A Live Music Experience on Central Penn College’s Campus

The Champ music venue at Central Penn College

On live music nights, the energy inside The Champ at Central Penn College is unmistakable. The music is loud, the fans are swaying, and the mood is electric. It is exactly what a live show should feel like.

For Jeremy Weiss and his fellow owners, The Champ is more than a business. It is a labor of love built on more than four decades of combined experience in the music industry. It is also built on a strong belief that live music is still alive and important.

What makes this story even more unique is where it is happening. At Central Penn College, an outside promotion company operates a live music venue right on campus. The Champ serves as a hub for the local music community while also giving students a new and exciting campus activity. Central Penn College students can attend shows at The Champ for free, which makes live music more accessible than ever.

A Venue with a Story

The Champ has always been about resilience. For 15 years, it was a key part of the local music scene in Lemoyne. It offered an all ages space where teenagers and adults could safely enjoy live music in an alcohol free environment. Fans could experience shows across many different genres.

In August 2018, rising costs forced the venue to close. Higher rent tied to insurance made it too difficult to continue. When The Champ closed, it left a gap in the region’s music and entertainment scene.

But The Champ was not gone for good.

Today, it has found new life at the Capital Blue Cross Theatre on the campus of Central Penn College in Enola. This move is not just a new location. It is a new chapter that reconnects the venue with the community that supported it for years.

“It’s been great reconnecting with hundreds of people from the region who supported The Champ at its original location,” Weiss said. “We are very grateful and excited to see that interest continue.”

A Unique Partnership at Central Penn College

The return of The Champ is also the result of strong partnerships. In 2024 and 2025, Weiss worked with Kyle Kitching in booking and production at a Harrisburg venue. There, they met Joe Caviston, the college’s director of marketing who helped connect The Champ with Central Penn College.

That connection made it possible for The Champ to reopen on Central Penn’s campus.

This partnership is not something you see every day. Central Penn College is now home to a professional live music venue that welcomes both the public and students. It brings the locbbbbbbbal music scene directly to campus and creates a shared space for entertainment and connection.

A New Experience for Students

For Central Penn College students, The Champ offers more than just concerts. It adds a new level of student life on campus.

Students can attend shows for free, discover new artists, and be part of a growing music community. For many, it is their first time experiencing live music in a venue like this.

“We have had a great experience with Central Penn College staff,” Weiss said. “We love when a Central Penn College student comes to The Champ for the first time and becomes part of our music community.”

These moments have quickly become some of the most meaningful since the venue reopened.

Music, Community, and a Safe Space

The Champ has always been about more than music. It is about connection, expression, and safety. Founder Archie Clark once described it as a place for “dancing and a lot of singing, yelling and screaming and having a lot of fun.”

Even with all that energy, it remains a space where people feel comfortable. Parents can feel confident dropping off their kids, knowing they are in a positive environment.

That same feeling continues today at Central Penn College.

Looking Ahead

The momentum behind The Champ continues to grow. New shows are being planned, bringing more artists and more fans to Central Penn College.

For the local community, it means the return of a beloved venue. For students, it means access to live music right on campus at no cost.

At Central Penn College, The Champ is more than a venue. It is a place where music brings people together, where students and the community connect, and where the beat goes on.