Life in Franklin

New College Franklin meets in the heart of historic downtown Franklin, Tennessee, surrounded by well-preserved historic homes, churches, buildings, and the town square. Although it’s just twenty minutes south of Music City, Franklin maintains a small-town feel, built alongside the Harpeth River and nestled among the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee.

Historic Downtown Franklin serves as an vibrant, unofficial campus for New College, with students studying on the chapel steps, working in the local businesses, or even joining the ranks of local “buskers” to serenade to the visitors on the corners downtown. Coffee shops like Biscuit Love next door or the Coffee House function as regular student studying spots. You will often find students playing frisbee, taking walks, or dancing in local parks like Pinkerton and Bicentennial or grabbing coffee or lunch with a professor at restaurants like Merridee’s and Pucketts.

Beyond downtown, Franklin is home to bustling commerce providing jobs for our students, libraries for study and research, and many thriving, healthy churches. With numerous public parks, including hiking at the nearby Timberland Park, there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy the beauty of the Cumberland Valley.

PLAN A VISIT

Our Campus

New College Franklin currently rents facilities from Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, a historic brick chapel located in the heart of downtown Franklin, Tennessee. The chapel was originally constructed in 1849 and was used as a temporary hospital in the aftermath of the Civil War Battle of Franklin.

We have the privilege of using the beautiful sanctuary—complete with historic stained glass windows and preserved wooden pews—for daily prayer service and classes. The rest of building holds classrooms, a kitchenette for student use, study spaces, and our library.

Nashville

Nashville lies just twenty minutes north of Franklin. Known today as Music City, it was originally known as the Athens of the South, because it was home to a multitude of schools, colleges, and universities. These two legacies, education and music, along with thriving medical, artistic, publishing, culinary, banking, and transportation industries have made Nashville a premier city.

Our close proximity to Nashville allows students to enjoy the rich opportunities of a thriving city, while preserving all the benefits of a small college.

Here are just a few of the attractions and opportunities in Nashville:

Attending concerts at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center, home of the world-class Nashville Symphony
The Nashville Shakespeare Festival’s Shakespeare in the Park
Vanderbilt University Library, available to our students for study
Tennessee Performing Arts Center: performances by Nashville Ballet, the Nashville Opera, and touring Broadway productions
The Parthenon, a full-size, complete replica of the Parthenon in Athens, Greece
Radnor Lake State Park, Percy Priest Lake, and Edwin Warner Parks
Cheekwood Botanical Gardens
Frist Center for the Arts
Nashville Zoo
Dozens of concert venues, showcasing Nashville’s thriving music scene