October 21, 2014
Dear Gordon Administration,
After much deliberation and prayer, I have decided that my best course of action is to resign my
position as the Director of the Office of Community Engagement. The last three months have
been heartbreaking as I have witnessed a large majority of our longstanding community
partnerships become severely troubled or come to an abrupt end. Even more consequentially, I
have lost confidence that I would be able to continue at Gordon College as the visionary and
energetic leader of our campus-community engagements considering the difference in
partnership philosophy that has been evident in my response, and the College’s official
response, to the current crisis.
As the founder of this program in 2003, I have loved crafting student learning experiences in the
context of a relational, incarnational, and asset-based community development model. I have
given myself wholeheartedly to designing creative ways for Gordon students to serve and learn
in Lynn while upholding values of respect, reciprocity, and community empowerment. Our work
has always been grounded in community invitation and the posture with which we enter and
maintain those relationships profoundly matters to me both in terms of our credibility and lasting
fruit.
My goal is to transition out of my current role in the least disruptive way possible in order to
serve the students, the larger Gordon community, and the City of Lynn. I would like to request
that my last day of work be December 19, 2014. Because this is a complicated time for Gordon
in which I cannot claim to understand all the dynamics, I would understand if this date is not
acceptable to the administration. If this is the case, please consider this letter to be my two
weeks’ notice with my last day of work being November 4, 2014. Although I believe that leaving
at the semester break is an easier transition, I am not comfortable signing any legally binding
agreement that scripts how I engage in authentic conversations about why I am leaving my
position. I will of course be conscientious in all of my conversations with students, colleagues
and community partners about my departure. As always I will seek to maintain my integrity,
bolster the Gordon community and strengthen and encourage OCE work.
I am extremely grateful to Gordon College and the Lynn community for making this bridgebuilding work so personally rewarding for so many years. I especially want to thank Rev. Ray
Lee and Oasis Development for the initial vision and investment that jump-started this campuscommunity partnership endeavor. This work has truly been a thrilling and joyful experience for
me. I am confident that Gordon can and will continue to cultivate meaningful service-learning
relationships and be a good neighbor on the North Shore.
I would like to request that you let me know in the next 24 hours how you would like me to
proceed in terms of the timing of my departure. In order to earnestly begin job searching
through my relational networks and to properly inform and prepare my students and community
partners for my departure, I need to start informing people about my plans to transition.
Respectfully,
Val Buchanan