<p>Terrific time, weather was accommodating, and we also spent time with D (Jr at F&M) and went down to Gettysburg to see a sporting event (in S’s field of interest).</p>
<p>D-son, where S spent Friday nite with some of the team members in his sport, and seems to have the best physical plant of the three we looked at, in terms of dorms, the few classrooms we saw, the main dining hall, and I guess most everything else.</p>
<p>F&M appeared small, by comparison, to the other two campuses. The foot print is indeed the smallest of the three (D calls it “just a big block”). This footprint will change over the next 5 years if their plans go forward to acquire some neighboring warehouses and convert them to student housing (across Harrisburg Pike, next to the athletic facility). D squired S to some Frat parties on Sat nite, and he thought the folks were the same mix he experienced the nite before at Dickinson…frankly I was not surprised by that reaction.</p>
<p>Dickinson, by virtue of being closely abutted to a nice part of downtown Carlisle, benefits from this more than F&M, which abuts a lesser economic section of Lancaster. We experienced two great meals in "white table cloth restaurants in Carlisle (Empire Restaurant and Il Piatto, both right off campus). We did Indian cuisine in Lancaster so it would be hard to compare.</p>
<p>Campus spirit that catrina mentioned above-hmmm…hard to distinguish between the three. The sporting events we attended at G-burg and D-son were equally attended by attentive fans.</p>
<p>Bottom line for S is the physical attraction to the architecture of D-son over the red brick theme at F&M (G-burg a blend, but set on more of a plain, very few trees by comparison). I bet the academics would impact him the same, so it comes down to his impressions and how he would fit in with the team, the coach and that stuff.</p>
<p>A worthwhile trip, reaffirming my positive impressions of Dickinson and perhaps placing it further ahead of F&M anf G-burg.</p>