The Bell
Transformative Gift Strengthens Endowment and Launches New Initiatives
Gordon College is pleased to announce the receipt of a transformative $25 million gift—the largest of its kind in the history of the College and four times larger than any previous gift received. The benefactor, who wishes to remain anonymous, has already begun funding the signed, irrevocable gift commitment.
News broke at a community gathering early this morning, complete with celebratory confetti and refreshments. Trustees Herman Smith (chair), Carrie Tibbles, Lisa Forkner and Trustee Emeritus Peter Bennett, along with Provost Janel Curry, Chief Development Officer Paul Edwards, President Michael Lindsay and Kristiina Boettinger ’18 shared their excitement and gratitude in this historic moment.
“We are delighted and extraordinarily thankful for this development,” Lindsay wrote in an email following this morning’s announcement, “as it is the kind of transformational gift we have prayed about for years. It also represents an emphatic ‘third party endorsement’ of Gordon’s mission and vision for the future, and demonstrates great confidence in the quality of our people and our programs.”
The gift will significantly strengthen the College’s financial foundation by increasing the endowment over the next five years—a “milestone moment” according to Lindsay. In addition, the gift will undergird the launch of the Gordon Global Honors Scholars program under the auspices of a new Gordon Global Honors Institute, and provide seed funding for a new Center for Leadership and the Arts Building.
The new Global Honors Institute will become the institutional home for Gordon’s new four-year honors program, which will be called the Gordon Global Honors Scholars program. Under the direction of Dr. William Barker ’98, the new institute will provide additional support and cohesion for the distinguished A. J. Gordon Scholars program, Jerusalem and Athens Forum, and Kenneth L. Pike Honors, while working with a new faculty honors committee to expand opportunities in areas such as departmental honors.
A centerpiece of the Institute and the College’s first fully endowed scholarship, the new Gordon Global Honors Scholars program will become the flagship four-year scholarship program in 2018, with tuition support and substantive global experiences. This program and it activities will particularly emphasize the role of faith in global engagement and the pursuit of entrepreneurial solutions.
The new Center for Leadership and the Arts will house the Global Honors Institute, including space for the Global Honors Scholars program, as well as additional space for music performances, public lectures and other events. Design, plans and phase one of development will be funded by the gift, with a commitment from the College to conduct additional future fundraising for phases two and three. (No location has yet been selected and a timetable for construction has yet to be established.)
“The extraordinary generosity of this donor is a reflection of Christ,” said Barker, “a remarkable, challenging, inspiring reflection of his goodness to us.”