Grove City College announced the establishment of the Center for Faith and Public Life on Thursday, April 11.
This announcement coincided with former vice president Mike Pence’s keynote speech at the college’s Faith and Freedom Conference.
Grove City College president Paul J. McNulty made the announcement of the new center during his opening remarks on Thursday before introducing Pence.
“The appropriate role of faith in the public square is a major issue in this moment of our American life. The founders envisioned a free society sustained by a self-governing citizenry and strengthened by virtues rooted in religious belief,” McNulty said.
According to a press release, the Center will examine a broad range of issues encompassing business, education, media and other sectors that impact the social fabric.
“At the core of Christian faith is the call to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God. The Center will examine how and why Christians have sought to put their faith into action for the common good,” McNulty said.
In a surprise announcement, it was revealed that Pence will immediately begin serving as a Distinguished Visiting Fellow for Faith and Public Life.
McNulty called Pence the perfect choice for the Center’s fellowship.
“No one has pursued this calling more sincerely than the former vice president [Pence],” he said.
McNulty went on to call Pence a role model and a leader who leads with wisdom and winsomeness in public life.
Upon taking the stage, Pence shared how proud he was to take on the new role.
“It is my great honor to serve as a visiting fellow to Grove City College’s new Center for Faith and Public Life. Faith and engaging in public life are not mutually exclusive, nor should they ever be,” Pence said.
“Grove City [College] works to send out young men and women into the world to be beacons of light and truth in a world that needs leaders of integrity and principle,” he said.
This fellowship guarantees students will see more of Pence in the future, as he will participate in events on campus and will teach a course with McNulty next year.
According to a press release, the Center will operate under the auspices of The Institute for Faith and Freedom, Grove City College’s vision and values think tank.
The work of the Center will be centered around these four categories of study:
- Winsome witness: Christian conduct in public life, including communication, family life and concern for the common good.
- God and government: The relationship between religious beliefs and public policy and service.
- Religious freedom: The basic legal protections of conscience, religious speech and practice, and the free exercise of religion.
- Faith and the common good: The role of faith in every public sector for promoting prosperity, family values, human dignity, justice and other attributes of a healthy society.
In June of 2023, Pence launched his 2024 presidential campaign, which placed him running against his former president and running mate, Donald Trump with whom Pence served as vice president from 2016 to 2020.
Pence’s campaign would be short lived as he withdrew from the race in October of the same year.
