Science and Shalom

Spreading Shalom through Science

When Robert Ainslie ’11 was looking for colleges, he didn’t want a school that would just feed him the right answers. As a biology major, he knew he wanted to study from a Christian perspective, where he could grapple with issues of faith and science, learn how to ask good questions and be presented with ways of looking at things from different angles, all within a Christian framework. Gordon became the perfect fit for Robert, and after four years, he can honestly say it was everything he was looking for and more.

As a biology major with an environmental science concentration, a chemistry minor and a Pike Honors Program minor in community development, Robert wasn’t just focused on academics. Recently he was involved with the Elijah Project, a program that focuses on vocation, calling and intentional community. He also co-led a service/learning trip to the Dominican Republic, served as a resident assistant, and tutored students in the nearby city of Lynn. Last summer Robert traveled to Washington state, taking two courses at the Au Sable Institute for Environmental Studies. He has received numerous awards for his stellar academics; he’s been on the President’s List every semester, was awarded the Barrington Scholar award for biology, was an A. J. Gordon Scholar, received the Phi Alpha Chi Award and the Wood Memorial Scholarship, and just this year he was awarded Collegian of the Year.

Robert has certainly made the most of his time at Gordon, but he wouldn’t have been able to do it without scholarship money awarded to him through the Annual Fund. “Very few families can afford the ‘sticker price’” says Robert, “which excludes many bright students who would benefit from a Gordon education. The scholarship money I received helped reduce the amount of money I needed to take out in loans, allowing me more freedom following graduation to pursue the talents and interests the Lord has given to me. I can’t reiterate enough how much of a blessing these four years have been.”

Having graduated, Robert hopes to pursue a job in environmental consulting; he’d like to perform environmental samplings and create risk assessments and policy briefs. He is also looking into graduate programs in environmental health science. “I want to serve humanity and spread shalom by helping preserve the natural world,” says Robert. “I also want to help humans live healthy lives in spite of sustainability issues.”

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