bringing tuition costs more in line with what a typical family would consider 'affordable.' The college notes that this reduction is made possible due to its Faith Rising capital campaign, which has expanded its base endowment by $125 million in the past year (250%), coupled with 24% debt reduction. Scholarships will be adjusted accordingly, with current students allowed to choose which arrangement they prefer. The reduction took effect in the fall semester of 2021. Previously, in the fall of 2019, Gordon received the largest donation in its history, an anonymous gift of $75.5 million, with additional commitments of an additional $50 million, substantially increasing an endowment of $50 million and resulting in a 15% increase in college-funded student financial aid. 2014 discrimination controversy 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. 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 . . . in a way that respects the dignity of all parties". 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). Obama did not use the ENDA amendment's language when he issued his order on July 21 but left in place a narrower exemption established with respect to federal contractors in 2002 by President George W. Bush's Executive Order 13279. 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. Gordon's contract with the city would otherwise have expired on September 1. For similar reasons, in August, the Lynn Public Schools ended its relationship with the college, which had provided students to work without pay in the schools as part their training toward degrees in education and social work. In late July, the Peabody Essex Museum ended its academic relationship with the Gordon museum studies program, later withdrawing its support for Gordon's grant application to the National Endowment for the