What We Are About
The Palm Beach Atlantic University Athletic Department’s philosophy is committed to athletic and academic success, spiritual growth, and serving others on and off the field. We feel that participating in intercollegiate athletics is an integral part in your education experience. By participating in our sports programs, you'll be encouraged to succeed in life, the classroom and the playing field by coaches that are selected for their ability to teach and mentor, as well as their athletic knowledge.
The athletic department endeavors to maintain high-quality competitive athletic programs consistent with our mission and traditions. Over the years, the winning results of our teams are evidence that an institution can play for the glory of God, be ethical and follow the rules, yet be successful on the field and in life.
When committing to become a Sailfish, there are certain expectations that come along with being a PBA student-athlete. Below are some examples of activities and traditions that you as a student-athlete will have the opportunity to be involved in once you decide on PBA as your college choice.
Workship-
Workship is a distinctive community service program that has been at the heart of PBA since its founding in 1968. Workship combines "work" with "worship," serving God through serving our community. Through Workship, our students are encouraged to make a Christian response to human needs by volunteering in nonprofit agencies, churches and schools.
Daytime undergraduate students are required to serve 45 hours per year. You may choose from PBA-sponsored group service events, or you may serve individually at an organization of your choice. Many of our athletic teams have volunteered as a group or team by working with such organizations as the Boys and Girls Club, Urban Youth Impact, Christ Fellowship, and many other organizations.
Chapel-
Held in the beautiful DeSantis Family Chapel, our chapel programs involve you as both a participant and leader in worship of God. Chapel helps promote an increased commitment to the Lord, a great sense of campus community, the integration of faith and learning as preparation for service, and an openness to and understanding of various forms of worship.
Make sure you visit us during our "Christival" celebrations. Christival is a multi-day series of chapels each semester with guest evangelists and praise music.
Chapel is a requirement for all full-time students, both undergraduate and graduate, who attend class during the daytime.
Chapel is held four times weekly in the DeSantis Family Chapel, Monday through Thursday at 11 a.m., as well as other times, dates and locations that are listed on the chapel calendar. Student-Athletes are required to attend 12 chapel sessions a semester and 24 for the year to be eligible to compete in athletic contests. Often times teams choose to attend chapel as group and commit to worshiping the Lord as a team.
The PBA athletic department including coaches, athletic administrators, and athletic training staff also go as group on a weekly basis and can be found at chapel on a specific day each semester. We believe that taking time out of our busy schedules, much like student-athletes from classes and practice, that it is important to reflect on the blessings of the Lord and worship him accordingly.
Mission Trips-
One of the most unique opportunities that a PBA student-athlete has the opportunity to be involved in over the course of their athletic and academic career is the chance to travel with their team to a foreign country by representing the Sailfish on a missions trip. Regularly traveling to nations such as the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Bolivia, and many others, PBA student-athletes have the opportunity to minister to people of a different race, color, or ethnic background. During a typical four-year college career, every athletic team will have gone on at least one missions trip during a summer period.
While missions opportunities are not required as a team activity, many student-athletes return to the United States after one such trip not only revitalized in their faith but also feeling a true sense of being a servant in helping extend God’s eternal kingdom. Through fundraising efforts done yearly by the PBA athletic department and its boosters, these type of trips come at a very minimal cost to each student-athlete and usually range between 7-10 days. Members of each coaching staff are typically the leaders of these monumental trips while organizations such as Go All Missions and other types as well partner with PBA in making an impact for Christ among many nations.
Fellowship of Christian Athletes-
FCA is something probably many high school students experience and it may be in fact one of the reasons why you may be interested in furthering your education at a Christian University. Completely student-led, FCA has a number of different ways for student-athletes and others on campus to get connected with one another while also learning more and expanding upon their faith.
FCA sponsors four community chapel sessions a semester that are counted for credit within the University chapel policy, and usually involve a time of worship and an outside speaker that has either an athletics background or a message pertaining to athletics. However, FCA is not simply just about big chapel services once a month. FCA also allows for weekly “huddle groups” or smaller groups of students 10-20 that get together and either engaged in a bible study, discuss issues or concerns, or simply come together for a time of fellowship through worship or other activities.
A growing group on campus, FCA is led by a core group of student-athletes who have a heart and passion for Christ. These students are your teammates on the field or court but they also have a deep understanding of what it is like to be a member of God’s team. FCA has informational meetings each semester that allows new members to visit and find out if being a part of this type of group would be worthwhile to you.
