In the fall of 2002, not long after he arrived, Franklin & Marshall College president John A. Fry was invited to a bagel brunch at Hillel House, the campus organization for Jewish students.
But when he went to open the door, it wouldn't budge. The building at 645 College Ave. was so packed with people, "there wasn't an inch of space," Fry remembered.
He drew two conclusions from the experience: The college did indeed have "a very successful Hillel program," Fry said, but it lacked adequate room.
Having built a Hillel House while he was an administrator at the University of Pennsylvania, Fry was ready to undertake a similar project at F&M.
Last week, the college announced it received a major donation toward construction of a $2 million edifice that will be erected on the site of the soon-to-be-demolished Hillel House. Known as the Klehr Center for Jewish Life, it's named for benefactors Susan Kline Klehr and her husband, Leonard M. Klehr, Center City Philadelphia residents who graduated from F&M.
The 6,500-square-foot, two-story building, at College Avenue and West New Street, will include common areas, classrooms, a dining room and a kosher kitchen.
'Welcoming institution'In the 1960s and '70s, Franklin & Marshall had a large proportion of students who were Jewish, "well over 20 percent," Fry said.
"Part of its heritage is that it has always been a welcoming institution to Jewish students," he said.
But that number began to drop significantly about 20 years ago, Fry said. The college saw a major decline in applications during that period, and was not recruiting as successfully in its traditional New Jersey and New York markets, where many of its Jewish students came from.
Even so, Fry said he was excited to see such a vibrant Hillel community at the college when he started here. Since then, he said, a part-time director (a position that will become full-time) was hired to run Hillel; the kitchen was renovated; and more grant money was received to pay for programs.
Recruiting also started improving, Fry said.
F&M also offers a Judaic studies minor and just opened a KIVO (kosher, international, vegetarian and organic) section in its main dining hall. The college is one of only 46 colleges in the country with a full kosher meal plan, according to www.Hillel.org.
The Klehr Center for Jewish Life, which will be almost double the size of Hillel House, can host Judaic studies courses, Fry said. And its kosher kitchen will be equipped to serve KIVO meals, he said.
The building, which will look very traditional on the front to blend in with the neighborhood, is being designed by Jamie Wyper, a principal in Jacobs/Wyper Architects LLP in Philadelphia, who did Penn's Hillel House, Fry said.
Plans are for F&M's Hillel House to be torn down in late fall and early winter, with construction to begin in the winter or spring of 2008, he said. Work should be done about a year from now, Fry said.
The college looked seriously at renovating the existing building, a Tudor structure built in the 1920s, but decided the best route was to construct something new, he said.
The Klehr Center will complement F&M's John Joseph International Center and Philadelphia Alumni Writers House, Fry said, which are on College Avenue as well.
"We're thrilled" about the Klehr Center project, said Ralph Taber, dean of students at the college and adviser to Hillel House.
Susan Kline Klehr, a 1973 alumna, is on the board of trustees at F&M, and Leonard Klehr, a 1972 alumnus, is a member of the college's leadership council. A volunteer who's an interior designer by trade, Mrs. Klehr is president of Congregation Rodeph Shalom; her husband is of counsel with the Philadelphia law firm Klehr, Harrison, Harvey, Branzburg & Ellers.
"I love the idea" of having a Center for Jewish Life, said Mrs. Klehr, who was in the first class of women to enroll at F&M.
"It's not just necessarily for Jewish kids," she said, "but a site where kids can get together outside the classroom and the dorms."
"I think it's going to look great," she said, and be "a wonderful asset for recruitment."
The first floor of the Klehr Center will house the director's office; a long hallway; a two-story living room with a fireplace; a dining room; and the kitchen. There's also a front porch, and a large patio facing New Street.
Fry said a gathering of up to 100 people could be easily accommodated.
The second floor includes a seminar room, a student activities room, and a sanctuary/multipurpose room.
"We've established a strong tradition in attracting Jewish students,' he said, and the Klehr Center will only enhance that.
Paula Wolf is a staff writer for the Sunday News. She can be reached by e-mail at pwolf@lnpnews.com.
