CCO Campus Ministry

Influencing the Influencers @ University of Pittsburgh

This article first appeared in the spring 2010 issue of On Campus magazine.

“Kelly has helped me develop into a leader,” says Kristen McMullan, a junior swimmer. “She teaches and encourages me to talk to my teammates about FCA and my faith, to lead by example, and to step out of my comfort zone. With her encouragement, I have even been trying to set up a Bible study with my teammates.”

“Mark has helped me to understand how to live a Christian life while still being able to relate to and work with teammates who do not share my beliefs or lifestyle,” adds Philip Konieczny, a junior baseball player. “He has challenged me to talk with my teammates about coming to our meetings and to be a leader by example.”

Kristen and Philip are just two of the 450 student athletes at the University of Pittsburgh. Pitt is a Division 1 university within the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and there are eight men’s and nine women’s varsity sports teams. Many of the student athletes at Pitt are spending the equivalent of a 30-hour work-week training for and playing their sport, on top of course work. And some of them—like Pitt basketball guard Ashton Gibbs—have celebrity status, both on campus and nationally.

CCO staff members Kelly Cooke and Mark Steffey are committed to getting to know these student athletes for who they are and to help them recognize the powerful positive influence they can have on their friends and teammates. They hang out at practices and in the common area of the Petersen Event Center, and they attend as many games and matches as possible. Mark and Kelly continue to show up, because it takes a lot of time to gain trust from athletes, coaches and the administration.

“The more I am around, the more they realize that I am there to invest in them because I care about them, not just because they are Division 1 athletes,” says Kelly.

“The athletes fall into three distinct groups, and my role with each group is different,” adds Mark. “The Christian athletes are looking to grow, so I spend one-on-one and small-group time with them, reading the Bible and helping them to learn and lead. The somewhat-interested athletes might show up at an FCA* meeting or be willing to hang out with me once in a while. But out of the 200 or so male athletes on campus, about 150 fall into the category of the disinterested athlete. My job with them is to encourage and support them, and to look for opportunities to share my faith. My job is to pray continually.”

In addition to advising Pitt’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter, Mark and Kelly organize several community service projects each year. Students get credit from the athletic department for their service.

“This is a great outreach opportunity, because athletes who would never come to a fellowship meeting are excited to participate in a service project,” says Kelly. In 2010, four athletes accompanied Kelly on a spring break mission trip to the Dominican Republic. During the summer, 20 athletes will serve as interns with the Pittsburgh Kids Foundation, and Mark and Kelly will take them around the city to different day camps where they play sports with the kids.

The ultimate goal of the CCO’s ministry with Pitt athletes is to equip them to be effective leaders among their teammates. “We talk to them a lot about leading within their team and within the athletic department,” Kelly says. “They already have a
context with their team, and we want to help them learn to lead within that natural context.”

“These students can be hard nuts to crack,” says Mark. “They are so busy, and they face a lot of temptations on campus because of their high profiles. There’s a lot ofÂ partying that goes on. It’s rewarding to see them start to live obediently, and to serve and lead.”

*CCO staff provide leadership to FCA chapters, which are student-run groups serving athletes on local campuses.

What students say
“It really helps that we talk about what it’s like to be a student athlete who makes good choices. A lot of the time, college students get caught up in being like everyone else and they don’t stop to think how that can impact their lives.” —Cory Berliner, softball player and Neuroscience major, University of Pittsburgh, Class of 2011

“Mark has helped me to understand how to live a Christian life while still being able to relate to and work with my teammates that do not share my beliefs or lifestyle.” —Philip Konieczny, baseball player and engineering major, University of Pittsburgh, Class of 2011

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