New Grove City College president, Paul McNulty.

PITTSBURGH — Grove City College President Paul McNulty set the table for a high-stakes 2017 at the school, which he said is planning a number of capital improvement projects as part of a push to diversify its student body.

Broadly, McNulty said, the college intends to pursue a lofty goal going forward:

“We have a bold vision: to be the best Christian, Liberal Arts college in America,” McNulty said.

McNulty’s remarks came at the institution’s annual “State of the College” address, which was Wednesday afternoon, at the Fairmont Hotel in Pittsburgh.

In his address McNulty, a former U.S. Deputy Attorney General and GCC’s ninth president, painted a troubling backdrop. There is “tremendous uncertainty” throughout the world in general, he said; “an unprecedented clash (of) competing visions and values,” that continues to unfold following Donald Trump’s electoral victory Nov. 8, and a departure from traditional academic values at some colleges and universities across the country — which has “justifiably alarmed,” officials at GCC and left them facing an existential question.

“Given this extraordinary backdrop ... do we fit into any larger narrative, or are we simply hoping to be left alone, so we can go about our business?” McNulty said.

He said the college would not shrink from engaging with such a world, and would take “bold steps,” to ensure its financial stability, improve its facilities and court a more diverse student body in the coming years. McNulty said the college did not intend to grow much past its current enrollment of 2,400 students, because doing so would require a costly infrastructure expansion project. But, he added, GCC intends to strive for more diversity through expanding its recruitment efforts and financial aid opportunities.

Other steps include revising the college’s chapel program to “encourage a deeper understanding of biblical knowledge,”; expanding its community outreach programs; offering new academic programs, including the possibility of offering graduate-level studies and online classes; and a number of capital improvement projects.

Those projects, McNulty said, will include upgrading the college’s science and engineering facilities, the construction of a new field house, remodeling work at GCC’s physical learning center, and a “major renovation project” at several of the college’s residence halls.

McNulty also announced that the college intends to elevate its lacrosse program, which is currently a club sport, to full varsity status next year.