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Front Porch opens its doors to all: Making changes to inspire students
ANDREW EPPERSON | MUSTANG NE WS MORE INCLUSIVE | Front Porch welcomes all students, like biological sciences sophomore Tatum Stauffer and liberal studies sophomore Riley Lamb, to enjoy the facility as a space to study, hang out and enjoy meals with others.
Michelle Zaludek @michellenistic
Over the past four years, Front Porch, the free coffee house and study spot located on the edge of campus, has seen some drastic changes resulting in a sudden booming population. The facility, which opened in 2004, has purposefully begun to brand itself as a space for all people, no matter their belief system. Director of Front Porch and campus pastor Rev. Joel Drenckpohl explained that when he first began at Front Porch in January 2013 it was a Christian gathering area. He noticed that, though it had been open to non-Christians
before, the space wasn’t actively trying to bring them in. “They hired me, and I saw this place and I saw this potential here and I saw what they were trying to do,” he said. “It just seemed that with where it was located, and the amount of people who walked by every day, the thought that I had was, ‘Why couldn’t this place be more open to everyone?’” So Drenckpohl began to push to make Front Porch more purposefully open to non-Christians. Doing so, he said, was the right Christian thing for him to do. By welcoming people from other walks of life, Drenckpohl hopes to spread the value of love and kindness.
“Front Porch should be a place where every single person walks by and they know that they are welcome there, that they are loved there, that they won’t be judged — whoever they are, regardless of their religious beliefs, or no religious beliefs at all, you know that you can be welcome in that place,” he said. However, that seemingly small change of making a more open space required a lot of adjustments on the part of Front Porch, including changing how the staff talked about the facility and transforming some events, such as Porch Night, from centering around faith. Drenckpohl said that events like
Porch Night, a weekly free dinner offered by the facility, should be nondenominational to make sure that no one entering the space feels pressured to take in Christian teachings while they are there. “I just heard this last night — someone told me that they walk in here, and it’s almost as if they step into a different world because there’s no expectations,” Drenckpohl said. “There’s nothing that they have to do to get what they receive here. All they have to do is walk in. And for me that’s beautifully articulated, what it is that we’re trying to accomplish here. We want people to be able to walk in and not feel like
there’s anything that they have to do, there’s nothing that’s going to be done to them, they can just walk in here and enjoy the space and it’s theirs.” Front Porch’s growth has been exponential, currently seeing 300-400 people on a daily basis, where it had held only about 3045 a day in years past. Barrett Floyd, an intern at Front Porch and a 2015 Cal Poly alumnus, explained that one of the largest changes that he’s seen has been the rapid growth, especially during Porch Night. “I remember back in my freshman/sophomore year, there were like 30 students that would come,” Floyd said. “And now we
have at least 200, which blows my mind.” That growth is at least partially because of the “minor adjustments” done to Front Porch to make the space more accessible, including taking out the religious element to Porch Night. Previously, the meal had been accompanied by Christian worship songs and a 20-minute teaching, according to Drenckpohl. While Drenckpohl said that he saw the value in incorporating religion with Porch Night, he also noticed that it was alienating non-Christians from joining the event. Continued on page 5
Men’s basketball dominates Antelope Valley Eric Stubben @ericstubben
Senior forward Joel Awich continued his hot streak as the Cal Poly men’s basketball team (42) dominated the University of Antelope Valley (1-5) 85-55 on Saturday evening. Awich led the Mustangs in both points and rebounds with 14 and eight, respectively. Senior forward Brian Bennett added in 14 points, his season high. Senior guard David Nwaba pitched in eight rebounds and seven assists, marking his second game in a row leading the Mustangs in assists. The Mustangs raced out to a 10-4 lead early in the first half and ran away with the game. Leading 36-27 at halftime, the Mustangs came out firing in to start the second half. Midway through the second half, the Mustangs led by as many as 32 points en route to the 30-point victory. Of the 11 Mustangs who recorded minutes, 10 scored at least
one bucket. Overall, the Mustangs shot 47 percent from the field and 32 percent from beyond the arc. Cal Poly outrebounded Antelope Valley 4535 and turned the ball over seven times, the team’s lowest total of the season. Junior guard Ridge Shipley added 12 points for the Mustangs, sophomore forward Luke Meikle scored 13 and senior guard Reese Morgan tallied 10 points. The game marked the sixth time in six games this season in which the Mustangs scored 70 or more points, a drastic change from last season. The Mustangs’ new, up-tempo offense allows for higher-scoring games and more fast break opportunities. Cal Poly continues its home stand with two games this week in Mott Athletics Center. The Mustangs face off with Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne on Dec. 3 at 7 p.m. and take on Fresno State on Dec. 5 at 7 p.m.
MUSTANG NEWS FILE PHOTO WINNERS | Cal Poly breezed by the University of Antelope Valley 85-55. Senior forwards Joel Awich and Brian Bennett chipped in 14 points apiece.
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