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Gordon College

Undergraduate School

Mailing Address
255 Grapevine Road
Wenham, Massachusetts 01984
Phone
(866) 464-6736
Email address
admissions@gordon.edu
School Information
"Gordon College was founded in 1889 under the name Boston Missionary Training School. It is named for its founder, the Rev. Dr. Adoniram Judson (A. J.) Gordon, pastor of Boston's Clarendon Street Church and a prominent clergyman of the late 1800s" (Source: https://www.gordon.edu/history). The student to faculty ratio is 10 to 1. The total undergraduate enrollment is over 1,500 and the college offers 33 majors.
General Information
Recently, this institution has sought to create additional positions in the college in order to provide support to diverse students. The college received a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation for a program that supports historically black colleges. This is notable because Gordon is not an HBCU (source: https://hbcuconnect.com/colleges/). The college will review curriculum to ensure it represents diverse perspectives and currently provides student leaders, employees, and campus leaders with diversity training. The college is in the process of making plans for future actions. At this time, no mandatory Critical Race Training is required of students. However, see developments below:

Actions Taken

Anti-Racism, Bias, and Diversity Training
  • Gordon College conducts "training and development for student-leaders (through things such as the Redeemed Mosaic conference or, more recently, the Sealed Leadership Conference), for new employees (through Gordon Vision Day) and for emerging campus leaders (through Learning to Lead at Gordon)."
Curriculum Changes and Requirements
  • Gordon College supports diversity through "more diverse thinkers and perspectives informing the curriculum, with particular focus on The Great Conversation seminar as well as Christian Theology and all core literature courses." In the summer of 2020, the Academic Programs Committee, GCSA, and AFRO Hamwe leadership "worked collaboratively to develop a curriculum and learning outcomes framework for a Black history course that would be a part of the College’s core course offerings." The college plans to review one-third of courses currently offered to ensure they reflect diverse perspectives.
  • As of the 2022-2023 academic year, a School of Education course titled "Diversity in Schools and Communities" would be "required for all education majors." This course would "allow Gordon students to examine historical racial inequities, reflect on their own cultural context, develop cultural competence, and describe and participate in God’s reconciling work in bringing shalom to this world."
Disciplinary Measures
  • A BLM sign was vandalized to read "ALM" standing for "All Lives Matter." In response, Gordon College released a statement on Instagram saying, "The College is taking this very seriously and has launched an investigation. We are committed to taking the appropriate disciplinary action. Gordon has a zero-tolerance policy for this sort of behavior. We are especially sorry for the pain that we know this type of incident causes our Black students.” The president indicated that further actions towards "conciliation" will be discussed soon.
Program and Research Funding
  • The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation gave Gordon College a $50,000 grant for "Faculty Technology Competency" which aims "to support a collaborative program to improve the technology competencies of faculty members at four historically black colleges."
Resources
  • In response to the November 1, 2020 incident, the college stated, "We are committed to provide counseling services for students of color who request it with a counselor who is racially diverse, at no additional cost to students." The college seeks to hire a counselor to fulfill this commitment.
  • Gordon College's Multicultural Initiatives Office is home to ALANA, a student organization that aims to "equip students with the tools to confront racial and cultural ignorance and discrimination."
  • The Center for Student Counseling and Wellness provides resources for "racial trauma." This includes a link to the Center for Anti-Racist Research created by Ibram X. Kendi, the author of "How to Be an Anti-Racist."
  • The Career and Connection Institute at Gordon College has a resource webpage dedicated to "underrepresented students" which states the following: "Historically and presently, diversity and inclusion have been undervalued or poorly practiced in the workplace. There are many unique challenges faced by multicultural students, international, first-generation, disabled, neurodiverse and female students, including underrepresentation, discriminatory hiring practices and lack of employment support. CCI wants to stand with you and help you discover your calling, develop your gifts and direct your career journey."
  • Gordon's 2023 "Symposium Schedule" included a presentation by the organizations A.L.A.N.A. (African, Latino, Asian, Native, and Asian Americans) and "Dear Neighbor." The two groups led a "discussion on how technology has been a facilitator in social movements." The description reads in part, "It is imperative that all age demographics and backgrounds comprehend how to utilize social media or other technological mechanisms to spread awareness about social injustices."
  • Gordon College offers a Communication and Culture Minor which is described as follows: "You will unpack the dynamic interplay between communication practices, cultural identities and social power structures, giving you a unique viewpoint as you pursue your career in the communication arts."
Symbolic Actions
  • On November 1, 2020, "the discovery of a racial slur on a t-shirt left in a residence hall laundry room was deeply disturbing to the campus community, and particularly for students of color who shared their hurt and anger directly with campus leadership." The college responded with a meeting of leadership which led to the decision to hiring "an additional position to provide support for our students of color."
  • The university "will be working to engage an outside expert to assist the College in comprehensively examining and evaluating issues of race on campus and in helping further develop the College’s strategic work in this area, including work on policies and procedures around how the College responds to racial incidents on campus as well as hiring and recruiting practices at the College" as part of the college's response to the November 1, 2020 incident.
  • Gordon College won the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities' Racial Harmony Award in 2005 since Gordon offers "many innovative programs that promote diversity on campus as well as involve students directly in inner-city settings."
  • Gordon College's commitment to diversity is demonstrated by, "The drafting and approval of a theological statement on the value of diversity (which became the Shalom Statement)."
Last updated October 26th, 2023
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