The Bell
Gordon College in 2024: 10 Memorable Moments of Academic Growth and Achievement
2024 was an incredible year for Gordon College, its students, faculty and alumni. Here are 10 of the biggest academic achievements our community accomplished this year:
1. Gordon College Launched Seven New Schools
Gordon launched seven new schools, bringing all majors and academic programs together under a new structure: the Herschend School of Education, the Adams School of Music and the Arts, the School of Business, the School of Psychology and Human Services, the School of Science and Health, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and the School of Ministry, Theology and Biblical Studies. With new opportunities and resources for experiential learning, professional development and academic programming, these schools will equip students to tackle the complex and intriguing problems of our time that require collaboration across disciplines.
2. Dr. Oleksiy Svitelskiy Received his Fourth NSF Grant
The largest NSF grant ever received by a Gordon faculty member will fund the research project “RUI: Wave Engineering in 2D Using Hierarchical Nanostructured Dynamical Systems.” It’s a continuation of a collaboration between Svitelskiy and Dr. Kamil Ekinci, leading researcher at the Ekinci Group at Boston University. Dr. Kristen Siaw, assistant professor of chemistry at Gordon, will be Svitelskiy’s (physics) co-primary investigator, and Gordon students are already working on research for this grant at a prestigious Boston-area lab.
3. New Master of Social Work Partnerships Established
As part of mission-aligned academic innovation that meets student needs and serves the common good, Gordon College partnered with Roberts Wesleyan University and Dordt University to create a new 4+1 Master of Social Work program. Spearheaded by Dr. Sybil Coleman (psychology), it allows social welfare majors in Gordon’s School of Psychology and Human Services to complete a master’s degree in five years. This partnership brings together three Christian institutions of higher learning to provide an efficient, cost-effective and accessible degree program that integrates faith and learning to prepare students for in-demand social welfare vocations.
4. Dr. Craig Story’s Sabbatical Research on Pancreatic Cancer
Story, professor of biology, spent his sabbatical on a pancreatic cancer research partnership with Dr. Stephanie Dougan, a principal investigator at the Dougan Lab of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. As a result of their efforts, Gordon College students will be able to help in the quest for cancer answers by doing immunofluorescence microscopy work—a staining process to analyze the state of cancerous cells by creating images of different tumor-associated proteins in the tissue.
5. Gordon in Orvieto Celebrated its 25th Anniversary
For over 25 years the Gordon in Orvieto study abroad program has been changing students’ lives through the pursuit of the arts and humanities in Italy. To celebrate the program’s 25th anniversary, more than 100 program alumni, students, faculty and staff made the pilgrimage back to Orvieto, Italy, in June. From the biannual Mostra, to opening the new GIO gallery, to a family-style Italian dinner, it was a celebration of the program’s impact on over 800 students—and a look to the future.
6. Olyvia Shaw ’21 Starred in Sight and Sound Theatre’s Daniel
Shaw, who studied theatre arts during her time at Gordon, played Queen Amytis, Nebuchadnezzar’s wife, in Daniel this year. This was the most recent original show for Sight & Sound Theatres, a storytelling company that brings biblically based stories to life to reveal the power of the Gospel on stage and screen. Though the show’s run is now over, you can still watch Shaw’s performance on sight&soundtv!
7. Faith, Living and Learning Initiative Brought Faith Leaders to Campus
Over 160 Christian leaders from four different states and more than a dozen churches and institutions, representing more than 10 denominations, gathered on campus in October for “Redesigning Ministry for Rising Generations.” It was the latest workshop hosted as part of Gordon College’s Faith and Learning Initiative, which is focused on preparing the rising generation to live out the Gospel by partnering with faith-based organizations across the northeast and beyond.
8. Gordon Students Secure Third Place in the National Student Advertising Competition
A team of Gordon students hosted and competed in the National Student Advertising Competition for the New England district, placing third for a second year in a row. The team created a comprehensive marketing campaign and case study for Tide, the highest-selling detergent brand in the world. This year, instead of working on the competition as an extracurricular activity, students received class credit through the Gordon School of Business, led by Professor Greg Smith (business and marketing) and project manager Gabby Bergstrom ’24.
9. Kimberlee Thorburn ’07 ’16M Won the 2024 Wright Memorial Alumni Award
This award was established in remembrance of Margaret Wright ’17 to honor a Gordon graduate making a difference in an underserved area through education. Thorburn won the award for her work teacher at Hood Elementary in Lynn (MA) Public Schools. Thorburn is passionate about implementing trauma-informed teaching practices to support children’s well-being at school, and she cares deeply for her students, their families and the local community.
10. Gordon Named a Best Value College and Listed on Best Colleges List by Princeton Review (Again!)
For the 11th year in a row, Gordon was named to The Princeton Review®’s list of best schools in the nation for undergraduates: The Best 390 Colleges – 2025 Edition. Gordon also ranked #14 on the “Town-Gown Relations are Great” list, meaning students and faculty are plugged in to the local North Shore community. Gordon was also #18 on the “Best College Theatre” list, earning credit for this top component of the college experience.
For the second year in a row, the Review also named Gordon College one of the 209 “Best Value Colleges.” The company’s editors praised Gordon for its “academic rigor” while offering “much support,” and Gordon students they surveyed described the College as “an enjoyable academic environment.”