I work at KU but on the West Campus so I rarely venture to the Union. Recently, I was required to go there for a graduation ceremony. I was dreading this like a toothache. I pictured terrible parking, difficult to find room and too many people crammed in a poorly ventilated mini-auditorium. To my surprise, the Union was quite a pleasure. Parking was not the nightmare I envisioned and I was able to get a space within walking distance of the Union. I was able to easily locate the Woodruff Auditorium. Staff did a great job of posting directions at easy-to-find locations. I was able to find the auditorium and easily get a seat. The Woodruff Auditorium was big and spacious. I had no problem finding a seat and getting situated for graduation. This is a large auditorium but they did not squish people into spaces. There was plenty of room and it was the perfect climate. The acoustics were great, too, and I could hear perfectly from the back of the room. I was very impressed with this venue. I did not really have a chance to shop or venture into any of the other parts of the Union. From my quick glance, though, I could see this place was stocked with all the amenities people would need. There was a small convenience store, a large bookstore, a bank and other stores tucked away inside this building. Very nice place and the perfect venue for graduation. read more

Kansas Memorial Union - Woodruff Auditorium - Colleges & Universities Near Me - Lawrence, Kansas

I love the Union. It's hard to emphasize how much I love the Union, but I'll sure give it a try! Now for a walk down memory lane: - Freshman orientation: I first set foot in the Union for freshman orientation. Obviously, I had no idea what I was in for. My dad knew his way around and mysteriously managed to walk us past his "Outstanding Graduate of 1976" plaque. "No pressure" he told me. Yeah right. - Bookstore: "Wait, I need books?" Yes, books are good. The Bookstore has great deals on student essentials ranging from books and papers to Apple products (score!). Remember to load Beak'em Bucks on your student ID during enrollment -- especially if it's on your parents' dime ;) -- and you can use your KU card here instead of cash for some items (not sure if that really works for books, but I doubt it). - Walking to Memorial Stadium for football games: To get to the football stadium, there is a great shortcut through the Union. You enter on the 4th floor and go down to the bottom and presto -- the field is right in front of you! Go 'hawks! - JayBowl: I reviewed JayBowl separately, so I'll be brief. Bowling. *Extremely* student-friendly pricing. Bowling. That simple. - Classes: Yep, I even had a few classes in the Union. The lecture hall on the 4th floor is very nice! - Student Involvement and Leadership Center: If you're interested in getting involved on campus, you should DEFINITELY swing by the SILC office. Tons of awesome organizations to get involved in. Student Senate, Natural Ties, Alternative Breaks, KU LEAD, Greek Life and dozens of other organizations. Definitely something for everyone and lots of interesting people to meet. - Inter-Fraternity Council: Interfratters unite at the IFC office. Not sure how much work gets done, but I'm pretty sure those guys have a good time! - Blueprints Leadership Conference: For aspiring leaders and folks that are just interested in leadership (shout-out to the Leadership Minor), the Blueprints leadership conference is awesome. Check it out. - Rock Chalk Revue practice: I even had a few RCR practices in the Union. For the un-initiated, RCR is an annual variety show and philanthropy founded in the '50s. My wife and I met when we were partners in Rock Chalk so those days hold a special place in my heart, plus we won Rock Chalk pretty handily that year!. I'm sure I'm missing plenty of other great gems about our beloved Union. I hope you have as good of a time as I did! Rock Chalk! read more

The Union offers a Pulse coffee shop on the main level and a Milton's coffee shop in the bottom level, both offering comparably-priced items but I think Milton's coffee is of higher quality. The dining hall has typical fast-food fare along with salads and ala carte sandwich stations. Pizza hut is a front runner for students along with a burger stand. The bookstore has the needed text books for the semester along with some tech/computer gear, notebooks etc. The clothing selection is pretty great, though priced higher than you'd find at other off-campus stores. Jaybowl is pretty awesome though, with free cosmic bowling on the weekends and good deals during the week. Basically, if you are visiting campus, the Union is nice to see, but nothing too special about the facility. One side note is the state of the art energy management system used to regulate HVAC/lighting use in the facility!! The Union deserves a green-award for have such a cutting edge technology. Also, the head chef grows veggies on the roof top, so the tomato on your salad might have been very locally sourced! read more

The Union is quite the go-to place on campus--it has everything, a varied cafeteria with ample seating (third floor), the KU bookstore (second floor), Panda Express (third floor), device charging stations, a small convenient store (fourth floor), multiple ATMs (fourth floor), free movie showings, Roasterie coffee shop (fourth floor), Commerce Bank branch (fourth floor), and other free and awesome events (for the public, not just students!) such as Tea at Three, every Thursday afternoon at 3pm when school is in session, where you get a couple choices of free tea and cookies (the Jayhawk cookie is the best!). During home football games, the Union is open and features various activities for the whole family along with food specials. Keep up to date on their (free) events at the Union through their Facebook page or website. read more