Visiting & Meeting
You can find information, rules, and guidelines regarding visiting our central office at 97 Spring Street.
Scheduling a Meeting at Five Colleges
Our central office is at 97 Spring St. in Amherst has two meetings rooms with accompanying outdoor spaces (weather permitting). These rooms can be reserved for meetings of recognized Five College committees and groups. To request a meeting room reservation, follow the link below. In addition, there are two meetings rooms available at the Five College Annex in Hatfield. Click the link below for details.
If space is not available in Five College's 97 Spring St. location, consider exploring meeting spaces on our member campuses.
For guidance on being in public while symptomatic with COVID or other respiratory illnesses, visit the Centers for Disease Control website.
This page updated September 19, 2024.
Things to Know When Visiting Our 97 Spring St. Offices
Meeting Rooms
Both meeting rooms are located on the ground level of the house. The capacity of the Burn Room, our larger meeting room, is 14. The capacity of the Dining Room, our smaller meeting room, is 8. Meeting room configurations.
Indoor and outdoor spaces are to be reserved in tandem to maximize flexibility. For example, an outdoor space cannot be reserved without also reserving a meeting room, and reserving a meeting room automatically reserves outdoor space. The capacity of the outdoor space is limited only by the number of seats available. There are outdoor heaters available for use during outdoor meetings and events.
Meeting Time
All meetings should be scheduled on regular business days between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Meetings may be scheduled outside regular business hours only if approved by a member of the Leadership Team, and an FCI liaison is present during the meeting and is responsible for set-up and/or clean-up (including locking/unlocking the building).
Please promptly leave the room once your meeting has concluded. We’ll need to prepare the room for the next event. If additional meeting time is needed, please see a member of our staff to confirm that the room is available.
Parking
Visitors can park in front of our building. Additional parking is available in our lower parking lot. Street parking on Spring Street is residential parking only. Please do not park on the street unless you have a residential parking sticker from the Town of Amherst, and refrain from parking on the grass in front of our building.
Wifi and Equipment
Each of our meeting rooms is equipped with a large screen TV to which a laptop can be connected for presentations or videoconferencing. While we have adapters to connect most laptops, please bring your own or contact us in advance to confirm that we have the type of connection your device requires.
Our rooms also have a conference phone that can be placed in the center of the room for conference calls.
Wireless access is available throughout the building. Eduroam is the preferred method for connecting seamlessly; eduroam requires initial set up on your home campus. Other connections require a few minutes to set up onsite.
Food
Non-alcoholic beverages are available for meetings. For meetings during lunch (roughly 11:30 am to 1:30 pm), lunch may be provided at the discretion of FCI staff. For meetings outside of lunch, snacks are available upon request of the organizer. Accommodations for receptions, dinners, and other special occasions should be discussed with the FCI staff liaison, with input from the strategic engagement manager.
Meals may contain common allergens. We typically order vegetarian options. If members of your group have specific dietary needs, please let us know.
Accessibility
The front door of our building is accessible via a ramp and our first floor restroom is wheelchair accessible.
Contact
Please contact fci-strategicengagement@