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This document is part of a larger cluster of articles about InterVarsity
chapter planting at https://www.intervarsity.org/mx/page/chapterplanting
University of Minnesota and the West Bank
By Mark Van Steenwyk
Minneapolis: The West Bank Campuses
The West Bank of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis is one of the most
diverse neighborhoods in the Twin Cities. Living in close proximity are
urban poor of diverse ethnic backgrounds, college students, and middle-
class urbanites. The college students come mostly from the University of
Minnesota’s West Bank Arts Quarter, which is home to the University’s arts
programs. In fact, the University is the only one in the nation with all of
its arts disciplines located together in a single district. Besides the
presence of the University of Minnesota’s West Bank Arts Quarter, the
neighborhood is home to the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of
Management, School of Law, and Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. The
West Bank is also home to Augsburg College and the College of St.
Catherine’s Minneapolis campus.
The University of Minnesota is a very large and fragmented urban campus of
50,000 students. The main campus of the University of Minnesota is located
on the East Bank, and there is also a St. Paul campus about five miles from
the Minneapolis campus.
Currently I am the only InterVarsity staff worker at the U of M, and I am
new to campus ministry. Less than two years ago I started a church plant on
the West Bank, so I minister to the entire community, in addition to
college students. My focus is to establish a viable student group on the
West Bank that can be a witness for Christ in the midst of this very
diverse and culturally rich neighborhood.
The West Bank Neighborhood
Most of the residents of the West Bank are immigrants or students.
According to census data, more than 50 percent of the families in the
neighborhood are considered very low income, and more than 60 percent are
low income. Residents of the West Bank are transitional; out of the 2,838
occupied housing units in the neighborhood, 2,547 are occupied by renters.
The West Bank is ethnically diverse, due in large part to the presence of
the Riverside Plaza and its 1,300 units. The Riverside Plaza is home to
between 2,500 and 3,500 people, many of whom are immigrants and refugees.
Currently, most immigrants in the neighborhood come from East Africa. The
high number of Somali refugees in particular has earned the neighborhood
the nickname “Little Somalia” or “Little Mogadishu.” East Africans are the
latest wave of foreign-born residents, following the Europeans of a century
ago, and the Vietnamese and other Asians of just twenty years back.
The West Bank is home to a rich arts culture, enhanced by the many U of M
arts students who live there. There are several playhouses and theatre
groups in the area, such as the Mixed Blood Theatre Company, Theatre in the
Round, Bedlam Theatre and the Southern Theatre). There is also a hot music
scene, with bands frequenting local bars, such as the 400 Bar, the Red Sea
and the Cedar Cultural Center.
The Challenges
The University of Minnesota is decentralized. That is, there isn’t a hub
area for U of M students in the Twin Cities. This makes ministry difficult,
since one cannot easily “target” students. West Bank students in particular
are progressive, especially U of M arts students. They have an even more
negative view of Christianity than regular students and are more likely to
describe themselves as subversive or counter-cultural. The neighborhood as
a whole is intensely progressive. In the 1970’s, the West Bank was home to
many anti-war protests, and the neighborhood is still known for its
progressive values.
The U of M West Bank has been generally neglected by campus ministries.
This can be a positive thing for us, but it means that there aren’t
existing networks of Christians already formed among West Bank students.
Augsburg College has Lutheran roots, and recognized Christian groups.
However, these groups are sponsored by the College and almost completely
Lutheran. Augsburg has a reputation of resisting or rejecting outside
campus groups. I have experienced this first hand. The church I founded on
the West Bank was scheduled to start meeting there. Everything was ready to
go but, at the last moment, some high-level administrators declared that
only Lutheran church services can take place on campus. We were forced to
find another location within the period of one week. Any work we do at the
U of M West Bank or Augsburg is likely to be from scratch.
Contacts
The InterVarsity chapter is starting from ground zero.
What We Hope to Do
IV West Bank is a collaborative effort between InterVarsity and Missio Dei,
the church I founded a year-and-a-half ago. Missio Dei has two goals for
the future that will tie directly into our work with students on the West
Bank:
. Every month we have what we call “the Pub Gathering” in the basement
of the Corner Bar on the West Bank. This is a guided discussion group
for issues of faith and culture. Each month we tackle a different
issue. In the past we’ve talked about atheism, war, the origins of
Christianity, and American politics. We hope to open this up to
students in the fall.
. We are currently raising funds for our “Missio House” on the West
Bank. The goal is purchase a four-unit building. We want to use half
of it for residences. The other half will be split between a meeting
space and classrooms. In the classrooms, we hope to start offering
free business and legal advice and classes to the immigrants in the
neighborhood. We also hope to offer arts and computer classes to the
children of the neighborhood. We will try to utilize students from the
U of M (from the Law and Business schools, and from the Arts Quarter)
to serve as volunteers. This will meet our goal of connecting the two
dominant groups in the neighborhood (immigrants and students).
Help Needed
I am new to campus ministry. I was recruited for InterVarsity staff because
of my commitment to the West Bank and strong desire to see a campus
ministry flourish there. I am discouraged that last year’s staff left
InterVarsity and all the staff prospects for replacement fell through. That
makes me, someone with zero campus ministry experience, the only
InterVarsity staff person at the University of Minnesota. I’ll need advice
from time to time. I’ll also need the freedom and encouragement to try some
innovative approaches. My experience as a church planter will come in
handy, but the U of M West Bank will take a unique approach; a cookie-
cutter methodology won’t be adequate.
Chapter_Planting_4yr_Lrg_UMN_West_Bank.doc
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