Keeping Campus Abuzz This Summer

The majority of Gordon students are off campus for the summer—pursuing internships, global seminars and mission opportunities, and spending time with family and friends. But campus is still abuzz with activity. From high school students to headmasters, a string of events throughout the season bring guests from all over the world to Gordon. Last month, we welcomed its inaugural group of participants in Equip, a transformational week that challenges high school students to discover what it means to own their Christian faith in today’s world. In partnership with Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Gordon hosted a group of high school students for Compass, a leadership development program featuring a month-long immersion component and a three-year mentoring component. Students received theological teaching from seminary faculty, ventured out on a wilderness expedition in the Adirondacks, and went overseas on a mission trip. Computer science students from Christian colleges around the country just wrapped up a new eight-week Summer Practicum in Computer Science, where they developed useful software for a real customer with clear needs. Approximately 30 international guests are currently on campus for the ESL Summer Institute, taking courses to improve their English skills, exploring the local area, and taking excursions to New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Gordon’s first graduate leadership cohort is completing their three-week on-campus residency. In addition to intensive courses taught by Dr. David Tilley, headmaster of Mount Paran Christian School in Georgia, and Dr. Timothy Wiens, head of Delaware County Christian School in Maryland, students are pursuing experiential learning opportunities on Gordon’s Challenge Course and in the Greater Boston area. Another group of Gordon graduate students studying to be math specialists are tutoring approximately 40 students from the local community, honing their intervention skills. In partnership with La Vida, Gordon alumna and program manager for Sparkifi Becca Berman ’14 is leading approximately 40 international students and their parents in an outdoor education camp this month. The organization, founded by fellow alumna Cheng Qian ’14, seeks to foster social and emotional health among Chinese youth. This week, Gordon welcomed its biggest and most diverse cohort for the fourth annual Elevate Leadership Lab. Fifty-eight high school students hailing from 16 states and five countries converged for personalized leadership coaching, seminars, adventure-based learning (pictured above) and a charge to take real-world action in response to local problems in their communities. Throughout the summer, Gordon hosts a series of athletic camps to help kids in the local area grow their athletic skills with Gordon coaches and players in a fun and safe environment. Camps are offered for 12 different sports, and each curriculum is designed for a particular age group. The La Vida Center for Outdoor Education and Leadership also hosts week-long Adventure Camps throughout the summer for ages 10 and up. Adventure Camp uses small groups, experiential learning, personal discovery, team-building, adventure activities and a high staff-camper ratio to foster learning and growth. For these opportunities and more, Gordon ranks #12 among the 50 Best College Summer Programs in the country ranking by Best College Review.