Gordon College President Announces Resignation

Gordon College President Michael Lindsay announced that he will step down from his role next summer.

Lindsay leaves after a 10-year tenure leading the Christian school in Wenham, Mass. Inspired by the story of former American Enterprise Institute President Arthur Brooks, who also stepped down from his position at AEI after 10 years, Lindsay said he felt it was time for “passing the baton to someone else.”

In a letter announcing his departure, he pointed to milestones the school has accomplished in recent months, including a 33 percent tuition cut that will go into effect in fall 2021. The price cut will reduce Gordon’s tuition to $25,250 and its annual “sticker price”—including tuition, room, board and comprehensive fee—from $50,650 to $37,950. According to the results of a 2019 survey by the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, the nondenominational Christian college is now one of only 11 CCCU schools to ever reset its tuition.

Gordon announced the price cut near the end of the college’s Faith Rising campaign, in which it raised more than $125 million in pledged funds, including an anonymous $75.5 million donation—”the largest gift in history made to an evangelical college,” the school said. The funds will go directly to support scholarships, freeing up other resources.

During Lindsay’s tenure, Gordon nearly tripled its net assets, funding four endowed chairs for biblical studies, education, music and history, and raised more than $190 million from donors. Enrollment grew by 15 percent, with graduate enrollment growing by 250 percent. Domestic minority student enrollment also grew by 75 percent to comprise 20 percent of the student body.

Gordon’s Board Chair Herman Smith indicated that Lindsay is finishing well. “President Lindsay has faithfully led the College through a defining decade in Gordon’s history. Like the sons of Issachar, he has understood the times and known what to do in making a timeless mission—preparing the people of God for the work of God—timely,” he said.

“We do not know yet where the Lord is calling us next, but God has always guided our steps, and we are confident that will be the case for our next chapter,” Lindsay said. “I look forward to partnering with [the Board] and the rest of the College’s leadership to ensure a successful transition even as we continue, in collaboration with our faculty and staff, to fulfill Gordon’s mission daily of preparing the people of God for the work of God.”