[5] In the early 1950s, a Gordon student named James Higginbotham approached Frederick H. Prince about selling his 1,000-acre (4.0 km2) estate to the college after learning of recent property viewings by the United Nations and Harvard University.

In 1955, Gordon developed into a liberal arts college with a graduate theological seminary and moved to its present several-hundred-acre Wenham campus north of Boston.

[10] On July 1, 2014, Gordon College President D. Michael Lindsay was one of fourteen leaders of religious and civic organizations who signed a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama about an executive order he was contemplating that would prohibit federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

[11] The letter asked the president to include language that would exempt religious organizations from the executive order's requirements, suggesting he "find a way to respect diversity of opinion .

They suggested the exemption be based on language the U.S. Senate had recently added as an amendment to the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA).

[14] In response, on July 9, Salem, Massachusetts, Mayor Kimberley Driscoll ended Gordon College's contract to manage and maintain the city's Old Town Hall, citing a city ordinance that prohibits Salem from contracting with entities that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation.

[19] At its April 2015 meeting, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges affirmed that Gordon's accreditation remained in good standing, with no further action required by the Commission at that time.

[20][21][22][23] Conservative legal organizations have offered to represent the college in lawsuits that would argue that severing ties to the school constituted retaliation for the exercise of free speech and the practice of religion.

[24] Based on that review, Lindsay announced that "its policy barring student or faculty sex out of heterosexual marriage will remain as is.

"[25] In addition, Gordon College rolled out several initiatives aimed at preventing bullying of gay, lesbian, transsexual, and bisexual students.

DeWeese-Boyd filed a complaint in Essex Superior Court claiming that the college's President Lindsay and Provost Janel Curry discriminated against her because of her gender and denied her promotion to full professorship for advocating against the school's LGBTQ policies.

The college filed a motion seeking a summary judgment to determine whether the ministerial exception clause barred DeWeese-Boyd from suing.

The Department of Education of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts recognizes Gordon College's teacher-education program under the Interstate Service Compact.

Gordon College offers BA, BM, BS, MEd, MMEd, MA, and MS degrees.

Gordon College prohibits sexual relations outside marriage, homosexual practice, alcohol, tobacco, and narcotic or hallucinogenic drugs on campus[40] and continues to uphold a dorm-visitation policy that allows for male-female visitation only during particular hours.

Many other Gordon College outreach programs are based at other sites, such as Lynn, Massachusetts, where the school has partners for community development.

Gordon College's varsity sports compete in the NCAA Division III, primarily in the Conference of New England.

The $8 million center was completed in October 1996 and in 1997 won the Athletics Business Magazine Top Ten New Facilities Award for its design and usability.

Gordon's Global Education Office has programs in Orvieto, Italy, Hong Kong, Oxford, Belize, Croatia, the Balkans, New Zealand, Latin America, and Uganda.