing Place. The latter provides the College and the larger Gettysburg community with 127 full-time licensed day-care spots, including 16 for infants.

In 2002, the College inaugurated a $27-million dollar Science Complex Project that included an 86,000 square-foot state-of-the-art Science Center and greenhouse as well as renovations of two adjacent science buildings. The sciences are now located within a three-building complex on campus that includes both department-specific and shared spaces, strengthening relationships and collaborations among departments. The Science Center includes seven classrooms, 14 teaching labs and 15 research labs. Renovations to Masters Hall and McCreary Hall included upgrades to selected teaching labs, research labs, and classrooms.  The project enhances opportunities for faculty-student research and encourages new pedagogical methods in the classroom. Specifically, the Science Center includes dedicated laboratory space for Environmental Studies and Neuroscience, both of which previously shared space in other buildings. In addition, the Science Center includes space that has enabled the Health Sciences department to advance the implementation of their newly revised curricular program. The Joseph Theater, named after benefactor and trustee Robert Joseph '69 and his wife Marilyn, was dedicated in 2004 as a state-of-the art audio-visual campus theater that is a cornerstone for a new film-studies program.

To ensure the safety of students residing in College-owned or related housing, including residence halls, theme houses, and fraternities, the Board of Trustees initiated a Life-Safety Program. This program requires the installation of sprinklers and hard-wired, addressable fire alarms in every sleeping room and common space in a residence hall, theme house, or fraternity by 2010. It also includes a review of other related safety issues, the upgrade of all residences and fraternities to a common safety standard, and robust inspection and maintenance programs for all residences and fraternities.

For the past 18 months College planners have been engaged in drafting a new campus master plan. More than just a map that plots new buildings, green space, and byways, the new master plan imagines how the College might look and feel for decades to come. Since the College does not anticipate major changes in enrollment, the plan is intended to fully absorb recent growth and enhance the learning environment rather than to accommodate new growth.