Looking for a new place to host church banquets, corporate retreats or community meetings? Check out the University of Mobile’s new College Woods Center!
“The CWC” offers the university and the community a new state-of-the-art venue capable of serving a variety of purposes.
Since opening in Fall 2022, The CWC has hosted Alabama School of the Arts productions, the Miss University of Mobile competition, Rams athletics banquets, UM Board of Trustee meetings, a local neighborhood Christmas dinner and a free Christmas concert for the community.
“College Woods Center provides opportunities for the University of Mobile to partner with the community by providing flexible spaces at a reasonable cost for businesses, community groups, churches and more,” said UM President Lonnie Burnett.
The CWC Story
College Woods Center gives new life to the former College Park Baptist Church. Located on College Parkway, the facility is adjacent to the main campus, opposite the brick wall marking the university’s northern boundary. In 2012 the university purchased the unused 28,400-square-foot building with its 13-acre site. For several years, the university leased out the building.
In the meantime, academic programs expanded. So did the need for physical space in which to house them.
Plus, finding spaces on campus large enough to accommodate the variety of student life programs was a continuing challenge. The largest auditorium, Ram Hall, was so much in demand that the room might be “flipped” multiple times a day to accommodate different purposes – from chapel for current students to overflow seating for Ingram Dining Hall to a UM Day browse session for prospective students to an evening praise and worship concert for the university family, alumni and the community.
At the same time, the university was looking for more opportunities to strengthen bonds with the community, build partnerships and introduce even more people to this Christ-centered university.
Major renovations began in May 2022 to create an on-campus performance space, banquet and meeting facilities, with additional classrooms and offices for faculty and staff.
Now the newly renovated College Woods Center is open for business. University events are being held throughout the year, and there are opportunities for individuals and groups to book spaces.
State-of-the-Art Facilities
College Woods Center was designed with flexibility in mind, offering banquet seating for up to 200, meeting rooms accommodating up to 150, breakout rooms and the option for first-class catering from the university’s food service provider, MMI Dining.
College Woods Center includes:
• College Woods Auditorium – A 400-seat auditorium with stage featuring state-of-the-art lighting and sound. The auditorium may also be arranged to accommodate banquet seating for over 200.
• Central Meeting Room – A large meeting room offers seating for up to 150, or banquet seating for 120.
• Breakout Rooms – Smaller rooms provide space for break-out sessions or small group meeting spaces.
• Catering Services Available – Catering is available through the university’s food service provider, MMI Dining.
The university continues to renovate additional areas to provide more classroom and office space, plus create new spaces that can be booked for community use. Learn more at umobile.edu/cwc.
Reserve College Woods Center
umobile.edu/cwc
251.442.2201
For more information: Barbara Greene bgreene@umobile.edu
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