Inspiring Athletes Through Mentorship: a Case Study of a Fellowship of Christian Athletes Chaplaincy Ministry Program
Inspiring Athletes Through Mentorship: A Case Study of a Fellowship of Christian Athletes Chaplaincy Ministry Program by LaTosha Nicole Ramsey A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Auburn University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Auburn, Alabama December 12, 2015 Fellowship Christian Athletes, chaplaincy, student athletes, spiritual development, student development, faith development Copyright 2015 by LaTosha Nicole Ramsey Approved by Frances K. Kochan, Chair, Professor Emerita, Educational Foundations, Leadership and Technology Paulette Dilworth, Assistant Vice President, Access & Community Affairs David DiRamio, Associate Professor of Educational Foundations, Leadership and Technology Abstract The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) was founded in the 1950s to aid in the spiritual development of middle and high school student athletes. During the late 1990s a paradigm shift occurred when intercollegiate football coaches started to hire full-time team chaplains to become the spiritual coordinators for their student athletes. Athletes across the nation and abroad are recruited by colleges and universities for a variety of sports ranging from football to hockey. These student athletes have basic developmental needs that have to be addressed while they attend college (Hamilton & Sina, Pascarella, 1999). When student athletes arrive on campus, they are often assigned a coordinator to assist with their academic achievement (academic coordinator), life skills development (social, emotional, mental coordinator) and athletic participation (defensive and offensive coordinator). All of these areas aid in meeting their developmental needs. However, the one area that is often neglected is their spiritual development. College is a time when students are searching to find meaning and purpose in their lives (Astin, Astin & Lindholm, 2010; Chickering, Dalton & Stamm, 2006; Parks, 2000).
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