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Cornell University

Housing & Residential Life

Willard Straight Hall Student Union

Building Hours:

Spring Semester Hours 2025
Everyday: 7 am - 11 pm

Willard Straight Hall Staff Offices

1st Floor (Access from the parking lot)

2nd Floor

4th Floor (Access from Ho Plaza)

5th Floor

Meeting Spaces and Lounges

Some consider Willard Straight Hall the “living room” of the campus. During the academic semester, many of its lounges are open to the public from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Spaces can be reserved through Scheduling@Cornell.

Located on the 2nd Floor (not ADA accessible)

  • The Garden Room (room 215) is a multi-purpose lounge with a wooden floor suitable for dance and other performing arts practices. Not ADA accessible.

Located on the 4th Floor (accessible)

  • The Kent Hubbell Student Boardroom (room 402) is a meeting room frequently used by student organizations for weekly meetings.
  • The Browsing Library (room 404) is a comfortable place to study, have a snack, and socialize.   
  • The Memorial Room (room 407), a veritable ballroom, is reserved for many functions, from arts and crafts fairs to fashion shows, to weddings. Look over your head in this room – you will see the names of Cornell presidents carved in stone just below the ceiling. And, as you look up at the ceiling, you will realize that the ends of each wood beam contain the caricature of some of Willard Straight’s most “beloved” professors. The Ivy Terrace is directly adjacent to the Memorial Room, boasting a magnificent view of downtown Ithaca and Cayuga Lake.
  • The Music Room (room 411) offers a relaxed environment for informal study or small meetings.
  • The International Lounge (room 414) is an excellent space for studying and holding meetings. It features a series of paintings collected by Willard Straight during his travels through the Orient.
  • The Art Gallery (room 413) displays student art and collections from the Straight's art collection.  If you are a student interested in showing your art, please email bs39@cornell.edu.

Located on the 5th floor (not ADA accessible)

  • The Fifth Floor Lounge (519) is a multipurpose lounge with mirrors and a barre on one wall, accommodating dance and other performing arts practices. Not ADA accessible.

Located on the 6th floor (not ADA accessible)

  • Student organizations frequently use Loft 1 (room 604) and Loft 2 (room 605), which are both meeting rooms.
  • The 6th Floor Dance Studio (room 601), with its wooden floors and mirrored walls, is used by dance and martial arts groups looking for practice space.  Not ADA accessible.

Other Services

Willard Straight Hall houses other services in addition to lounges:

  • Dining – Willard Straight Hall has two dining facilities open to students, faculty, staff, and guests.  The hours vary by establishment and by day of the week.
    • Okenshields – an all-you-care-to-eat dining facility, a traditional dining hall that accepts student meal plans.
    • Straight from the Market – Located on the 4th Floor, this farmstand-fresh eatery offers a variety of hearty entrées, salads, and Cornell Dairy Ice Cream.
  • Cornell Cinema – The nationally acclaimed Cornell Cinema is housed in Willard Straight Hall. Visit the theater and enjoy the murals on the walls!

Willard Straight Hall is a college-gothic-style building in the heart of Cornell’s campus. The building is an art exhibit in itself—take some time to visit the public rooms on the 4th floor and notice the distinctive artwork, the original wood carving, stonework, and wrought-iron work. Take time to read the words carved in stone above the fireplace in the Memorial Room, which is Willard Straight’s advice to his son, Michael. Willard Straight Hall was one of the first student unions in North America—a building devoted solely to student interests, not academic interests. One of the first college unions in the country, the Straight supports the events and functions of the many units within Student and Campus Life, including the Office of the Dean of Students, Campus Activities, and Sorority and Fraternity Life.