Rising faith calls us to form young adults who are spiritually mature and resilient. Gordon College will invest in the people, venues and programs where distinctive, empowering Christian community takes place. To broaden and deepen students’ opportunities to grow as members of the body of Christ, we will:

Connect learning to job placement. Modeled after highly successful programs at Stanford, Wake Forest and the University of Chicago, the Career and Connection Institute will go beyond traditional career counseling to provide a practical, theologically grounded foundation of vocation for the campus. It will anticipate and include the job-related requirements of the private sector, nonprofits, government, missions, ministry and education. Bringing together advising, student employment, entrepreneurial leadership and career services, the Institute will set the pace for what four years of private Christian liberal arts education ought to deliver—faith-based understanding of calling and vocation, anchored life skills in listening and public presentation, mentoring both in the classroom and through industry professionals, and internships and introductions to professionals and the larger Gordon friends and alumni network.

Faith Rising $4.5 million to build our exceptional Career and Connection Institute that will bridge our students into meaningful vocations and/or graduate school. 


Expand La Vida. For nearly 50 years, the La Vida Center for Outdoor Education and Leadership has pioneered outdoor experiential learning in a uniquely Christian way. It is a laboratory for developing the grit to step outside one’s comfort zone, rebound from fears and fail safely. In a time when students are information-rich and experience-poor, this resilience is a vital life skill. Gordon seeks to expand La Vida in staffing, programing and infrastructure. From custom challenge courses and rock climbing to multiday backpacking or canoeing expeditions, La Vida will augment its proven outdoor experiential education programs.

Faith Rising seeks $2.5 million to propel La Vida forward as the premier institute of outdoor experiential education that develops servant-leaders who are equipped to transform their communities worldwide. 


Rising faith calls us to grow beyond life as usual in our academic preparation. Demographic shifts, digital learning and changing attitudes toward debt together have created a perfect storm of circumstances that compel us to make fundamental, dramatic changes to our educational model. To prepare students to enter an ever-changing world with people from all over the globe, we will:

Build multiple pathways for students to connect learning with doing. Gordon seeks to profoundly impact student learning by putting theory into practice and making deep connections with those around us. Gordon’s education can become a “life lab” for our students to “learn by doing” in educationally rich and inherently practical ways:

Internship and practicum opportunities that serve the community, the Church and the world. The Scripture Translation Project, a collaborative venture with Wycliffe Bible Translators, will afford students from many different majors the opportunity to help Scripture translation efforts in ways that include programming, marketing and research, as well as traditional linguist work. GoCo Labs will be a unique co-curricular opportunity for computer science students to gain hands-on coding experiences while they solve problems on campus.

Learning pathways for every student. A Gordon education needs to be accessible to students from wide-ranging economic backgrounds, levels of academic preparation and cultures around the world. The Academic Success Center will develop multiple learning pathways for students, preparing them for successful careers and service.

Accelerated graduate programs. Gordon’s graduate programs already have an excellent reputation with employers. We will create multiple avenues for students’ professional development by shaping graduate programs to be a better value, both in terms of time and cost. Gordon will provide more accelerated undergrad-plus-grad programs through Gordon Plus so students can finish two degrees faster, with less debt and more preparation to immediately launch into a career.

Faith Rising seeks to raise $9.5 million to transform and elevate the connections between learning and doing for our students. 


Rising faith calls us to strengthen our financial foundations and provide College-funded scholarships for hardworking students. To move from volatility to sustainability, we will:

Dramatically increase merit- and need-based scholarships. We want to provide funding to assist with tuition costs—as well as special seminars, retreats, international travel and faculty mentors—for deserving students. 
The cost of a Gordon education should not be a deterrent for qualified students who desire the unique and valuable education Gordon provides. On account of these scholarships, a wider variety of students will be prepared intellectually and spiritually for Christ-honoring service and leadership in a global context.

Faith Rising seeks to raise $65 million for endowed and current-use scholarships to recruit and retain top Christian students and graduate them without staggering debt. 


Sustain the College with unrestricted annual support. The Gordon College Fund is the lifeblood of the institution, meeting the College’s operational needs where tuition revenue ends. Functioning as a living endowment, the Gordon College Fund enables services and support that foster an environment of excellence and transformation.

Faith Rising seeks to raise $18 million in unrestricted annual support to fund all aspects of Gordon’s remarkable education where tuition revenue falls short. 


Strengthen the foundation of the College with planned gifts. Planned gifts, including testamentary designations, are a cost- and tax-effective way to increase participation in Faith Rising initiatives. Such gift provisions can be used to sustain certain programs or facilities, add capacity, establish endowments or bolster Gordon’s sustainability for generations to come.

Faith Rising seeks $2 million in planned gifts, including trusts, wills and bequests. 


Gordon College seeks $85 million to move toward a financially sustainable future.