KU recreation center to be named after vice chancellor emeritus

LAWRENCE — A building devoted to the well-being of University of Kansas students will be named for a man who devoted his career to the same.

A ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. Friday, Oct. 24., to dedicate the David A. Ambler Student Recreation Fitness Center. All students, alumni, faculty and staff are invited to attend.

Ambler, vice chancellor emeritus for student affairs, worked at KU from 1977 to 2002.

“Dr. Ambler is one of those people that if you meet him, you just know something good’s going to happen,” said Mary Chappell, director of Recreation Services. “He’s a very good listener, and he keeps in touch with every student leader since he was here.”

During his time at KU, Ambler helped oversee large student-initiated ventures on campus such as campus-safety projects, the relocation of the Hilltop Child Development Center and Student Senate’s commitment of funds for remodeling the Kansas Union. He worked closely with Kevin Yoder, student body president from 1998 to 1999, to gain student support for the construction of the Student Recreation Fitness Center, which Ambler affectionately refers to as the “real shining light on the hill.”

“We had lost the first election for the recreation center even though the university really needed it,” Ambler said. “Kevin Yoder wanted this project to pass so the student group sold the idea on campus, downsized it and came up with the stair-stepping fee for students.”

Ambler thinks the creative vision Yoder articulated was a prime reason the referendum passed, as Yoder chose the location and implemented a student payment system that would decrease student fees for individuals who would not use be able to use the facility during their college careers. Ambler dedicated much of his career to the belief that with all student leadership, there must be an administrator who is willing to listen and stand up for their dreams.

“I’ve always believed students are citizens of the university, just like any of us,” Ambler said. “I tried to convey this message to students and student leaders. They have a right to be heard and make proposals and it was my job to make sure they had access to present ideas to the university.”

Several students who played an integral role in establishing the recreation center and the expansion will attend the dedication.

“Students are the primary target,” Chappell said. “This is the Student Recreation Fitness Center. It represents all Jayhawks — those here now and those who came before them.”

In addition to the building dedication, there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the expansion at the recreation center.