Westwood House is a student-led, Christian community that meets for worship, community, meals, service, fun, and faith exploration. We are supported by both the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the United Methodist Church (UMC). Our respective organizations, Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) and Wesley KU: United Methodist Campus Ministry (Wesley KU), are officially recognized student organizations of the University of Kansas.
As an affirming Christian community, all students are welcome here! We believe “God loves you. No exceptions.”
We are an ELCA Reconciling in Christ and a UMC Reconciling Ministries Network community. As a faith community, we value diverse understandings and backgrounds welcoming people of all faiths or no faith at all.
Worship is on Wednesday evenings at 7pm. All are welcome to receive communion.
Westwood House operates a food pantry for the KU student community. The pantry is open during our regular hours. We serve several free meals a week for college students.
We are conveniently located at 1421 W. 19th Street, just west of the corner of 19th and Naismith, right across from Downs Hall.
History
Westwood House brings together two campus ministries with long histories at the University of Kansas: Wesley KU and Lutheran Campus Ministry at KU. Lutheran Campus Ministry began in the 1920s at Trinity Lutheran Church. The first Lutheran Campus Pastor was called to KU in 1962. Like Moses and the Israelites, LCM KU wandered around Lawrence, until finally reaching Westwood House in 2013.
Methodist Student Ministries, now Wesley KU: United Methodist Campus Ministry, was formally established at KU in 1914, while Methodist connections to students were strong in the earliest days of KU through the Methodist Church (now First United Methodist Church.) Wesley KU became the first Reconciling Ministry in the now Great Plains Conference in 1996 and was at the forefront of queer justice movements at KU from at least the late 1960’s forward.
Wesley KU and LCM-KU began collaborating at Westwood House in 2018. In 2024, we entered into covenant to strengthen our relationship. We are excited about the possibilities for our shared future.