Desantis Family Chapel, Palm Beach Atlantic University, Rinker Campus, City of West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida, USA / Built: 1955 / Floors: 2 / Total Square Footage: 19730

Palm Beach Atlantic University (PBA) is a private Christian university in West Palm Beach, Florida. The university's nine colleges focus on the liberal arts with a select collection of professional studies. In 2022, its undergraduate enrollment was approximately 2,400.

Founded in 1968, the university grew out of a local Baptist church. It operated out of assorted buildings until the first purpose-built campus building was completed in 1982. A subsidiary campus operates in Orlando. Eighteen sports teams represent the university in NCAA Division II competitions.

Palm Beach Atlantic University was the vision of and was founded by Jess C. Moody in 1968 while he was the pastor of First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach. He served until the first class graduated in 1972 and resigned from the presidency to focus on his duties at First Baptist Church. Two laymen of the church, Donald Warren and Riley Sims, became involved as trustees before the university began and continued to contribute time and support for many years. Warren served as chairman of the trustees for 38 years until 2007.

In July 1972, Warner E. Fusselle, previously president of Truett-McConnell College, became the second president of the university and led the accreditation process with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools which was achieved in December 1972.

George Borders, Vice President of Student Affairs at Stetson University, became the third president of Palm Beach Atlantic University in 1978. He was popular with students and the Florida Baptist Convention. After his resignation in 1981 to become the president of the Florida Baptist Foundation, Claude H. Rhea became president. During his presidency, the university developed the Rinker campus and expanded its academic programs.

Paul R. Corts, previously president of Wingate College, was the fifth president of Palm Beach Atlantic. He presided over the addition of two graduate programs, from 1991 until 2002. He resigned in 2002 to accept a position as Assistant Attorney General for Administration with the United States Department of Justice.

David W Clark, President of FamilyNet, and founding provost of Regent University became the sixth President in 2003. During his presidency enrollment grew from 2,600 to 3,291. Five new buildings were completed including the Warren Library, a mini campus in Wellington was built, and 96 acres (390,000 m2) for a new athletic campus were acquired. The university budget grew from $43 million to $73 million. Over 4,600 or 40 percent of all degrees were awarded during his tenure. President Clark announced his retirement during the 2008–2009 academic year the end of June.

On July 1, 2009, Lu Hardin took office as the seventh president of Palm Beach Atlantic University. A former Arkansas state senator, Hardin had previously served as the president of the University of Central Arkansas. Hardin resigned the presidency of PBA on March 4, 2011, shortly before pleading guilty in federal court in Little Rock, Arkansas, to two federal felony charges (wire fraud and money laundering) which occurred during his tenure at UCA.

On March 10, 2011, William M. B. "Bill" Fleming, Jr., the university's vice president for development, was named interim president by the university's board of trustees. After a nationwide search, Fleming, who had served as interim president for more than a year, was elected by the trustees as the university's eighth president, beginning his presidency on May 8, 2012.

PBA's campus is located in West Palm Beach. The first structure built specifically for PBA, the W.G. Lassiter Jr. Student Center, was completed in 1982. This was followed by Johnson Hall and Sachs Hall in 1989. A new campus was established in Orlando in 2002 and in Wellington in 2002. The Wellington campus ceased operations in 2017.

Residence halls include Baxter Hall, Coastal Towers Apartments, Johnson Hall, Oceanview Hall, Pembroke Hall, Rinker Hall, Watson Hall, and Weyenberg Hall.

Classroom buildings include the Vera Lea Rinker School of Music and Fine Arts, the Lloyd L. Gregory School of Pharmacy, Borbe Hall, MacArthur Hall, Rinker Hall, Oceanview Hall, The Greene Complex for Sports and Recreation, Memorial Presbyterian Church, Fern Street Theatre, Holy Trinity Church, and the Okeechobee Building.

A permanent home for Sailfish athletics is in the form of a 78-acre Marshall and Vera Lea Rinker Athletic Campus at 3401 Parker Avenue in West Palm Beach — just a short drive from Palm Beach Atlantic University. The campus, located between I-95 and Parker Avenue just north of Southern Boulevard, provides facilities for training and hosting intercollegiate and intramural and club sport competitions. The facility opened in September 2014 and was completed in August 2017.

On January 16, 2020, Debra Schwinn was announced as the new president of the university, following Fleming's retirement. Schwinn took office on May 4, 2020.

Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_Beach_Atlantic_University
www.pba.edu/
pbcpao.gov/Property/Details?parcelId=74434327870010000
www.pba.edu/about/mission/history/
www.trulia.com/home/300-okeechobee-blvd-west-palm-beach-f...

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Taken in: United States / Florida / West Palm Beach (show map)

Taken on: May 3, 2024

Tags:

Desantis Family Chapel

Palm Beach Atlantic University

City of West Palm Beach

Palm Beach County

Florida

USA

Built: 1955

Floors: 2

Total Square Footage: 19730

Motto: Enlightening Minds

Enriching Souls

Extending Hands

Colors: Navy Blue & White

private Christian College

Sunshine State

south Florida

academics

higher education

school

Liberal Arts

downtown

urban

architecture

real estate

student housing

apartments

commercial property

street photography

nine colleges

university grew out of a local Baptist church

Jess C. Moody

Donald Warren

Riley Sims

Warner E. Fusselle

George Borders

Claude H. Rhea

Paul R. Corts

David W Clark

Lu Hardin

William M. B. Bill Fleming

Jr.

Sailfish athletics

Debra Schwinn

Marshall & Vera Lea Rinker Athletic Campus

learning

Founded: 1968

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