GROVE CITY, Pa. — On Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence will give the commencement address at Grove City College, the small Christian institution in Western Pennsylvania where I am a junior. A few years ago, Mr. Pence would have been a noncontroversial choice. Other prominent Republicans, including Ben Carson, Jeb Bush and Laura Bush, have spoken here, and the school is known for its conservative values. Indeed, the phrase “conservative values” is in the Grove City mission statement.

But the announcement that Mr. Pence would be commencement speaker this year drew considerable backlash. Alumni and students flooded administrators’ inboxes with emails protesting the decision, and faculty members have called for boycotts. Many who oppose the decision say that hosting Mr. Pence will serve as an endorsement of the current president.

This is an interesting crossroads for the school. Grove City is proud of its image as a steadfastly conservative Christian oasis in the increasingly liberal landscape of higher education. On campus, conservative politics and conservative faith usually go hand in hand. Students study the politics of Ronald Reagan and the literature of C. S. Lewis as well as the Bible.

Most of us were raised in Protestant evangelical households, and more than 16 percent of the 2,500 students were home-schooled. Some students have had little exposure to popular culture or liberal politics. A few seem to see their conservative political affiliation as a ticket to eternal salvation.