Editor’s Note: This story was updated on Nov. 7 after receiving comments from the TPUSA applicants. Another update on Nov. 10 after receiving an email from the Student Life and Formation Office about an event on Nov. 12.
In an email to Point Loma Nazarene University’s student body from President Kerry Fulcher, it was announced that the Associated Student Body (ASB) rejected a Turning Point USA (TPUSA) student club at PLNU. According to the email, a motion to establish the club was brought to a vote within the ASB Board of Directors, but it failed to pass.
Turning Point USA signs distributed during Charlie Kirk
Memorial on Oct 14. Photo by Spencer Gorka.
Fulcher said that the primary reason for its rejection was ASB’s concern regarding TPUSA’s “Professor Watchlist,” a list sourced by news stories that detail instances of “radical behavior” among college professors, as described by ProfessorWatchlist.org.
“While the applicants indicated they would not participate in the watchlist, their application included phrasing that mirrors language used on TPUSA’s website in connection with it,” Fulcher said in the email. “That practice is not aligned with ASB’s purpose of fostering constructive communication and interaction between students, faculty and administration.”
When TPUSA was denied twice by ASB in 2021, ASB’s president at the time, Ella Malone, believed it was dismissed because TPUSA’s “Professor Watchlist” didn’t follow their mission statement to foster constructive communication.
According to the email, the applicants said they would affiliate with “TPUSA Faith,” a self-described program to “eliminate wokeism from the American pulpit.” Fulcher said that this affiliation is not permitted under the University’s Church and Parachurch Policy, which ensures that outside churches and ministry organizations do not mimic efforts already being made by campus ministry teams.
“Never Surrender” and “Turning Point USA” signs were next to each seat in the Arc, where the memorial took place on Oct 14. Photo by Ava Bailey-Klugh.
Fulcher said that while community members asked the university to influence the outcome of ASB’s decision, he said that it’s protocol that it is solely ASB’s decision.
ASB President Kenzie Lopez and Director of Student Relations Nathan Blanco declined to comment. Director of Community Life Connor Mathisen also declined to comment but referred to Fulcher’s email and said that ASB strictly adhered to its constitution.
Ginger Friess, a first-year biology-chemistry major who would have been the president of PLNU’s TPUSA chapter, and initially declined to comment before consulting with her team, said that she is disappointed by the decision but recognizes the policy.
“First and foremost, ASB denied our chapter rightfully on the ground of Point Loma policy. Secondly, we are disappointed by Point Loma policies’ ability to—” Friess said, “support their student body,” Brooklyn Stratton, a third-year sociology major, who would’ve been vice president, finished.
Friess said that before Fulcher’s email was sent out, Lopez, Mathisen and Charlie Hicok, ASB’s vice president, held a meeting to share that their proposal had been declined.
“I think that ASB did what they could have in their jurisdiction,” Stratton said. “It would be unreasonable to ask ASB to make exceptions for our club specifically because they do have the duty to uphold their constitution and their policies. But the policy itself, I think, should be further looked at.”
Fulcher concluded the email with an encouragement to not lead to division but respond with “humility, grace and love.”
“I also want to be clear that students who hold conservative views are valued members of this community,” Fulcher said. “There are conservative chartered clubs that are able to participate fully in the shared life of our campus. I’m committed to supporting these students with the same spirit of respect, consistency and hospitality that guides how we care for all student organizations at PLNU.”
On Nov. 10 at 12:04 p.m., the Student Life and Formation Office sent an email to the PLNU student body announcing that they will be hosting a gathering on Wednesday, Nov. 12, at 4 p.m. in Cunningham A/B.
They said, “This will be a space to talk, to listen and to process together.”
The email said that the event is not a place to debate, but to “practice the kind of respectful and authentic presence that reflects the heart of our community.”
This gathering does not mean ASB is reopening the application, but giving students a space to process the chapter’s rejection.
Olivia Roberts