Gordon College is a Christian liberal arts college in Wenham, Massachusetts. It is located on the former Frederick Prince estate.

History

Adoniram Judson Gordon opened a school in the basement of his Baptist church in 1889 to prepare men and women for service in the Congo mission field. During the first year, there were 30 students and the teaching faculty consisted of President A.J. Gordon, one full-time paid instructor, and four part-time faculty. Gordon died six years later, and the school was named after him. Thirty years later, in 1919, the school moved to The Fenway, into a facility given by Martha Frost.

In the early 1950s, a Gordon Divinity School student named James Higginbotham approached Frederick Prince about selling his estate to the college and, in 1955, Gordon moved to its Wenham campus. Gordon sold its old facilities to the Wentworth Institute of Technology, and the Prince Memorial Chapel at Gordon was named for Frederick Prince.

In 1961, Gordon gained accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. (NEASC).

In 1970, the Gordon Divinity School separated from the college and merged with the Conwell School of Theology in Philadelphia, once part of Temple University. The two new schools settled about two miles (3 km) from the original campus, forming the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts, just north of Wenham. The College and Seminary are "no longer formally linked to one another," according to Gordon College.

In 1985, Barrington College merged with Gordon College and retained the name of Gordon College.

Gordon has held the names Gordon Bible College, Gordon Bible Institute, and Gordon College of Theology and Mission.

Affiliation

Gordon is religiously evangelical Protestant (a product of its Baptist heritage) but not tied to a Christian denomination. Gordon is a member of the Annapolis Group and the Christian College Consortium. It is also a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).

Academics

Gordon College offers the BA, BM, BS, MAT, MEd, and MMEd degrees.

Accreditation

Gordon is institutionally-accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. (NEASC). Music is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music and Social Work is accredited by the Council on Social Work Education. Its Teacher Education is recognized by the Department of Education of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts under the Interstate Service Compact.

Student life

Gordon College Student Association, student ministries, intramural sports, and the Campus Events Council. There are student-led community service/outreach organizations, ranging from drama troupes to Big Brothers Big Sisters and Habitat for Humanity.

Christian lifestyle

Students who attend the College must be professing Christians. Students are asked to fill out a statement of faith and be willing to sign a Life and Conduct statement agreeing to the standards of behavior that Gordon values. Gordon College prohibits alcohol, tobacco, and narcotic or hallucinogenic drugs on-campus and has a dorm visitation policy that allows for male-female visitation only during particular hours.

Chapel is offered on Mondays and Wednesdays while an academic convocation takes place on Fridays; attendance is required to graduate. On Sunday nights, students are able to participate in Catacombs, a student-led worship service of quiet music in the darkened chapel.

Athletics

Varsity sports are NCAA Division III, the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) and Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC). Teams represent Gordon College in baseball, basketball, cross-country, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor), and volleyball.

References

External links

• Gordon College