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Wikipedia

Liberty University

November 26, 2023

Liberty University (LU) is a private evangelical Christian[6] university in Lynchburg, Virginia. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia (Southern Baptist Convention). Founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell Sr. and Elmer L. Towns, Liberty is among the world's largest Christian universities and the largest private non-profit universities in the United States by total student enrollment.[7][8] Most of its enrollment is in online courses;[9][10] in 2020, the university enrolled about 15,000 in its residential program and 80,000 online.[11][12]

Liberty University
Former names
Lynchburg Baptist College (1971–1976)
Liberty Baptist College (1976–1984)
MottoKnowledge Aflame[1]
TypePrivate university
Established1971; 52 years ago (1971)
FounderJerry Falwell Sr.
Elmer L. Towns
A. Pierre Guillermin
Religious affiliation
Evangelical Christian
Academic affiliation
NAICU
Endowment$1.71 billion (2020)[2]
ChancellorJonathan Falwell
PresidentDondi E. Costin
ProvostScott Hicks
Academic staff
735 full-time[3]
3,075 part-time[3] (fall 2022)
Students96,709 (fall 2022)[3]
Undergraduates48,906[3] (fall 2022)
Postgraduates47,803[3] (fall 2022)
Location
Lynchburg
,
Virginia
,
United States
CampusSuburban
7,000 acres (28 km2)[4]
ColorsNavy Blue, white, red[5]
     
NicknameLiberty Flames and Lady Flames
Sporting affiliations
NCAA Division I FBS –
C-USA, Big East Conference, Coastal Collegiate Sports Association
MascotSparky the Eagle
Websitewww.liberty.edu

Liberty University consists of 17 colleges, including a school of osteopathic medicine, a school of law, and a seminary.[13][14] Liberty's athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Liberty Flames. Their athletics program joined Conference USA as a full member in 2023.[15]

Liberty, whose website[16] and officials[17] speak of "training Champions for Christ", requires undergraduate students to take three Evangelical Bible-studies classes.[18] The university's honor code, called the "Liberty Way", prohibits premarital sex, cohabitation, any kind of romantic relationship between members of the same sex,[19] and alcohol use.[20][21]

Described as a "bastion of the Christian right", the university played a prominent role in Republican politics under Falwell and his son and successor Jerry Falwell Jr.;[22] in 2021, Liberty interim president Jerry Prevo said getting conservative candidates elected to office was "one of our main goals".[23]

History edit

 
Jerry Falwell, evangelist and leader of the Moral Majority

The school was founded as Lynchburg Baptist College[24] in 1971 by televangelist Jerry Falwell Sr. and Elmer L. Towns. Falwell, already a pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, served as the first chancellor of the school. From 1979 to the late 1980s, Falwell Sr. also headed the Moral Majority, a right-wing political organization.[24][25]

The school changed its name to Liberty Baptist College in 1976. Officials said the change aimed to distance the school from the name Lynchburg, which is often mistakenly associated with lynching; co-founder Towns also said that Falwell Sr., wanted to use the name "Liberty" to ride the enthusiasm for the Bicentennial of the United States.[26]

The name changed again in 1984, to Liberty University. In 1985, the university launched a distance-learning program by mailing VHS tapes to students;[27] this was the forerunner to Liberty University's current online program.[27][28] Two years later, Liberty University's 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status was formally recognized by the IRS.

In its early decades, the university was held afloat financially by major donors.[27] The university was placed on probation multiple times in the 1990s by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools due to heavy debt loads.[27] In 1990, the university's debt totaled $110 million; in 1996, it totaled $40 million.[27] In 1994, Sun Myung Moon's Women's Federation for World Peace funneled $3.5 million to Liberty University.[29]

Since 1999, Liberty has had an informal relationship with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia, two of whose members sit on the university board of trustees.[30][31]

In 2001, days after 9/11, Jerry Falwell Sr. "blamed the terrorist attacks on gays, lesbians, feminists, abortion doctors, and the ACLU".[32]

In 2004, Liberty University named its School of Government after Falwell family friend Senator Jesse Helms.[33]

In 2005, Barron's Profiles of American Colleges ranked undergraduate admission to LU as "competitive", its fourth-highest of six ranks.[34][35] When high-speed Internet connections became more widespread around 2005, Liberty began to offer online courses to a larger adult population.

After Falwell Sr. died in 2007, his son Jerry Falwell Jr. became the university's second chancellor and fourth president.[25] At the time, the university listed $259 million in assets.[36]

Liberty University Online Academy was formed in 2007, serving 23 students.

 
Jerry Falwell Jr.

In 2009, Liberty University withdrew official recognition of the student Young Democrats club, saying that the club's political positions, including support of abortion rights, conflicted with the school's. The school’s College Republicans club remains officially recognized.[37]

In 2010, Liberty students received about $445 million in federal financial aid money, the highest total of any school in Virginia and one of the highest in the country.[38][39] A 56 percent increase over the previous year, the money was mostly in the form of student loans, but also included some grants and other forms of aid.[38]

In 2011, Liberty blocked campus access to a local Lynchburg newspaper, the News & Advocate, after the newspaper reported on the school's dependence on federal financial aid.[40] Falwell Jr. said that the decision to block the newspaper was unrelated to content published in the paper.[41]

In 2012, Liberty University acquired the former Lynchburg Sears building to house Liberty University online and a television station.[42]

In 2017, Forbes's list of America's Top Colleges ranked Liberty University No. 585 of 650 "Top Colleges", No. 231 as a "Research University", 371 as a "Private College", and 136 "in the South". Forbes also gave Liberty a "Forbes Financial Grade" of B+.[43]

As of 2017, the university's endowment stood at more than $1 billion and gross assets exceeded $2 billion.[44]

In 2019, Will E. Young, a former editor-in-chief of Liberty's Champion student newspaper, described the "culture of fear" at Liberty University, noting that the school "founded on principles of fundamental Christianity, is now a place that has zero tolerance for new questions and ideas. Those who harbor them must remain silent, or leave."[45] Young later argued that Liberty must address its racist past, beginning with Jerry Falwell, Sr. and that it must include people of color and LGBTQ people as it makes decisions.[46]

Ben Howe, whose parents worked for Falwell's Liberty University, published The Immoral Majority: Why Evangelicals Chose Political Power over Christian Values. The book included a critique of Jerry Falwell Jr. who posed "for a picture in front of a Playboy magazine with [Donald] Trump on the cover."[47]

In spring 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Liberty allowed some students to return to campus after spring break over the objections of the city's mayor and contrary to the practices of most U.S. colleges and universities.[48][49] When a ProPublica reporter and New York Times photographer investigated why the university remained partially open, the university pushed the local district attorney to charge them with trespassing.[50]

A few months later, then-president Falwell Jr. posted a picture of Virginia's then-governor Ralph Northam's black face in a tweet that many found racist. Some staff resigned in protest; some black students pursued transfers,[51] many contending that the tweet was a symptom of a larger problem at the university.[52] In response to internal and external criticism, Liberty University officials hired Kelvin Edwards, an alumnus and former NFL player, to lead diversity initiatives on campus,[53] then fired him three months later. Edwards sued the university, alleging a breach of contract.[53][54]

Falwell Jr. was placed on indefinite leave on August 7, 2020, after media began reporting allegations, including photographs, of personal and professional impropriety.[55][56] A few weeks later, he resigned.[57][58][59][60] He claimed that he was entitled to $10.5 million in compensation from the university because he resigned without either admitting to wrongdoing or having formal accusations opened against him.[61]

At the end of Falwell Jr.'s presidency in 2020, the university listed over $2.5 billion in assets.[36] Following Falwell's resignation, Times Higher Education reported that Liberty University was "facing growing criticism over perceived resistance to diversity" following the departures of Edwards, board chair Allen McFarland, and pastor David Nasser.[62] Jonathan Falwell, a son of Jerry Falwell Sr., replaced Nasser.

In late 2020, three reform efforts took place. A group of Liberty University alumni called Save71 was organized in an effort to reform the school. Three Liberty University athletes, Kennedi Williams, Dee Brown, and TreShaun Clark, organized a Black Lives Matter protest on campus, drawing a crowd of about two hundred people. Student leaders also created an online petition to force Liberty to shut down the school's think tank, the Falkirk Center, named after Jerry Falwell Jr. and conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The petition garnered about 400 signatures.[63]

In November 2020, Liberty University graduate and athletics booster Bob Good won a seat in the US House of Representatives, making him the first Liberty graduate to be in the House.[64]

In April 2021, Liberty University sued Falwell Jr. for $40 million in damages for breach of contract and violation of fiduciary duty.[65] In the same month, the Liberty University board of trustees replaced acting chairman Allen McFarland, the first African American board chair, with Tim Lee, "a pro-Trump pastor."[66]

In July 2021, the university was sued by 12 anonymous women, including two employees, who alleged that the university created an environment that increased the likelihood of sexual assault and rape in violation of federal Title IX law. The lawsuit alleged that the school's student honor code makes it difficult to report sexual violence because it does not clearly shield students; that the university had a tacit policy that condoned sexual violence, especially by male student athletes, by weighing a denial more heavily than an allegation; and that the school retaliates against women who report sexual violence. In one of the alleged incidents, a 15-year-old who was allegedly attacked by Jesse Matthew, who later confessed to murdering Hannah Graham, was told she would be criminally charged with filing a false report, before they began an "investigation" into her claim, which allegedly only consisted of a demand that she strip and submit to being photographed by the chief of police which she refused to do. She later was not taken to the hospital but the police later pestered her until she agreed to be photographed naked by a female debate coach. In a written response to the lawsuit, Liberty University officials said "The allegations are deeply troubling, if they turn out to be true," and said that would look into each allegation detailed in the lawsuit.[67][68][69]

Also in July 2021, Liberty University diversity retention officer LeeQuan McLaurin, a black gay man, filed a discrimination lawsuit against the school, claiming that his supervisor's view that Christianity condemns homosexuality forced him to quit.[70]

An October 2021, a ProPublica investigative report found that Liberty University discouraged and dismissed students coming forward about sexual assault; former students said they were threatened with punishment by coming forward with accusations of sexual assault.[71] Politico also reported that a former Liberty University official, Scott Lamb, also accused Liberty University of violating its 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. Politico had previously reported that the school had invested in "Republican causes and efforts to promote the Trump administration."[72]

In fall 2021, an outbreak of COVID-19 forced all classes on the Lynchburg campus to go online-only for two weeks. More than 400 students and 50 staff members tested positive for the virus.[73] The campus did not require COVID-19 vaccinations, masks, or social distancing. Outdoor events, including a convocation and football game, were scheduled to continue.[74][75]

In fall 2023, a preliminary report by the U.S. Department of Education alleged that school officials had failed to report campus crime and safety statistics, had destroyed evidence of assaults, and had retaliated against at least one employee who raised concerns about violations of the Clery Act, the federal law that requires such disclosures by schools that receive federal funding.[76]

Campus edit

 
Rawlings School of Divinity, Freedom Tower was completed in February 2018. At 275 feet, it is the tallest building in Lynchburg.
 
Top of the Snowflex synthetic ski slope overlooking Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre
 
DeMoss Learning Center at Liberty University

The 17-story, 245-foot Freedom Tower, completed in February 2018, is the tallest building in Lynchburg. The tower holds a 25-bell carillon that includes a replica of the Liberty Bell.[77]

The Hancock Welcome Center celebrated its ribbon cutting ceremony on December 7, 2012. It is a three-level, 33,000-square-foot Jeffersonian-style building featuring an atrium, boardroom, theater, lounges, a banquet hall, several smaller counseling rooms, and a patio with a view of the Blue Ridge Mountains.[78] The Jerry Falwell Sr. Center: Inspiring Champions for Christ, opening in 2023, will be attached to the Hancock Welcome Center.[79][80]

Liberty University's Center for Music & Worship hosts the Miss Virginia beauty competition which sends the winner of the state to represent it in the Miss America Pageant.[81][82]

Construction was completed in August 2009 on the Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre, a synthetic ski slope featuring Snowflex; the centre was designed by England's Briton Engineering. The first of its kind in the United States, it includes beginner, intermediate, and advanced slopes.[83]

The Observatory Center opened in spring 2013 next to the Equestrian Center. The dome has a classroom that can fit up to 20 people. It houses a 20-inch (510 mm) RC Optical Systems Truss Ritchey-Chrétien and several Celestron CPC 800 8-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes on pedestals, able to roll out under a roof. The observatory serves three purposes: instruction, public nights and research. Student Activities controls the use of the observatory and is open to all students.[84]

In 2018, Liberty University opened a $3.2 million on-campus shooting range to train students to protect themselves against shooters and terrorists.[85]

Libraries and museums edit

Jerry Falwell Library edit

The four-story, 170,000-square-foot Jerry Falwell Library opened in January 2014[86] with more than 250,000 items and room for another 170,000. They are accessible via a robot-assisted storage and retrieval system, which locates requested items within a large storage room and delivers them to the front desk. There are 150 public computers throughout the building for electronic archive research. The library has group study rooms, writable walls, balconies, terraces, and a vegetative roof. At its entrance stands a 24-foot media wall, powered by three Microsoft Kinect units and integrated using a custom program that allows visitors to scroll through university news, browse pictures contributed from students, and learn about upcoming university events.[87]

The $50 million library is part of a larger $500 million building and expansion plan announced by Liberty University.[88][89]

Biblical Museum edit

The museum includes artifacts from the Holy Land and Biblical culture, from 3,000 B.C. to the 6th century A.D., with special exhibits of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Jewish Temple, an Authentic Last Supper room, Daily Life in the Bible, Ancient Egypt, and Fossils and the Flood.[90]

National Civil War Chaplains Museum edit

The National Civil War Chaplains Museum contains exhibits about clergy members and religious activity during the Civil War era. It is the only museum in the nation devoted to this purpose. The mission of the museum is to "educate the public about the role of chaplains, priests, and rabbis and religious organizations in the Civil War; to promote the continuing study of the many methods of dissemination of religious doctrine and moral teachings during the War; to preserve religious artifacts, and to present interpretive programs that show the influence of religion on the lives of political and military personnel."[91] A 501(c)(3) organization, the museum rents space from Liberty University's DeMoss Center. It has 10,000 square feet, with a 50-seat video theatre, archive displays, a research library, and bookstore.[citation needed]

The museum commemorates Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish chaplains (including African-American chaplains), and houses publications and artifacts from both the Union and Confederate militaries. There are several areas in the museum that are given special attention including:

Carter Glass Mansion edit

The Carter Glass Mansion, also called Montview, is a house built in 1923 for Carter Glass, a newspaper publisher, U.S. senator,[94] U.S. treasury secretary under President Woodrow Wilson, and Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and President Pro Tempore of the Senate during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt.[95] The 1+1⁄2-story house, which is flanked by slightly smaller ells, has 18-inch (46 cm) walls of quartz fieldstone quarried from the property and a grey gambrel roof.[95] It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Virginia Landmarks Register.

The 1.7-acre (0.69 ha) estate was purchased by Liberty University in the late 1970s to be the headquarters of the university administration. It housed the main office of university founder Jerry Falwell, who died at his desk on May 15, 2007. Falwell and his wife were buried on the rear lawn of the mansion and a memorial to Falwell was placed there, overlooking the rest of the campus. The estate is now largely a tourist site, with Falwell's office preserved in its 2007 condition and the upstairs section of the mansion converted to a bed and breakfast for Liberty University guests.[96]

Center for Creation Studies and Creation Hall edit

According to its literature, the Center for Creation Studies aims to study the origin of the universe, the earth, life, and diversification of species, equipping students to contend for their faith in the creation account in Genesis using science, reason, and the Scriptures.[97] Young Earth creationism asserts that the Earth was created by supernatural acts by God some 6,000 to 10,000 years ago rather than the scientific consensus that it accreted more than 4.5 billion years ago.[98]

David A. DeWittis is the director of the Center for Creation Studies.[99]

Creation Hall, on the second floor of the Center for Natural Sciences, is "dedicated to promoting young-Earth creation".[100] Displays include replicas claimed to be of post-Flood humans and fossils allegedly buried during Noah's flood.[100]

Athletic venues edit

Williams Stadium edit

Williams Stadium is the home field for the Liberty Flames football team. Opened in 1989, the stadium seats 25,000 spectators.[101] An indoor practice facility was opened in 2017 at a cost of $29 million.[102]

Liberty Arena edit

The Liberty Arena is the home of the men's and women's basketball teams and women's volleyball. The $65 million, 125,000-square-foot space, which opened in 2020, seats 4,000 spectators.[103]

Liberty Natatorium edit

Liberty Natatorium is 75,000 square feet and contains a 9-lane Olympic-size swimming pool as well as a diving well 17 feet deep and fitted with 1-meter and 3-meter springboards and 10-meter, 7.5-meter, 5-meter, 3-meter, and 1-meter diving platforms.[104][105] The inaugural competitive swimming event held in the swimming pool was the 2018 TYR Junior National Cup in March 2018.[106] In 2020, one of the diving platforms collapsed for an unknown reason.[105] Since its opening, there have also been facility issues associated with the timing system used in competitive swimming events.[105][106]

Liberty Mountain edit

The Liberty Mountain area consists of the Hydaway Outdoor Center and its 31-acre lake, the Liberty University Equestrian Center, Liberty Mountain Gun Club, Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre, Astronomical Observatory and the Liberty Mountain Trail System.[107]

Governance and leadership edit

The university is governed by a 30-member board of trustees that includes Jonathan Falwell, the son and brother (respectively) of the two former university presidents.[108][109] Additionally, two ministers serve as trustee emeriti.

Dondi E. Costin is the university's president, assuming the position July 1, 2023, and taking over from now President Emeritus Jerry Prevo.

Faculty edit

Liberty University has 735 full-time instructors and 3,075 part-time instructors for more than 96,000 students. [3]

Unlike most other research universities, faculty (outside the law school) are not offered tenure, giving them less influence in governing the university than is common.[110] Most teachers are adjunct labor. Faculty must inform leadership in advance if they are speaking with the media.[111]

In 2018,The New York Times reported that faculty at Liberty University acknowledge that Liberty University Online is a steep drop-off in quality relative to the traditional classes at the university.[18] The online division at the Liberty University is a significant revenue source for the university.[112]

Academics edit

Liberty University Colleges and Schools[113]
College/school
Aeronautics
Applied Studies and Academic Success (CASAS)
Arts and Sciences
Behavioral Sciences
Business
Communication and Digital Content
Divinity
Education
Engineering
General Studies
Government
Health Sciences
Law
Music
Nursing
Osteopathic Medicine
Visual and Performing Arts
 
Liberty University School of Aeronautics Cessna 172
 
Liberty's DeMoss Hall, the campus's main academic building exhibiting Jeffersonian architecture

As of August 2017, Liberty University offered over 550 total programs, 366 on campus and 289 online.[114] There are 144 graduate programs and four doctoral programs offered on campus.[114] It is classified among "Doctoral/Professional Universities"[115] and is recognized by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education.[116]

College of Arts and Sciences edit

The Liberty University College of Arts and Sciences includes eight different departments and offers PhD, master's, bachelor's, and associate degrees.[117][118]

The college teaches Young Earth creationism, a pseudoscience in its "creationist studies" classes.[119]

College of Osteopathic Medicine edit

The Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine (LUCOM) opened in August 2014,[120] funded in part by a $12 million matching grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission.[121]

In July 2015 the college of osteopathic medicine opened Liberty Mountain Medical Group LLC, a primary care clinic serving the greater Lynchburg area.[122][123][124]

The college received initial accreditation from the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOA-COCA) in 2018.[125] In that same year the medical school launched its first residency program, focused on neuromusculoskeletal treatment.[126]

Helms School of Government edit

Liberty's Helms School of Government offers degrees in areas including criminal justice, government and public administration, international relations, pre-law, public policy, strategic intelligence, fire administration in both at both bachelor's and master's degree levels.[118][127][128] The Helms School of Government is named after Senator Jesse Helms.[129]

Rawlings School of Divinity edit

The Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity (formerly Liberty Divinity School) was founded in 1973.[130] The Rawlings School of Divinity currently offers 44 bachelor's degrees, 44 master's degrees, and 14 doctorate degrees;[131] the Divinity School's graduate programs are accredited by the ATS.[132] Many programs are on campus only, while others are available online.[118][133] The school includes The Center for Apologetics and Cultural Engagement to defending the Christian faith in light of "trending issues like racism, sexuality, and morality in today’s society...and "engage the culture around us, learning to speak and act out of a gospel" The Rawlings School of Divinity is housed in the Freedom Tower.[134][135] The Rawlings school is the largest divinity school in the world based on the number of students enrolled in degree programs.[136]

School of Aeronautics edit

Liberty offers 11 bachelor's degrees in aeronautics from professional pilot to UAS.[137] In 2018, Liberty's School of Aeronautics had more than 1,200 students in-person and online.[138] Liberty has worked with American Eagle, Piedmont Airlines and Wayman Aviation to alleviate their pilot shortages.[139][140][141]

School of Behavioral Sciences edit

The School of Behavioral Sciences includes four departments: Community Care & Counseling, Counselor Education & Family Studies, Psychology, and Social Work.[142] It has an acceptance rate of 38%.[143] The Community Care & Counseling department offers 28 master's degrees[144] and four doctoral degrees.[145] The Counselor Education & Family Studies department offers five master's degrees[146] and one doctoral degree.[147] The Psychology department offers two associate degrees,[148] 14 bachelor's degrees,[148] six master's degrees,[149] and six doctoral degrees.[150] The Social Work department offers one bachelor's degree.[151] As of 2020, the dean was Kenyon C. Knapp.[152][153]

School of Business edit

Liberty University's School of Business offers 46 bachelor's,[154] 67 master's,[155] and 14 doctoral degrees.[118][156] Liberty's school of business is accredited by ACBSP.[157][158] In 2019, the School of Business was nearing completion of a new 78,000 sq. ft. building.[159][160]

School of Communication & the Arts edit

The School of Communication & the Arts includes five departments: Cinematic Arts, Digital Media and Journalism, Strategic and Personal Communication, Studio & Digital Arts, and Theatre Arts. There are over 12,000 residential and online students enrolled in this school.[161]

Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center edit

Liberty University offers a Bachelor of Science in Cinematic Arts Degree, which is based in the new Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center (ZGCAC).

School of Education edit

As of 2022 the School of Education enrolled 4,441 students.[162]

School of Engineering edit

Liberty's School of Engineering offers degrees in computer engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, industrial & systems engineering, and mechanical engineering.[118][163] The School of Engineering is accredited through the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).[164] In 2017, Liberty bought The Center for Advanced Engineering and Research (CAER) facility in Bedford, Virginia.[165][166]

The School of Engineering has spent considerable resources on a project titled "Simulating Genesis" "to show how the laws of physics align with biblical history."[167]

School of Law edit

82% of Liberty University School of Law's Class of 2018 obtained full-time, bar passage, or JD-required employment nine months after graduation, according to ABA-required disclosures.[168] The law school has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 2010.[169] In February 2019, all of its graduates who took the Virginia Bar Exam passed.[170] The school is ranked 147-192 out of 196 law schools ranked by the U.S. News & World Report in its 2023 law school rankings.[171]

Center for Law and Government edit

In 2017, Liberty announced its new Center for Law and Government will be led by former U.S. representative Robert Hurt.[needs update] The Center will house the Liberty University School of Law and the Jesse Helms School of Government.[172]

School of Music edit

The departments of worship and music studies and of music and humanities merged in 2012 into a school of music, composed of two distinct centers.[173][174][175][176] The School of Music offers 32 bachelor's degrees,[177] 15 master's degrees, and four doctoral degrees.[178][179]

College of Applied Studies and Academic Success edit

Liberty University's College of Applied Studies and Academic Success houses the Academic Success Center, the Eagle Scholar's Program, Technical Studies, Continuing Education, and Success Courses.[180]

Technical studies and trades edit

Along with over 15 other associate programs, Liberty offers vocational education with various associate degrees in carpentry; electrical; heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC); plumbing; and welding. These trades are approved by the National Center for Construction Education and Research.[181][182]

Student outcomes edit

According to the College Scorecard, Liberty University has a graduation rate of 34%. Median salary after attending ranges from $11,455 (AA in Teacher Education) to $72,022 (Electrical Engineering). 54% earn more than a high school graduate. Of those repaying student loans two years after entering repayment, 26% were in forbearance, 25% were not making progress, 14% were making progress, 14% were in deferment, 9% defaulted, 5% were paid in full, 5% were delinquent, and 2% had their loans discharged.[183]

Rankings edit

Liberty University is ranked #394-435 in the 2023 U.S. News & World Report ranking of "National Universities."[186] LU was ranked 428 out of 442 schools in the 2022 Washington Monthly.[187]

Liberty is among the ten colleges that enrolled the most undergraduates in fall 2018 according to U.S. News,[188] and, when including online students, enrolled more students than any U.S. university in 2018.[189] In 2023, Liberty had an endowment of $1.71 billion, the 43rd largest in the United States.[190]

 
The initials of Liberty University, on Candler Mountain, as viewed from near campus. In early 2022, this monogram was changed into the Liberty Flames logo.

Liberty once was ranked as the "Most Conservative College in America" by niche.com,[191][192] but by 2023 had been replaced by Brigham Young University.[193]

Affiliation edit

The university is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia (Southern Baptist Convention).[194]

Accreditation edit

Liberty was founded in 1971 and received regional accreditation through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accreditation in 1980,[195] which was reaffirmed in 2016.[196] In addition, it was accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS) in September 1984, but resigned its TRACS accreditation on November 6, 2008.[197][198] Liberty has more than 60 accredited degree granting programs.[199] The law school, which opened in August 2004, gained provisional accreditation from the American Bar Association (ABA) in 2006 and was granted full accreditation in 2010.[200] The medical school, which opened in 2014, is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOA-COCA). On December 9, 2009, Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. announced that "Liberty University has received Level VI accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). This is the highest classification from SACS and is reserved for colleges and universities that offer four or more doctoral degrees.[201][202] Liberty is also accredited by: Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET),[203]National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE),[203]Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE),[203] Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI),[204]National Association of Schools of Music (NASM),[205] Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE),[203] Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP),[203] Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP),[206] Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP),[207] and the Commission on Sport Management Education (COSMA).[208]

Academic journals and other publications edit

The Journal of Statesmanship and Public Policy explores topics in the realms of national security, international relations, domestic policy, and political philosophy from a deeply thoughtful, ethical, and Christian perspective." Recent articles have been published on strict constructionism and critical race theory. [209]

The Liberty Bell News is an online publication whose mission is "to maintain the vision of the founder, Dr. Jerry Falwell Sr., to develop and train Christ-centered men and women with the values, knowledge, and skills essential to impact the world."[210]

Student life edit

Student life includes:

  • Mandatory Christian community service of 20 hours a semester (CSER)
  • Gender-segregated dorms
  • A dress code for classes

Safety edit

In 2017, the school invited Ray Rice, who had been videotaped beating his fiancée three years earlier, to give a lecture on domestic violence.[211] In 2021, a dozen anonymous women sued the school, charging that it failed to curb domestic violence and sexual assault on campus.[212][213] A 2021 ProPublica investigation found that "an ethos of sexual purity, as embodied by the Liberty Way, has led to school officials discouraging, dismissing and even blaming female students who have tried to come forward with claims of sexual assault."[214]

The school sought for years to conceal campus crime and safety statistics, according to a preliminary 2023 report by the U.S. Department of Education reviewed by the Washington Post. The report, whose findings may yet be appealed by the school, documents alleged violations of the Clery Act, which requires schools that receive federal money to disclose crime and safety statistics. Instead, the report indicates, university officials destroyed documentation and failed to notify the campus of sexual predators, bomb threats, and gas leaks.[76]

Demographics edit

Student body composition as of May 2, 2022
Race and ethnicity[215] Total
White 56% 56
 
Other[a] 24% 24
 
Black 10% 10
 
Hispanic 7% 7
 
Asian 2% 2
 
Foreign national 1% 1
 
Economic diversity
Low-income[b] 30% 30
 
Affluent[c] 70% 70
 

In fall 2017, the acceptance rate for new first-time, full-time students entering Liberty's resident program was 30%. In 2011, the overall acceptance rate, which includes online students, was 51 percent.[118] Liberty University Online is an open enrollment institution.

Liberty's Black population has declined from 19.9 percent in 2011 to 10.4 percent in 2019. The Black graduation rate was 17 percent.[216]

On-campus demographics edit

As of 2021, the residential student body is 74% White, 5% Latino, 4% Black, 3% two or more races, and 2% Asian or Pacific Islander, less than 1% Native American, and 7% "other". Its male-to-female ratio is 45% to 54%.[217]

Online demographics edit

Including online students, Liberty's undergraduate population in 2017 was 51% White, 26.5% race/ethnicity unknown, 15.4% Black or African American, 2.3% two or more races, 1.7% Hispanic/Latino, 1.4% non-resident alien, 0.9% Asian, 0.6% American Indian or Alaskan native, 0.2% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.[218] All 50 states and Washington, D.C., are represented along with 86 countries.[219] The online male-to-female ratio is 40% to 60%.[220] More than 30,000 military students and over 850 international students attend Liberty.[220]

Liberty ranks 174th out of 2,475 schools in overall diversity, 94th out of 3,012 schools in age diversity, and 82nd out of 2,525 schools in location diversity.[221]

As of 2010, when including online students, LU was the largest Evangelical Christian university in the world.[222] As of 2013, LU was the largest private non-profit university in the United States.[7] In terms of combined traditional and distance learning students, Liberty University is the 7th-largest four-year university, and the largest university in Virginia.[223]

LGBTQ+ stance edit

Words and actions indicating "LGBT states of mind" are prohibited for students as of the 2021 version of The Liberty Way, the student handbook.[224] Sexual relations are only permitted in a Biblically ordained marriage between a natural-born man and a natural-born woman. The student handbook describes any gay sex as prohibited by the Bible, and thus prohibited by the school.[225] Kissing, holding hands, or dating a member of the same sex are also prohibited under The Liberty Way.[226]

Students have criticized the university for being unwelcoming to LGBT students.[227] The Guardian has reported that LGBTQ+ students hide their dating behavior in order to graduate and to avoid being fined.[228] Campus Pride, an organization that advocates for LGBT rights on college campuses, listed Liberty University as one of the worst universities for LGBT students.[229] Without explanation, Falwell Jr. said the university does not have an anti-gay bias.[citation needed] The school offers conversion "therapy" to gay students, a practice that peer-reviewed studies have shown is ineffective and harmful.[230][227][231]

In 2021, a former Liberty University student was part of a class action lawsuit filed against the U.S. Department of Education alleging that the institution should not be eligible to receive federal funding because of its discriminatory practices against LGBT students.[232] In 2015, Liberty University denied the discounted tuition to same-sex and trans spouses of military personnel that it offered to heterosexual military couples.[233] In 2016, the university ordered a version of a psychology textbook that omitted sections with LGBTQ+-focused content.[234]

The school says it does not engage in unlawful discrimination or harassment because of race, color, ancestry, religion, age, sex, national origin, pregnancy or childbirth, disability or military veteran status. But it "reserves its right to discriminate on the basis of religion to the extent that applicable law respects its right to act in furtherance of its religious objectives."[235][236][237]

Honor code edit

The Liberty University honor code forbids students to be alone with a member of the opposite sex "at an off-campus residence" or to have premarital sex anywhere.[21] Students may not consume alcohol or tobacco.[238] In 2015, Liberty revised the code to give students the freedom to watch rated "R" movies and to play video games rated "M".[239] In 2017, the curfew policy was changed to permit students age 20 and over to sign out and stay out past curfew.[240] In 2018, the administration rejected a resolution from the student government that would have allowed off-campus drinking, "profane language" and the use of tobacco.[241]

Convocation edit

 
Convocation at the Vines Center

Liberty's convocation is the largest weekly gathering of Christian students in America.[242][243]

Residential students at Liberty, at both undergraduate and graduate levels, are required to attend Convocation at the Vines Center twice per week on Wednesdays and Fridays. Any student commuting to campus who is under twenty-one years old is also required to attend. Commuting students over the age of twenty-one are encouraged to attend, but their attendance is not mandatory. For students with mandatory attendance requirements, upon arrival, they must report to the Resident Assistant assigned to them and sit in their assigned section to be counted as present. A fine of $25 is assessed for the first two absences with the fine rising to $50 for further offenses. Attending students are not permitted to leave before the official dismissal or they will be fined as if they had been absent. Students under mandatory attendance requirements may receive a "skip" once per semester if they make their intent to use the skip know to their Resident Assistant at least 24 hours before Convocation begins.[244][245]

Gun use edit

Liberty University students are allowed to possess guns in the on-campus dorms.[246]

Clubs and organizations edit

 
Liberty University LaHaye Student Union building

According to Liberty's website, there are over 100 registered on-campus clubs and organizations.[247]

Liberty Champion edit

Liberty Champion is Liberty University's official student newspaper.

In 2017, Will Young, the former editor of the Champion, recalled his experiences in a lengthy Washington Post article. In his first week in that role, he had been rebuked for attempting to get the campus's police blotter, he wrote, and the administration regularly overrode the student editors' decisions. There was, he claimed, "an infrastructure of thought-control that Falwell and his lieutenants [had] introduced into every aspect of Liberty University life" since 2016. Some sources Young spoke to believed the university installed spyware on the laptops they were issued. Student journalists became so frustrated that they launched an independent newspaper, the Lynchburg Torch,[248] to cover stories the administration tried to suppress.[249]

Speech and debate edit

Liberty's Inter-Collegiate policy debate program ranked first overall for their division in the Championships at the National Debate Tournament in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, and 2011.[250][251][252][253][254] The overall rankings include varsity, junior varsity, and novice results. In varsity rankings, Liberty finished 20th in 2005, 17th in 2006, 24th in 2007, 12th in 2008, 9th in 2009, 4th in 2010 and 4th in 2011. Through 2016, Liberty hosted the Virginia High School League's (VHSL) annual Debate State Championships every April. Subsequent to controversial remarks made by Chancellor Falwell in December 2015 following the 2015 San Bernardino attack, a number of high school students, teachers, debate coaches, and parents expressed concerns over Liberty's suitability for high school events, and some teams chose to not send students to compete at the annual State Championship in 2016.[255] VHSL discontinued using Liberty as a venue for debate competition after 2016 to ensure an "environment free from harassment, personal threat, or physical or mental harm."[256] In 2017, Liberty University's Debate Team finished atop the final rankings of all three national debate tournaments for the eighth time, sweeping the American Debate Association (ADA), the Cross Examination Debate Association (CEDA), and the National Debate Tournament (NDT). Liberty remains the only school in the country to finish first in all three rankings in a single year. The team has placed first in the CEDA for the last eight years, first in the NDT for seven out of the last eight years, and first in the ADA for 13 out of the last 14 years.[257]

Athletics edit

Main article: Liberty Flames and Lady Flames
 
Liberty University Williams Stadium

Liberty's athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Liberty Flames. Liberty is a member of the ASUN Conference for 17 of its 20 varsity sports. Women's swimming competes in the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association, and women's field hockey competes in the Big East Conference.[258] The field hockey team had belonged to the Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference before that league's demise after the 2014 season. It competed as an independent in the 2015 season, then join the Big East Conference for the 2016 season.[259] Starting in 2018, the football team began competing in the FBS as an independent.[260] In 2020, Liberty entered the rankings in the AP Poll at 25 for the first time in program history. They finished the season being ranked 17 in the AP Poll and 18 in the Coaches Poll of top football teams in the country.[261][262]

The university regularly competes for the Sasser Cup, the Big South's trophy for the university that has the best sports program among the member institutions. Liberty has won the Sasser Cup ten times, the most in the Big South.[263] In 2012, Liberty became the first Big South school to win five consecutive Sasser Cups.[264][265]

Football edit

The Liberty Flames compete NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as an independent. In 2021, Liberty University announced the Flames would become full members of Conference USA effective for the 2023 football season.[15] The team used Lynchburg's City Stadium as their home stadium until October 21, 1989, when the Flames played their first home game at Williams Stadium in front of 12,750 fans.[266] Upgrades to the stadium increased capacity from 12,000 to 19,200 attendees and added luxury suites, a Club level, and a media area. Another expansion increased seating to 25,000.[267] When a part of the FCS, Liberty ranked in the top 10 in the country in home attendance.[267] In 2019, the Flames won the Cure Bowl against Georgia Southern, 23–16.[268] In 2020, Liberty won the Cure Bowl again, defeating Coastal Carolina 39–34 in overtime. Liberty finished 10–1 with wins over a ranked Coastal Carolina and in state rival Virginia Tech in the school's best season to date. Liberty made its third FBS bowl appearance at the LendingTree Bowl in 2021, beating Eastern Michigan 56–20.[269] The Flames last head coach was Hugh Freeze.[270] In December 2022, the Flames hired Jamey Chadwell to be Liberty's next football coach, who was the football coach of Coastal Carolina.

Basketball edit

Liberty University's basketball Vines Center can house up to 9,547 spectators for its games.[271] Several members of the Liberty men's basketball (Liberty Flames basketball) team have been recruited to the NBA.[272][273] The women's basketball team (Liberty Lady Flames basketball) was honored by the Big South "with the Top 25 'Best of the Best' moments in League history from 1983–2008, with Liberty University's 10-year women's basketball championship run from 1996–2007 being crowned the No. 1 moment in the Big South's first 25 years."[274]

In 2019, the men's basketball program won the ASUN basketball tournament and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament. Liberty earned its highest ranking ever when it was selected as the No. 12 seed in the East Region. Liberty set a school record with their 29th win as they upset Mississippi State 80–76 in the first round of the East Region in the 2019 NCAA tournament.[275][276][277]

Baseball edit

The Liberty Baseball Stadium, completed in June 2013 and home to Liberty Baseball, was ranked No. 4 among college ballpark experiences by Stadium Journey website in 2015.[278] The stadium includes 2,500 chairbacks, locker room, four indoor batting tunnels, four luxury suites, offices for the baseball program, a weight room, team room and a fully functional press area.[279] Several Liberty Flames baseball players were drafted during the 2015 Major League Baseball draft. Local stations air some games.[280] Some games have aired nationally on ESPNU.[281]

Ice hockey edit

Liberty University has men's and women's club ice hockey teams. Men's hockey started in 1985[282] when students at Liberty organized a team to compete against surrounding colleges and clubs[283] but has since become a competitive club team competing against much larger schools such as University of Oklahoma, University of Delaware, and Penn State University.[284] In 2006, Liberty University opened the 3,000-seat LaHaye Ice Center, a gift from Timothy and Beverly LaHaye.[285] Also in 2006, Liberty became the only school in the state of Virginia to host a men's Division I American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) club hockey team.[283] Currently, Liberty University has Division I, II, and III men's teams and Division I and II women's teams.[282] The men's Division I team is coached by Kirk Handy,[283] while the women's Division I team is coached by Chris Lowes.

Cross country edit

The men's and women's cross country teams have long been a conference powerhouse, and Josh McDougal[286] (2007) and Samuel Chelanga (2009–2010) won the NCAA Division I individual laurels. Chelanga took two additional gold medals and three silvers in outdoor and indoor competition in three years and still holds the collegiate 10,000-meter record set in 2010, and won All-American honors 14 times.[287]

Liberty University Online edit

Liberty University has an Internet education component called Liberty University Online, also known as LU Online or LUO, which provides degrees from associate's level to doctorate.

Online students constitute the overwhelming majority of the university's students and revenue, "subsidizing the university" and making them "a killing", according to faculty members, despite the "steep drop-off in quality from the traditional college to the online courses." Critics have argued that the online division subsidizes campus resources, such as the ski resort and gun range, and that online enrollment is run in a boiler room fashion. Online instructors are mainly engaged in answering emails and grading rather than creating and delivering content.[110]

Liberty University Online Academy edit

Established in 2007, the Liberty University Online Academy (LUOA) is a K-12 school serving about 1,900 students. It is accredited by SACS (Southern Association of Schools and Colleges).[citation needed]

Finances, marketing, and recruitment edit

In June 2021, Liberty University had $3.94 billion in assets and $474 million in liabilities. Its operating revenue was $1.15 billion and its operating expenses were $840 million.[288] Its endowment was valued at $1.71 billion in fiscal year 2021. In fiscal year 2020, Liberty University received $800 million from online tuition and $361 million from residential student tuition.[289] According to Third Way, Liberty uses less than 20 percent of its revenues for instruction.[290]

In its early years, the university was held afloat financially by major donors.[27] In 1987, Liberty University's 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status was formally recognized by the IRS.

In the 1990s, the debt-saddled university was placed on probation several times by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools because of heavy debt.[27] In 1990, the university owed $110 million; in 1996, it owed $40 million.[27] The Unification Church was an early donor.[291] In 1994, the university received $3.5 million through Sun Myung Moon's Women's Federation for World Peace.[29] In 1996 News World Communications loaned $400,000 to Liberty.[291]

In 2006, the university had net assets—cash, property, investments and other holdings—of roughly $100 million.[292] At the start of Jerry Falwell Jr.'s presidency in 2007, the university listed $259 million in assets.[36] Five years later, in May 2012, Falwell Jr. said the total had risen to $1 billion, thanks to proceeds from its online learning program and from accelerated facility expansion.[258][292]

In December 2010, Liberty sold $120 million in facilities bonds to finance expansion.[293] It sold an additional $100 million in taxable bonds in January 2012 to help finance $225.2 million of planned capital projects around the campus over the next five years.[294] The bond offering was part of Liberty University's campus transformation plan[295] which included several renovations and additions to academic buildings and student housing, as well as fund the new Jerry Falwell Library and formation of a medical school. The bonds received a rating of "AA" from Standard & Poor's and in 2013 received an upgraded rating of "Aa3" along with a "stable outlook" projection from Moody's Investors Services based on "the increasing scope of the University's activity", "its large pool of financial reserves", "uncommonly strong operating performance", and "discipline around building and maintaining reserves".[296][297]

In March 2017, Falwell Jr. said that the university's endowment stood at more than $1 billion and gross assets are in excess of $2 billion. The U.S. Department of Education rated Liberty as having a "perfect" financial responsibility score.[44]

According to a 2018 report by The New York Times, most of Liberty University's revenue comes from taxpayer-funded sources.[18]

In 2019, Falwell Jr. was accused of using the university for his family's financial benefit.[298][299][300][301][302] Staff members said the university has funneled tuition money into real estate investments that benefit friends and family of the Falwells, including a shopping mall owned by the university and managed by Falwell's son Trey, a university vice president.[303] Falwell responded to the accusations by asserting that the FBI would investigate a "criminal conspiracy" in which individuals stole university property and shared it with reporters in an effort to damage his reputation.[304]

Marketing and recruitment practices edit

In 2018, ProPublica and the New York Times reported that Liberty University students were sixth in terms of receiving federal aid for the year 2017. Most of Liberty University's revenue came from taxpayer-funded sources. ProPublica/New York Times reported that each of the university's 300 salespeople were pressured to enroll up to eight students per day. A division of 60 salespeople targeted members of the military specifically because they had greater access to federal tuition assistance. The university's salespeople were instructed to make the university appear more affordable by describing the tuition costs per credits rather than per course. The salespeople were also instructed to not inform potential students of the Christian orientation of the education; the first classes include three required Bible-studies classes. The credits for the Bible-studies classes are usually not transferable to other universities, which disincentivizes students from leaving Liberty University for other universities. According to a former employee, the university accepts any student with a grade point average above 0.5 (equivalent to a D-minus).[25]

Sponsorships edit

Liberty University has sponsored NASCAR driver William Byron, also a LU student, since 2014 in a late model program run by Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s JR Motorsports.[305] Liberty is in the midst of a deal with Byron and NASCAR Cup Series team Hendrick Motorsports that runs through 2026.[306][307]

Federal funding edit

In 2019, Liberty University reportedly received about $700 million in federal funding.[308]

Student loans and defaults edit

Liberty University students have a lower default rate compared to the national average of graduates from all schools. However, Liberty University students have a higher rate of defaults within three years of completing their studies compared to graduates of other private, non-profit, four-year colleges.[18][238] Liberty University spends far less on instruction than traditional private universities, for-profit colleges and other nonprofit religious colleges.[18]

In connection with being named to a Trump administration task force on deregulating higher education, university president Falwell alluded, as an example of regulatory overreach and "micromanagement", to Obama-era regulations that govern student loan forgiveness for students who have been cheated by fraudulent colleges.[112][309]

Beliefs and values edit

Liberty University is a conservative Evangelical college which is reflected in its honor code and other policies. The university teaches creationism alongside the science of evolutionary biology.[10][310]

The university's honor code, called the "Liberty Way" emphasizes purity culture.[71]

The university's former president Jerry Falwell Jr. was accused of nepotism, racism, and alcohol use contravening Baptist teaching on teetotalism.[311] Falwell and his wife Rebecca were involved in a number of sex scandals.[312][313][311][314] These eventually led to his resignation on August 24, 2020.[315]

Standing for Freedom Center edit

In November 2019, Liberty and Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA launched a think tank subsidiary called the Falkirk Center for Faith and Liberty.[316][317] The think tank hired Trump attorney Jenna Ellis and Trump surrogate Sebastian Gorka as fellows and paid for political Facebook ads promoting Trump and other Republican candidates during the 2020 election campaign.[318] In March 2021, the university renamed the organization the "Standing for Freedom Center", having chosen not to renew Kirk's contract several months earlier.[319] In November 2021, the Standing for Freedom Center hosted former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, author Eric Metaxas, and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee.[320]

Politics edit

Influence edit

Liberty University has been described as a "stage of choice in Republican presidential politics",[22] and a "pilgrimage site for GOP candidates."[20] According to The Washington Post, Republican candidates are drawn to the university because it is viewed as a "bastion of the Christian right".[22] Ronald Reagan's close relationship with the university gave it significant publicity in its early years.[20] In 1990, 41st U.S president George H. W. Bush was the first sitting U.S. president to speak at Liberty's commencement.[321] In 1996, U.S. Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas gave the commencement address at Liberty University.[322]

Republican leaders Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Jeb Bush, Bobby Jindal, and John McCain have visited the campus.[18][24] Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson spoke at the university.[323] In 2017, President Donald Trump gave his first college commencement speech as sitting president at Liberty University.[324] In 2019, Vice President Mike Pence gave the school's commencement address.[325][326] Liberty was a satellite location for CPAC 2019, hosting numerous conservative speakers on-campus.[327][328]

 
President Donald Trump speaks at Liberty University Commencement Ceremony.

In 2009, LU stopped recognizing LU's Democratic Party student group; school officials said this was because the Democratic Party platform goes against the school's conservative Christian principles.[329] Democrats such as Ted Kennedy, Bernie Sanders, and Jesse Jackson have spoken there.[20][21] In 2018, former 39th U.S. president Jimmy Carter gave the commencement speech.[330] However, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Hillary Clinton have rejected invitations to speak at LU.[20]

In 2021, Interim President Jerry Prevo told Scott Lamb, then the university’s senior vice president for communications and public engagement, that he wanted the school to become "a more effective political player by helping to influence elections." Prevo said getting conservative candidates elected was "one of our main goals". Politico wrote that his comments "raise new questions about the blurred line between education and politics at the university, which as a 501(c)(3) charity is not supposed to participate directly in political campaigns".[23]

2015 concealed handguns remarks edit

In a December 5, 2015, convocation speech, President Jerry Falwell Jr. encouraged the student body to obtain concealed handgun permits.[331] Falwell discussed the 2015 San Bernardino attack and said, "If more good people had concealed-carry permits, then we could end those Muslims before they walked in."[331] This was met with public condemnation for singling out the Muslim religion rather than the act of terrorism. Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe called the statement "repugnant". Falwell later said he was referring to the Muslim shooters in the San Bernardino attack, not all Muslims.[331][332]

Links to Donald Trump edit

The school is noted for its official embrace of Donald Trump before and during his term as U.S. president. The businessman twice spoke at the university Convocation: in 2012, when he was awarded an honorary doctor of business degree,[333] and in 2016.[334] As U.S. president, Trump was the keynote speaker at the May 2017 commencement, when he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Falwell Jr. commended Trump for "bombing those in the Middle East who persecute and kill Christians," and that Trump had "proved that he is a man of his word.”[334] As of 2022, three honorary degrees Trump received from other institutions have been rescinded, but Liberty has not rescinded the two it granted Trump.[335]

Falwell Jr.'s uncritical support for Trump[336][337] was characterized as a repudiation of Christian values.[338][339]

Various school officials and students criticized this support and the university's ties with Trump.[24][340] Among them was Mark DeMoss, Falwell's chief of staff, who was forced to resign from Liberty's board of trustees.[341] Another was Liberty alumnus Jonathan Merritt, whose invitation to speak on campus was rescinded. Still another was Christian author Jonathan Martin, who was expelled from campus.[341][342]

The school reportedly censored articles critical of Trump in the student newspaper. In 2016, a student editor said that Falwell had censored an opinion column that criticized Trump[24][27][238][343] for his lewd comments caught on an Access Hollywood tape.[343] Other articles in the student newspaper which mentioned Trump were reportedly spiked by faculty members.[344][345] In 2018, two student editors were fired, reportedly for running articles critical of Trump; one of the student editors lost a $3,000-a-semester scholarship.[344][346] In 2019, this censorship and other factors led the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education to rank Liberty University among the worst universities in terms of free speech.[347]

 
Donald Trump and Jerry Falwell Jr. at Liberty University's commencement ceremony in 2017

In 2017, some students protested after President Trump criticized both white supremacists and counter-protesters at the August Charlottesville rally where three people died and 33 were injured.[348] Following Trump's remarks, Falwell said that he was "so proud" of Trump for his "bold truthful" statement on the tragedy.[348] A number of alumni returned their diplomas to Liberty University and called on the university to disavow Trump's remarks.[348][349][350] The graduates argued that Trump's remarks were "incompatible with Liberty University's stated values, and incompatible with a Christian witness."[348]

In 2018, some Liberty students went to Washington, D.C., to support President Trump's Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh.[351] That same year, students at the university gave a standing ovation to First Lady of the United States Melania Trump, along with several Trump cabinet officials who spoke at the university during a town hall about the drug epidemic.[352][353][354]

In spring 2018, Liberty's Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center co-produced a feature film called The Trump Prophecy. The film focuses on a retired firefighter from Florida who says God revealed to him in 2011 that Trump would one day be president. The film was shown in some cinemas in October 2018.[355][356]

In 2019, The Wall Street Journal and Inside Higher Education reported that Liberty CIO John Gauger allegedly accepted cash, through his IT consulting firm unaffiliated with the school, to rig two online polls for Trump before he became a candidate.[357][358]

Subsidiary businesses edit

Freedom Aviation edit

Freedom Aviation is a subsidiary company housed at the Lynchburg Regional Airport.[359]

Notable alumni edit

Main article: List of Liberty University people

Notes edit

  1. ^ Other consists of Multiracial Americans & those who prefer to not say.
  2. ^ The percentage of students who received an income-based federal Pell grant intended for low-income students.
  3. ^ The percentage of students who are a part of the American middle class at the bare minimum.

References edit

  1. ^ "Liberty University Quick Facts". Liberty.edu. from the original on October 5, 2017. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  2. ^ As of June 30, 2020. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "College Navigator – Liberty University". nces.ed.gov.
  4. ^ "Rankings". usnews.com. from the original on May 18, 2017. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  5. ^ "Colors & Fonts". Liberty University. from the original on May 13, 2019. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
  6. ^ Team, LUCMS (July 11, 2023). "What We Believe | Liberty University's Mission and Values". Liberty University Residential. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  7. ^ a b McDonald, Michael (February 26, 2013). "God a Click Away as Web Courses Fuel Falwell's College". Bloomberg Business. from the original on March 18, 2017. Retrieved March 8, 2017.
  8. ^ Jenkins, Jack (April 27, 2018). "Liberty University is no longer the largest Christian university". Religion News Service. from the original on May 25, 2018. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  9. ^ . Archived from the original on August 27, 2017. Retrieved August 27, 2017.
  10. ^ a b Montet, Virginie (March 10, 2010). "US creationists unswayed by evolution exhibition". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. from the original on February 15, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  11. ^ "Jerry Falwell Jr. relishes new fight for Donald Trump as Liberty University peaks". from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  12. ^ Chumney, Richard (October 3, 2020). "Liberty University enrollment spikes, despite statewide drop in new college students". News & Advance. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  13. ^ "Liberty University's Rawlings School of Divinity". Liberty.edu. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
  14. ^ "Liberty University Quick Facts – About Liberty – Liberty University". Liberty.edu. from the original on October 5, 2017. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  15. ^ a b "Liberty Moving to Conference USA for 2023-24 Season".
  16. ^ "Liberty University: A Christian University in Virginia and Online". Liberty University. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  17. ^ Prevo, Jerry (September 26, 2022). "President's Post: Distinguishing Mark of a true Champion for Christ". The Liberty Champion. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
  18. ^ a b c d e f MacGillis, Alec (April 17, 2018). "How Liberty University Built a Billion-Dollar Empire Online". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on April 22, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  19. ^ The Liberty Way liberty.edu October 2022
  20. ^ a b c d e Boorstein, Michelle (March 25, 2015). "Here's why Liberty University has become a pilgrimage site for GOP candidates". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  21. ^ a b c Strauss, Valerie (October 30, 2015). "The world's largest Christian university relaxes some rules for students". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  22. ^ a b c Anderson, Nick (March 23, 2015). "Virginia's Liberty University: A mega-college and Republican presidential stage". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  23. ^ a b Stratford, Michael; Ambrosino, Brandon (October 27, 2021). "Liberty U president says on tape that 'getting people elected' is his goal". www.politico.com. Politico. Retrieved June 4, 2022.
  24. ^ a b c d e "How Trump Is Dividing Jerry Falwell's University". Politico Magazine. from the original on April 25, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  25. ^ a b c MacGillis, Alec (April 17, 2018). "How Liberty University Built a Billion-Dollar Empire Online". The New York Times Magazine. from the original on April 22, 2018. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
  26. ^ "Falwell supports move to rename Lynchburg". July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Jerry Falwell Jr. relishes new fight for Donald Trump as Liberty University peaks". from the original on April 24, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  28. ^ Moody, Josh (May 12, 2017). "LU sees tremendous growth with 'second generation' at helm decade after Falwell Sr.'s death". NewsAdvance.com.
  29. ^ a b Parry, Robert. [read://https_www.latimes.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Farchives%2Fla-xpm-1997-nov-16-op-54375-story.html "The GOP's Own Asian Connection: Rev. Moon"]. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
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  31. ^ "Colleges and Universities". Southern Baptist Convention. from the original on June 6, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
  32. ^ Sherman, Gabriel (January 24, 2022). "Inside Jerry Falwell Jr.'s Unlikely Rise and Precipitous Fall at Liberty University". www.vanityfair.com. Vanity Fair. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
  33. ^ Claybaugh, Michael (July 7, 2008). "Sen. Jesse Helms, friend of Liberty University, dies at 86". www.liberty.edu. Liberty University. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  34. ^ Barron's Profiles of American Colleges, 26th Edition (Barron's 2005). This comprehensive guide provides an index of college majors, admissions requirements, tuition and financial, student-faculty ratios, extra-curricular activities and campus life for more than 1650 schools
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  36. ^ a b c Stevens, Ashlie (November 7, 2020). "How Trump and Falwell Jr. became evangelicals' "golden calves" despite obvious moral transgressions". Salon. Retrieved November 10, 2020.
  37. ^ Lederman, Doug (May 26, 2009). "One-Party State at Liberty U." www.insidehighered.com. Inside Higher Education. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
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November 26, 2023
liberty, university, private, evangelical, christian, university, lynchburg, virginia, affiliated, with, southern, baptist, conservatives, virginia, southern, baptist, convention, founded, 1971, jerry, falwell, elmer, towns, liberty, among, world, largest, chr. Liberty University LU is a private evangelical Christian 6 university in Lynchburg Virginia It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia Southern Baptist Convention Founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell Sr and Elmer L Towns Liberty is among the world s largest Christian universities and the largest private non profit universities in the United States by total student enrollment 7 8 Most of its enrollment is in online courses 9 10 in 2020 the university enrolled about 15 000 in its residential program and 80 000 online 11 12 Liberty UniversityFormer namesLynchburg Baptist College 1971 1976 Liberty Baptist College 1976 1984 MottoKnowledge Aflame 1 TypePrivate universityEstablished1971 52 years ago 1971 FounderJerry Falwell Sr Elmer L TownsA Pierre GuillerminReligious affiliationEvangelical ChristianAcademic affiliationNAICUEndowment 1 71 billion 2020 2 ChancellorJonathan FalwellPresidentDondi E CostinProvostScott HicksAcademic staff735 full time 3 3 075 part time 3 fall 2022 Students96 709 fall 2022 3 Undergraduates48 906 3 fall 2022 Postgraduates47 803 3 fall 2022 LocationLynchburg Virginia United StatesCampusSuburban 7 000 acres 28 km2 4 ColorsNavy Blue white red 5 NicknameLiberty Flames and Lady FlamesSporting affiliationsNCAA Division I FBS C USA Big East Conference Coastal Collegiate Sports AssociationMascotSparky the EagleWebsitewww wbr liberty wbr eduLiberty University consists of 17 colleges including a school of osteopathic medicine a school of law and a seminary 13 14 Liberty s athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Liberty Flames Their athletics program joined Conference USA as a full member in 2023 15 Liberty whose website 16 and officials 17 speak of training Champions for Christ requires undergraduate students to take three Evangelical Bible studies classes 18 The university s honor code called the Liberty Way prohibits premarital sex cohabitation any kind of romantic relationship between members of the same sex 19 and alcohol use 20 21 Described as a bastion of the Christian right the university played a prominent role in Republican politics under Falwell and his son and successor Jerry Falwell Jr 22 in 2021 Liberty interim president Jerry Prevo said getting conservative candidates elected to office was one of our main goals 23 Contents 1 History 2 Campus 2 1 Libraries and museums 2 1 1 Jerry Falwell Library 2 1 2 Biblical Museum 2 1 3 National Civil War Chaplains Museum 2 1 4 Carter Glass Mansion 2 1 5 Center for Creation Studies and Creation Hall 2 2 Athletic venues 2 2 1 Williams Stadium 2 2 2 Liberty Arena 2 2 3 Liberty Natatorium 2 3 Liberty Mountain 3 Governance and leadership 4 Faculty 5 Academics 5 1 College of Arts and Sciences 5 2 College of Osteopathic Medicine 5 3 Helms School of Government 5 4 Rawlings School of Divinity 5 5 School of Aeronautics 5 6 School of Behavioral Sciences 5 7 School of Business 5 8 School of Communication amp the Arts 5 8 1 Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center 5 9 School of Education 5 10 School of Engineering 5 11 School of Law 5 12 Center for Law and Government 5 13 School of Music 5 14 College of Applied Studies and Academic Success 5 14 1 Technical studies and trades 5 15 Student outcomes 5 16 Rankings 5 17 Affiliation 5 18 Accreditation 5 19 Academic journals and other publications 6 Student life 6 1 Safety 6 2 Demographics 6 2 1 On campus demographics 6 2 2 Online demographics 6 2 3 LGBTQ stance 6 3 Honor code 6 4 Convocation 6 5 Gun use 6 6 Clubs and organizations 6 7 Liberty Champion 6 8 Speech and debate 7 Athletics 7 1 Football 7 2 Basketball 7 3 Baseball 7 4 Ice hockey 7 5 Cross country 8 Liberty University Online 9 Liberty University Online Academy 10 Finances marketing and recruitment 10 1 Marketing and recruitment practices 10 2 Sponsorships 10 3 Federal funding 10 4 Student loans and defaults 11 Beliefs and values 12 Standing for Freedom Center 13 Politics 13 1 Influence 13 2 2015 concealed handguns remarks 13 3 Links to Donald Trump 14 Subsidiary businesses 14 1 Freedom Aviation 15 Notable alumni 16 Notes 17 References 18 Further reading 19 External linksHistory edit nbsp Jerry Falwell evangelist and leader of the Moral MajorityThe school was founded as Lynchburg Baptist College 24 in 1971 by televangelist Jerry Falwell Sr and Elmer L Towns Falwell already a pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church served as the first chancellor of the school From 1979 to the late 1980s Falwell Sr also headed the Moral Majority a right wing political organization 24 25 The school changed its name to Liberty Baptist College in 1976 Officials said the change aimed to distance the school from the name Lynchburg which is often mistakenly associated with lynching co founder Towns also said that Falwell Sr wanted to use the name Liberty to ride the enthusiasm for the Bicentennial of the United States 26 The name changed again in 1984 to Liberty University In 1985 the university launched a distance learning program by mailing VHS tapes to students 27 this was the forerunner to Liberty University s current online program 27 28 Two years later Liberty University s 501 c 3 tax exempt status was formally recognized by the IRS In its early decades the university was held afloat financially by major donors 27 The university was placed on probation multiple times in the 1990s by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools due to heavy debt loads 27 In 1990 the university s debt totaled 110 million in 1996 it totaled 40 million 27 In 1994 Sun Myung Moon s Women s Federation for World Peace funneled 3 5 million to Liberty University 29 Since 1999 Liberty has had an informal relationship with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia two of whose members sit on the university board of trustees 30 31 In 2001 days after 9 11 Jerry Falwell Sr blamed the terrorist attacks on gays lesbians feminists abortion doctors and the ACLU 32 In 2004 Liberty University named its School of Government after Falwell family friend Senator Jesse Helms 33 In 2005 Barron s Profiles of American Colleges ranked undergraduate admission to LU as competitive its fourth highest of six ranks 34 35 When high speed Internet connections became more widespread around 2005 Liberty began to offer online courses to a larger adult population After Falwell Sr died in 2007 his son Jerry Falwell Jr became the university s second chancellor and fourth president 25 At the time the university listed 259 million in assets 36 Liberty University Online Academy was formed in 2007 serving 23 students nbsp Jerry Falwell Jr In 2009 Liberty University withdrew official recognition of the student Young Democrats club saying that the club s political positions including support of abortion rights conflicted with the school s The school s College Republicans club remains officially recognized 37 In 2010 Liberty students received about 445 million in federal financial aid money the highest total of any school in Virginia and one of the highest in the country 38 39 A 56 percent increase over the previous year the money was mostly in the form of student loans but also included some grants and other forms of aid 38 In 2011 Liberty blocked campus access to a local Lynchburg newspaper the News amp Advocate after the newspaper reported on the school s dependence on federal financial aid 40 Falwell Jr said that the decision to block the newspaper was unrelated to content published in the paper 41 In 2012 Liberty University acquired the former Lynchburg Sears building to house Liberty University online and a television station 42 In 2017 Forbes s list of America s Top Colleges ranked Liberty University No 585 of 650 Top Colleges No 231 as a Research University 371 as a Private College and 136 in the South Forbes also gave Liberty a Forbes Financial Grade of B 43 As of 2017 update the university s endowment stood at more than 1 billion and gross assets exceeded 2 billion 44 In 2019 Will E Young a former editor in chief of Liberty s Champion student newspaper described the culture of fear at Liberty University noting that the school founded on principles of fundamental Christianity is now a place that has zero tolerance for new questions and ideas Those who harbor them must remain silent or leave 45 Young later argued that Liberty must address its racist past beginning with Jerry Falwell Sr and that it must include people of color and LGBTQ people as it makes decisions 46 Ben Howe whose parents worked for Falwell s Liberty University published The Immoral Majority Why Evangelicals Chose Political Power over Christian Values The book included a critique of Jerry Falwell Jr who posed for a picture in front of a Playboy magazine with Donald Trump on the cover 47 In spring 2020 during the COVID 19 pandemic Liberty allowed some students to return to campus after spring break over the objections of the city s mayor and contrary to the practices of most U S colleges and universities 48 49 When a ProPublica reporter and New York Times photographer investigated why the university remained partially open the university pushed the local district attorney to charge them with trespassing 50 A few months later then president Falwell Jr posted a picture of Virginia s then governor Ralph Northam s black face in a tweet that many found racist Some staff resigned in protest some black students pursued transfers 51 many contending that the tweet was a symptom of a larger problem at the university 52 In response to internal and external criticism Liberty University officials hired Kelvin Edwards an alumnus and former NFL player to lead diversity initiatives on campus 53 then fired him three months later Edwards sued the university alleging a breach of contract 53 54 Falwell Jr was placed on indefinite leave on August 7 2020 after media began reporting allegations including photographs of personal and professional impropriety 55 56 A few weeks later he resigned 57 58 59 60 He claimed that he was entitled to 10 5 million in compensation from the university because he resigned without either admitting to wrongdoing or having formal accusations opened against him 61 At the end of Falwell Jr s presidency in 2020 the university listed over 2 5 billion in assets 36 Following Falwell s resignation Times Higher Education reported that Liberty University was facing growing criticism over perceived resistance to diversity following the departures of Edwards board chair Allen McFarland and pastor David Nasser 62 Jonathan Falwell a son of Jerry Falwell Sr replaced Nasser In late 2020 three reform efforts took place A group of Liberty University alumni called Save71 was organized in an effort to reform the school Three Liberty University athletes Kennedi Williams Dee Brown and TreShaun Clark organized a Black Lives Matter protest on campus drawing a crowd of about two hundred people Student leaders also created an online petition to force Liberty to shut down the school s think tank the Falkirk Center named after Jerry Falwell Jr and conservative activist Charlie Kirk The petition garnered about 400 signatures 63 In November 2020 Liberty University graduate and athletics booster Bob Good won a seat in the US House of Representatives making him the first Liberty graduate to be in the House 64 In April 2021 Liberty University sued Falwell Jr for 40 million in damages for breach of contract and violation of fiduciary duty 65 In the same month the Liberty University board of trustees replaced acting chairman Allen McFarland the first African American board chair with Tim Lee a pro Trump pastor 66 In July 2021 the university was sued by 12 anonymous women including two employees who alleged that the university created an environment that increased the likelihood of sexual assault and rape in violation of federal Title IX law The lawsuit alleged that the school s student honor code makes it difficult to report sexual violence because it does not clearly shield students that the university had a tacit policy that condoned sexual violence especially by male student athletes by weighing a denial more heavily than an allegation and that the school retaliates against women who report sexual violence In one of the alleged incidents a 15 year old who was allegedly attacked by Jesse Matthew who later confessed to murdering Hannah Graham was told she would be criminally charged with filing a false report before they began an investigation into her claim which allegedly only consisted of a demand that she strip and submit to being photographed by the chief of police which she refused to do She later was not taken to the hospital but the police later pestered her until she agreed to be photographed naked by a female debate coach In a written response to the lawsuit Liberty University officials said The allegations are deeply troubling if they turn out to be true and said that would look into each allegation detailed in the lawsuit 67 68 69 Also in July 2021 Liberty University diversity retention officer LeeQuan McLaurin a black gay man filed a discrimination lawsuit against the school claiming that his supervisor s view that Christianity condemns homosexuality forced him to quit 70 An October 2021 a ProPublica investigative report found that Liberty University discouraged and dismissed students coming forward about sexual assault former students said they were threatened with punishment by coming forward with accusations of sexual assault 71 Politico also reported that a former Liberty University official Scott Lamb also accused Liberty University of violating its 501 c 3 nonprofit status Politico had previously reported that the school had invested in Republican causes and efforts to promote the Trump administration 72 In fall 2021 an outbreak of COVID 19 forced all classes on the Lynchburg campus to go online only for two weeks More than 400 students and 50 staff members tested positive for the virus 73 The campus did not require COVID 19 vaccinations masks or social distancing Outdoor events including a convocation and football game were scheduled to continue 74 75 In fall 2023 a preliminary report by the U S Department of Education alleged that school officials had failed to report campus crime and safety statistics had destroyed evidence of assaults and had retaliated against at least one employee who raised concerns about violations of the Clery Act the federal law that requires such disclosures by schools that receive federal funding 76 Campus edit nbsp Rawlings School of Divinity Freedom Tower was completed in February 2018 At 275 feet it is the tallest building in Lynchburg nbsp Top of the Snowflex synthetic ski slope overlooking Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre nbsp DeMoss Learning Center at Liberty UniversityThe 17 story 245 foot Freedom Tower completed in February 2018 is the tallest building in Lynchburg The tower holds a 25 bell carillon that includes a replica of the Liberty Bell 77 The Hancock Welcome Center celebrated its ribbon cutting ceremony on December 7 2012 It is a three level 33 000 square foot Jeffersonian style building featuring an atrium boardroom theater lounges a banquet hall several smaller counseling rooms and a patio with a view of the Blue Ridge Mountains 78 The Jerry Falwell Sr Center Inspiring Champions for Christ opening in 2023 will be attached to the Hancock Welcome Center 79 80 Liberty University s Center for Music amp Worship hosts the Miss Virginia beauty competition which sends the winner of the state to represent it in the Miss America Pageant 81 82 Construction was completed in August 2009 on the Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre a synthetic ski slope featuring Snowflex the centre was designed by England s Briton Engineering The first of its kind in the United States it includes beginner intermediate and advanced slopes 83 The Observatory Center opened in spring 2013 next to the Equestrian Center The dome has a classroom that can fit up to 20 people It houses a 20 inch 510 mm RC Optical Systems Truss Ritchey Chretien and several Celestron CPC 800 8 inch Schmidt Cassegrain telescopes on pedestals able to roll out under a roof The observatory serves three purposes instruction public nights and research Student Activities controls the use of the observatory and is open to all students 84 In 2018 Liberty University opened a 3 2 million on campus shooting range to train students to protect themselves against shooters and terrorists 85 Libraries and museums edit Jerry Falwell Library edit The four story 170 000 square foot Jerry Falwell Library opened in January 2014 86 with more than 250 000 items and room for another 170 000 They are accessible via a robot assisted storage and retrieval system which locates requested items within a large storage room and delivers them to the front desk There are 150 public computers throughout the building for electronic archive research The library has group study rooms writable walls balconies terraces and a vegetative roof At its entrance stands a 24 foot media wall powered by three Microsoft Kinect units and integrated using a custom program that allows visitors to scroll through university news browse pictures contributed from students and learn about upcoming university events 87 The 50 million library is part of a larger 500 million building and expansion plan announced by Liberty University 88 89 Biblical Museum edit The museum includes artifacts from the Holy Land and Biblical culture from 3 000 B C to the 6th century A D with special exhibits of the Dead Sea Scrolls the Jewish Temple an Authentic Last Supper room Daily Life in the Bible Ancient Egypt and Fossils and the Flood 90 National Civil War Chaplains Museum edit The National Civil War Chaplains Museum contains exhibits about clergy members and religious activity during the Civil War era It is the only museum in the nation devoted to this purpose The mission of the museum is to educate the public about the role of chaplains priests and rabbis and religious organizations in the Civil War to promote the continuing study of the many methods of dissemination of religious doctrine and moral teachings during the War to preserve religious artifacts and to present interpretive programs that show the influence of religion on the lives of political and military personnel 91 A 501 c 3 organization the museum rents space from Liberty University s DeMoss Center It has 10 000 square feet with a 50 seat video theatre archive displays a research library and bookstore citation needed The museum commemorates Catholic Protestant and Jewish chaplains including African American chaplains and houses publications and artifacts from both the Union and Confederate militaries There are several areas in the museum that are given special attention including The role of the United States Christian Commission which is the forerunner to today s USO and Red Cross 92 The relationship of religion to political and military leaders common soldiers and the public in the North and South 93 Carter Glass Mansion edit The Carter Glass Mansion also called Montview is a house built in 1923 for Carter Glass a newspaper publisher U S senator 94 U S treasury secretary under President Woodrow Wilson and Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and President Pro Tempore of the Senate during the presidency of Franklin D Roosevelt 95 The 1 1 2 story house which is flanked by slightly smaller ells has 18 inch 46 cm walls of quartz fieldstone quarried from the property and a grey gambrel roof 95 It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Virginia Landmarks Register The 1 7 acre 0 69 ha estate was purchased by Liberty University in the late 1970s to be the headquarters of the university administration It housed the main office of university founder Jerry Falwell who died at his desk on May 15 2007 Falwell and his wife were buried on the rear lawn of the mansion and a memorial to Falwell was placed there overlooking the rest of the campus The estate is now largely a tourist site with Falwell s office preserved in its 2007 condition and the upstairs section of the mansion converted to a bed and breakfast for Liberty University guests 96 Center for Creation Studies and Creation Hall edit According to its literature the Center for Creation Studies aims to study the origin of the universe the earth life and diversification of species equipping students to contend for their faith in the creation account in Genesis using science reason and the Scriptures 97 Young Earth creationism asserts that the Earth was created by supernatural acts by God some 6 000 to 10 000 years ago rather than the scientific consensus that it accreted more than 4 5 billion years ago 98 David A DeWittis is the director of the Center for Creation Studies 99 Creation Hall on the second floor of the Center for Natural Sciences is dedicated to promoting young Earth creation 100 Displays include replicas claimed to be of post Flood humans and fossils allegedly buried during Noah s flood 100 Athletic venues edit Williams Stadium edit Williams Stadium is the home field for the Liberty Flames football team Opened in 1989 the stadium seats 25 000 spectators 101 An indoor practice facility was opened in 2017 at a cost of 29 million 102 Liberty Arena edit The Liberty Arena is the home of the men s and women s basketball teams and women s volleyball The 65 million 125 000 square foot space which opened in 2020 seats 4 000 spectators 103 Liberty Natatorium edit Liberty Natatorium is 75 000 square feet and contains a 9 lane Olympic size swimming pool as well as a diving well 17 feet deep and fitted with 1 meter and 3 meter springboards and 10 meter 7 5 meter 5 meter 3 meter and 1 meter diving platforms 104 105 The inaugural competitive swimming event held in the swimming pool was the 2018 TYR Junior National Cup in March 2018 106 In 2020 one of the diving platforms collapsed for an unknown reason 105 Since its opening there have also been facility issues associated with the timing system used in competitive swimming events 105 106 Liberty Mountain edit The Liberty Mountain area consists of the Hydaway Outdoor Center and its 31 acre lake the Liberty University Equestrian Center Liberty Mountain Gun Club Liberty Mountain Snowflex Centre Astronomical Observatory and the Liberty Mountain Trail System 107 Governance and leadership editThe university is governed by a 30 member board of trustees that includes Jonathan Falwell the son and brother respectively of the two former university presidents 108 109 Additionally two ministers serve as trustee emeriti Dondi E Costin is the university s president assuming the position July 1 2023 and taking over from now President Emeritus Jerry Prevo Faculty editLiberty University has 735 full time instructors and 3 075 part time instructors for more than 96 000 students 3 Unlike most other research universities faculty outside the law school are not offered tenure giving them less influence in governing the university than is common 110 Most teachers are adjunct labor Faculty must inform leadership in advance if they are speaking with the media 111 In 2018 The New York Times reported that faculty at Liberty University acknowledge that Liberty University Online is a steep drop off in quality relative to the traditional classes at the university 18 The online division at the Liberty University is a significant revenue source for the university 112 Academics editLiberty University Colleges and Schools 113 College schoolAeronauticsApplied Studies and Academic Success CASAS Arts and SciencesBehavioral SciencesBusinessCommunication and Digital ContentDivinityEducationEngineeringGeneral StudiesGovernmentHealth SciencesLawMusicNursingOsteopathic MedicineVisual and Performing Arts nbsp Liberty University School of Aeronautics Cessna 172 nbsp Liberty s DeMoss Hall the campus s main academic building exhibiting Jeffersonian architectureAs of August 2017 update Liberty University offered over 550 total programs 366 on campus and 289 online 114 There are 144 graduate programs and four doctoral programs offered on campus 114 It is classified among Doctoral Professional Universities 115 and is recognized by the National Security Agency NSA and the Department of Homeland Security as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education 116 College of Arts and Sciences edit The Liberty University College of Arts and Sciences includes eight different departments and offers PhD master s bachelor s and associate degrees 117 118 The college teaches Young Earth creationism a pseudoscience in its creationist studies classes 119 College of Osteopathic Medicine edit The Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine LUCOM opened in August 2014 120 funded in part by a 12 million matching grant from the Virginia Tobacco Commission 121 In July 2015 the college of osteopathic medicine opened Liberty Mountain Medical Group LLC a primary care clinic serving the greater Lynchburg area 122 123 124 The college received initial accreditation from the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation AOA COCA in 2018 125 In that same year the medical school launched its first residency program focused on neuromusculoskeletal treatment 126 Helms School of Government edit Liberty s Helms School of Government offers degrees in areas including criminal justice government and public administration international relations pre law public policy strategic intelligence fire administration in both at both bachelor s and master s degree levels 118 127 128 The Helms School of Government is named after Senator Jesse Helms 129 Rawlings School of Divinity edit The Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity formerly Liberty Divinity School was founded in 1973 130 The Rawlings School of Divinity currently offers 44 bachelor s degrees 44 master s degrees and 14 doctorate degrees 131 the Divinity School s graduate programs are accredited by the ATS 132 Many programs are on campus only while others are available online 118 133 The school includes The Center for Apologetics and Cultural Engagement to defending the Christian faith in light of trending issues like racism sexuality and morality in today s society and engage the culture around us learning to speak and act out of a gospel The Rawlings School of Divinity is housed in the Freedom Tower 134 135 The Rawlings school is the largest divinity school in the world based on the number of students enrolled in degree programs 136 School of Aeronautics edit Liberty offers 11 bachelor s degrees in aeronautics from professional pilot to UAS 137 In 2018 Liberty s School of Aeronautics had more than 1 200 students in person and online 138 Liberty has worked with American Eagle Piedmont Airlines and Wayman Aviation to alleviate their pilot shortages 139 140 141 School of Behavioral Sciences edit The School of Behavioral Sciences includes four departments Community Care amp Counseling Counselor Education amp Family Studies Psychology and Social Work 142 It has an acceptance rate of 38 143 The Community Care amp Counseling department offers 28 master s degrees 144 and four doctoral degrees 145 The Counselor Education amp Family Studies department offers five master s degrees 146 and one doctoral degree 147 The Psychology department offers two associate degrees 148 14 bachelor s degrees 148 six master s degrees 149 and six doctoral degrees 150 The Social Work department offers one bachelor s degree 151 As of 2020 the dean was Kenyon C Knapp 152 153 School of Business edit Liberty University s School of Business offers 46 bachelor s 154 67 master s 155 and 14 doctoral degrees 118 156 Liberty s school of business is accredited by ACBSP 157 158 In 2019 the School of Business was nearing completion of a new 78 000 sq ft building 159 160 School of Communication amp the Arts edit The School of Communication amp the Arts includes five departments Cinematic Arts Digital Media and Journalism Strategic and Personal Communication Studio amp Digital Arts and Theatre Arts There are over 12 000 residential and online students enrolled in this school 161 Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center edit Liberty University offers a Bachelor of Science in Cinematic Arts Degree which is based in the new Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center ZGCAC School of Education edit As of 2022 the School of Education enrolled 4 441 students 162 School of Engineering edit Liberty s School of Engineering offers degrees in computer engineering civil engineering electrical engineering industrial amp systems engineering and mechanical engineering 118 163 The School of Engineering is accredited through the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology ABET 164 In 2017 Liberty bought The Center for Advanced Engineering and Research CAER facility in Bedford Virginia 165 166 The School of Engineering has spent considerable resources on a project titled Simulating Genesis to show how the laws of physics align with biblical history 167 School of Law edit 82 of Liberty University School of Law s Class of 2018 obtained full time bar passage or JD required employment nine months after graduation according to ABA required disclosures 168 The law school has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 2010 169 In February 2019 all of its graduates who took the Virginia Bar Exam passed 170 The school is ranked 147 192 out of 196 law schools ranked by the U S News amp World Report in its 2023 law school rankings 171 Center for Law and Government edit In 2017 Liberty announced its new Center for Law and Government will be led by former U S representative Robert Hurt needs update The Center will house the Liberty University School of Law and the Jesse Helms School of Government 172 School of Music edit The departments of worship and music studies and of music and humanities merged in 2012 into a school of music composed of two distinct centers 173 174 175 176 The School of Music offers 32 bachelor s degrees 177 15 master s degrees and four doctoral degrees 178 179 College of Applied Studies and Academic Success edit Liberty University s College of Applied Studies and Academic Success houses the Academic Success Center the Eagle Scholar s Program Technical Studies Continuing Education and Success Courses 180 Technical studies and trades edit Along with over 15 other associate programs Liberty offers vocational education with various associate degrees in carpentry electrical heating ventilation air conditioning HVAC plumbing and welding These trades are approved by the National Center for Construction Education and Research 181 182 Student outcomes edit According to the College Scorecard Liberty University has a graduation rate of 34 Median salary after attending ranges from 11 455 AA in Teacher Education to 72 022 Electrical Engineering 54 earn more than a high school graduate Of those repaying student loans two years after entering repayment 26 were in forbearance 25 were not making progress 14 were making progress 14 were in deferment 9 defaulted 5 were paid in full 5 were delinquent and 2 had their loans discharged 183 Rankings edit Academic rankingsNationalU S News amp World Report 184 394 435 of 439Washington Monthly 185 428 of 442Liberty University is ranked 394 435 in the 2023 U S News amp World Report ranking of National Universities 186 LU was ranked 428 out of 442 schools in the 2022 Washington Monthly 187 Liberty is among the ten colleges that enrolled the most undergraduates in fall 2018 according to U S News 188 and when including online students enrolled more students than any U S university in 2018 189 In 2023 Liberty had an endowment of 1 71 billion the 43rd largest in the United States 190 nbsp The initials of Liberty University on Candler Mountain as viewed from near campus In early 2022 this monogram was changed into the Liberty Flames logo Liberty once was ranked as the Most Conservative College in America by niche com 191 192 but by 2023 had been replaced by Brigham Young University 193 Affiliation edit The university is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia Southern Baptist Convention 194 Accreditation edit Liberty was founded in 1971 and received regional accreditation through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools SACS accreditation in 1980 195 which was reaffirmed in 2016 196 In addition it was accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools TRACS in September 1984 but resigned its TRACS accreditation on November 6 2008 197 198 Liberty has more than 60 accredited degree granting programs 199 The law school which opened in August 2004 gained provisional accreditation from the American Bar Association ABA in 2006 and was granted full accreditation in 2010 200 The medical school which opened in 2014 is accredited by the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation AOA COCA On December 9 2009 Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr announced that Liberty University has received Level VI accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools SACS This is the highest classification from SACS and is reserved for colleges and universities that offer four or more doctoral degrees 201 202 Liberty is also accredited by Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology ABET 203 National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education NCATE 203 Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education CCNE 203 Aviation Accreditation Board International AABI 204 National Association of Schools of Music NASM 205 Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education CAATE 203 Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs CAAHEP 203 Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs CACREP 206 Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs ACBSP 207 and the Commission on Sport Management Education COSMA 208 Academic journals and other publications edit The Journal of Statesmanship and Public Policy explores topics in the realms of national security international relations domestic policy and political philosophy from a deeply thoughtful ethical and Christian perspective Recent articles have been published on strict constructionism and critical race theory 209 The Liberty Bell News is an online publication whose mission is to maintain the vision of the founder Dr Jerry Falwell Sr to develop and train Christ centered men and women with the values knowledge and skills essential to impact the world 210 Student life editStudent life includes Mandatory Christian community service of 20 hours a semester CSER Gender segregated dorms A dress code for classesSafety edit In 2017 the school invited Ray Rice who had been videotaped beating his fiancee three years earlier to give a lecture on domestic violence 211 In 2021 a dozen anonymous women sued the school charging that it failed to curb domestic violence and sexual assault on campus 212 213 A 2021 ProPublica investigation found that an ethos of sexual purity as embodied by the Liberty Way has led to school officials discouraging dismissing and even blaming female students who have tried to come forward with claims of sexual assault 214 The school sought for years to conceal campus crime and safety statistics according to a preliminary 2023 report by the U S Department of Education reviewed by the Washington Post The report whose findings may yet be appealed by the school documents alleged violations of the Clery Act which requires schools that receive federal money to disclose crime and safety statistics Instead the report indicates university officials destroyed documentation and failed to notify the campus of sexual predators bomb threats and gas leaks 76 Demographics edit Student body composition as of May 2 2022 Race and ethnicity 215 TotalWhite 56 56 Other a 24 24 Black 10 10 Hispanic 7 7 Asian 2 2 Foreign national 1 1 Economic diversityLow income b 30 30 Affluent c 70 70 In fall 2017 the acceptance rate for new first time full time students entering Liberty s resident program was 30 In 2011 the overall acceptance rate which includes online students was 51 percent 118 Liberty University Online is an open enrollment institution Liberty s Black population has declined from 19 9 percent in 2011 to 10 4 percent in 2019 The Black graduation rate was 17 percent 216 On campus demographics edit As of 2021 the residential student body is 74 White 5 Latino 4 Black 3 two or more races and 2 Asian or Pacific Islander less than 1 Native American and 7 other Its male to female ratio is 45 to 54 217 Online demographics edit Including online students Liberty s undergraduate population in 2017 was 51 White 26 5 race ethnicity unknown 15 4 Black or African American 2 3 two or more races 1 7 Hispanic Latino 1 4 non resident alien 0 9 Asian 0 6 American Indian or Alaskan native 0 2 Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander 218 All 50 states and Washington D C are represented along with 86 countries 219 The online male to female ratio is 40 to 60 220 More than 30 000 military students and over 850 international students attend Liberty 220 Liberty ranks 174th out of 2 475 schools in overall diversity 94th out of 3 012 schools in age diversity and 82nd out of 2 525 schools in location diversity 221 As of 2010 update when including online students LU was the largest Evangelical Christian university in the world 222 As of 2013 update LU was the largest private non profit university in the United States 7 In terms of combined traditional and distance learning students Liberty University is the 7th largest four year university and the largest university in Virginia 223 LGBTQ stance edit Words and actions indicating LGBT states of mind are prohibited for students as of the 2021 version of The Liberty Way the student handbook 224 Sexual relations are only permitted in a Biblically ordained marriage between a natural born man and a natural born woman The student handbook describes any gay sex as prohibited by the Bible and thus prohibited by the school 225 Kissing holding hands or dating a member of the same sex are also prohibited under The Liberty Way 226 Students have criticized the university for being unwelcoming to LGBT students 227 The Guardian has reported that LGBTQ students hide their dating behavior in order to graduate and to avoid being fined 228 Campus Pride an organization that advocates for LGBT rights on college campuses listed Liberty University as one of the worst universities for LGBT students 229 Without explanation Falwell Jr said the university does not have an anti gay bias citation needed The school offers conversion therapy to gay students a practice that peer reviewed studies have shown is ineffective and harmful 230 227 231 In 2021 a former Liberty University student was part of a class action lawsuit filed against the U S Department of Education alleging that the institution should not be eligible to receive federal funding because of its discriminatory practices against LGBT students 232 In 2015 Liberty University denied the discounted tuition to same sex and trans spouses of military personnel that it offered to heterosexual military couples 233 In 2016 the university ordered a version of a psychology textbook that omitted sections with LGBTQ focused content 234 The school says it does not engage in unlawful discrimination or harassment because of race color ancestry religion age sex national origin pregnancy or childbirth disability or military veteran status But it reserves its right to discriminate on the basis of religion to the extent that applicable law respects its right to act in furtherance of its religious objectives 235 236 237 Honor code edit The Liberty University honor code forbids students to be alone with a member of the opposite sex at an off campus residence or to have premarital sex anywhere 21 Students may not consume alcohol or tobacco 238 In 2015 Liberty revised the code to give students the freedom to watch rated R movies and to play video games rated M 239 In 2017 the curfew policy was changed to permit students age 20 and over to sign out and stay out past curfew 240 In 2018 the administration rejected a resolution from the student government that would have allowed off campus drinking profane language and the use of tobacco 241 Convocation edit nbsp Convocation at the Vines CenterLiberty s convocation is the largest weekly gathering of Christian students in America 242 243 Residential students at Liberty at both undergraduate and graduate levels are required to attend Convocation at the Vines Center twice per week on Wednesdays and Fridays Any student commuting to campus who is under twenty one years old is also required to attend Commuting students over the age of twenty one are encouraged to attend but their attendance is not mandatory For students with mandatory attendance requirements upon arrival they must report to the Resident Assistant assigned to them and sit in their assigned section to be counted as present A fine of 25 is assessed for the first two absences with the fine rising to 50 for further offenses Attending students are not permitted to leave before the official dismissal or they will be fined as if they had been absent Students under mandatory attendance requirements may receive a skip once per semester if they make their intent to use the skip know to their Resident Assistant at least 24 hours before Convocation begins 244 245 Gun use edit Liberty University students are allowed to possess guns in the on campus dorms 246 Clubs and organizations edit nbsp Liberty University LaHaye Student Union buildingAccording to Liberty s website there are over 100 registered on campus clubs and organizations 247 Liberty Champion edit Liberty Champion is Liberty University s official student newspaper In 2017 Will Young the former editor of the Champion recalled his experiences in a lengthy Washington Post article In his first week in that role he had been rebuked for attempting to get the campus s police blotter he wrote and the administration regularly overrode the student editors decisions There was he claimed an infrastructure of thought control that Falwell and his lieutenants had introduced into every aspect of Liberty University life since 2016 Some sources Young spoke to believed the university installed spyware on the laptops they were issued Student journalists became so frustrated that they launched an independent newspaper the Lynchburg Torch 248 to cover stories the administration tried to suppress 249 Speech and debate edit Liberty s Inter Collegiate policy debate program ranked first overall for their division in the Championships at the National Debate Tournament in 2006 2007 2009 2010 and 2011 250 251 252 253 254 The overall rankings include varsity junior varsity and novice results In varsity rankings Liberty finished 20th in 2005 17th in 2006 24th in 2007 12th in 2008 9th in 2009 4th in 2010 and 4th in 2011 Through 2016 Liberty hosted the Virginia High School League s VHSL annual Debate State Championships every April Subsequent to controversial remarks made by Chancellor Falwell in December 2015 following the 2015 San Bernardino attack a number of high school students teachers debate coaches and parents expressed concerns over Liberty s suitability for high school events and some teams chose to not send students to compete at the annual State Championship in 2016 255 VHSL discontinued using Liberty as a venue for debate competition after 2016 to ensure an environment free from harassment personal threat or physical or mental harm 256 In 2017 Liberty University s Debate Team finished atop the final rankings of all three national debate tournaments for the eighth time sweeping the American Debate Association ADA the Cross Examination Debate Association CEDA and the National Debate Tournament NDT Liberty remains the only school in the country to finish first in all three rankings in a single year The team has placed first in the CEDA for the last eight years first in the NDT for seven out of the last eight years and first in the ADA for 13 out of the last 14 years 257 Athletics editMain article Liberty Flames and Lady Flames nbsp Liberty University Williams StadiumLiberty s athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are collectively known as the Liberty Flames Liberty is a member of the ASUN Conference for 17 of its 20 varsity sports Women s swimming competes in the Coastal Collegiate Sports Association and women s field hockey competes in the Big East Conference 258 The field hockey team had belonged to the Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference before that league s demise after the 2014 season It competed as an independent in the 2015 season then join the Big East Conference for the 2016 season 259 Starting in 2018 the football team began competing in the FBS as an independent 260 In 2020 Liberty entered the rankings in the AP Poll at 25 for the first time in program history They finished the season being ranked 17 in the AP Poll and 18 in the Coaches Poll of top football teams in the country 261 262 The university regularly competes for the Sasser Cup the Big South s trophy for the university that has the best sports program among the member institutions Liberty has won the Sasser Cup ten times the most in the Big South 263 In 2012 Liberty became the first Big South school to win five consecutive Sasser Cups 264 265 Football edit The Liberty Flames compete NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision FBS as an independent In 2021 Liberty University announced the Flames would become full members of Conference USA effective for the 2023 football season 15 The team used Lynchburg s City Stadium as their home stadium until October 21 1989 when the Flames played their first home game at Williams Stadium in front of 12 750 fans 266 Upgrades to the stadium increased capacity from 12 000 to 19 200 attendees and added luxury suites a Club level and a media area Another expansion increased seating to 25 000 267 When a part of the FCS Liberty ranked in the top 10 in the country in home attendance 267 In 2019 the Flames won the Cure Bowl against Georgia Southern 23 16 268 In 2020 Liberty won the Cure Bowl again defeating Coastal Carolina 39 34 in overtime Liberty finished 10 1 with wins over a ranked Coastal Carolina and in state rival Virginia Tech in the school s best season to date Liberty made its third FBS bowl appearance at the LendingTree Bowl in 2021 beating Eastern Michigan 56 20 269 The Flames last head coach was Hugh Freeze 270 In December 2022 the Flames hired Jamey Chadwell to be Liberty s next football coach who was the football coach of Coastal Carolina Basketball edit Liberty University s basketball Vines Center can house up to 9 547 spectators for its games 271 Several members of the Liberty men s basketball Liberty Flames basketball team have been recruited to the NBA 272 273 The women s basketball team Liberty Lady Flames basketball was honored by the Big South with the Top 25 Best of the Best moments in League history from 1983 2008 with Liberty University s 10 year women s basketball championship run from 1996 2007 being crowned the No 1 moment in the Big South s first 25 years 274 In 2019 the men s basketball program won the ASUN basketball tournament and earned an automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament Liberty earned its highest ranking ever when it was selected as the No 12 seed in the East Region Liberty set a school record with their 29th win as they upset Mississippi State 80 76 in the first round of the East Region in the 2019 NCAA tournament 275 276 277 Baseball edit The Liberty Baseball Stadium completed in June 2013 and home to Liberty Baseball was ranked No 4 among college ballpark experiences by Stadium Journey website in 2015 278 The stadium includes 2 500 chairbacks locker room four indoor batting tunnels four luxury suites offices for the baseball program a weight room team room and a fully functional press area 279 Several Liberty Flames baseball players were drafted during the 2015 Major League Baseball draft Local stations air some games 280 Some games have aired nationally on ESPNU 281 Ice hockey edit Liberty University has men s and women s club ice hockey teams Men s hockey started in 1985 282 when students at Liberty organized a team to compete against surrounding colleges and clubs 283 but has since become a competitive club team competing against much larger schools such as University of Oklahoma University of Delaware and Penn State University 284 In 2006 Liberty University opened the 3 000 seat LaHaye Ice Center a gift from Timothy and Beverly LaHaye 285 Also in 2006 Liberty became the only school in the state of Virginia to host a men s Division I American Collegiate Hockey Association ACHA club hockey team 283 Currently Liberty University has Division I II and III men s teams and Division I and II women s teams 282 The men s Division I team is coached by Kirk Handy 283 while the women s Division I team is coached by Chris Lowes Cross country edit The men s and women s cross country teams have long been a conference powerhouse and Josh McDougal 286 2007 and Samuel Chelanga 2009 2010 won the NCAA Division I individual laurels Chelanga took two additional gold medals and three silvers in outdoor and indoor competition in three years and still holds the collegiate 10 000 meter record set in 2010 and won All American honors 14 times 287 Liberty University Online editLiberty University has an Internet education component called Liberty University Online also known as LU Online or LUO which provides degrees from associate s level to doctorate Online students constitute the overwhelming majority of the university s students and revenue subsidizing the university and making them a killing according to faculty members despite the steep drop off in quality from the traditional college to the online courses Critics have argued that the online division subsidizes campus resources such as the ski resort and gun range and that online enrollment is run in a boiler room fashion Online instructors are mainly engaged in answering emails and grading rather than creating and delivering content 110 Liberty University Online Academy editEstablished in 2007 the Liberty University Online Academy LUOA is a K 12 school serving about 1 900 students It is accredited by SACS Southern Association of Schools and Colleges citation needed Finances marketing and recruitment editIn June 2021 Liberty University had 3 94 billion in assets and 474 million in liabilities Its operating revenue was 1 15 billion and its operating expenses were 840 million 288 Its endowment was valued at 1 71 billion in fiscal year 2021 In fiscal year 2020 Liberty University received 800 million from online tuition and 361 million from residential student tuition 289 According to Third Way Liberty uses less than 20 percent of its revenues for instruction 290 Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues In its early years the university was held afloat financially by major donors 27 In 1987 Liberty University s 501 c 3 tax exempt status was formally recognized by the IRS In the 1990s the debt saddled university was placed on probation several times by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools because of heavy debt 27 In 1990 the university owed 110 million in 1996 it owed 40 million 27 The Unification Church was an early donor 291 In 1994 the university received 3 5 million through Sun Myung Moon s Women s Federation for World Peace 29 In 1996 News World Communications loaned 400 000 to Liberty 291 In 2006 the university had net assets cash property investments and other holdings of roughly 100 million 292 At the start of Jerry Falwell Jr s presidency in 2007 the university listed 259 million in assets 36 Five years later in May 2012 Falwell Jr said the total had risen to 1 billion thanks to proceeds from its online learning program and from accelerated facility expansion 258 292 In December 2010 Liberty sold 120 million in facilities bonds to finance expansion 293 It sold an additional 100 million in taxable bonds in January 2012 to help finance 225 2 million of planned capital projects around the campus over the next five years 294 The bond offering was part of Liberty University s campus transformation plan 295 which included several renovations and additions to academic buildings and student housing as well as fund the new Jerry Falwell Library and formation of a medical school The bonds received a rating of AA from Standard amp Poor s and in 2013 received an upgraded rating of Aa3 along with a stable outlook projection from Moody s Investors Services based on the increasing scope of the University s activity its large pool of financial reserves uncommonly strong operating performance and discipline around building and maintaining reserves 296 297 In March 2017 Falwell Jr said that the university s endowment stood at more than 1 billion and gross assets are in excess of 2 billion The U S Department of Education rated Liberty as having a perfect financial responsibility score 44 According to a 2018 report by The New York Times most of Liberty University s revenue comes from taxpayer funded sources 18 In 2019 Falwell Jr was accused of using the university for his family s financial benefit 298 299 300 301 302 Staff members said the university has funneled tuition money into real estate investments that benefit friends and family of the Falwells including a shopping mall owned by the university and managed by Falwell s son Trey a university vice president 303 Falwell responded to the accusations by asserting that the FBI would investigate a criminal conspiracy in which individuals stole university property and shared it with reporters in an effort to damage his reputation 304 Marketing and recruitment practices edit In 2018 ProPublica and the New York Times reported that Liberty University students were sixth in terms of receiving federal aid for the year 2017 Most of Liberty University s revenue came from taxpayer funded sources ProPublica New York Times reported that each of the university s 300 salespeople were pressured to enroll up to eight students per day A division of 60 salespeople targeted members of the military specifically because they had greater access to federal tuition assistance The university s salespeople were instructed to make the university appear more affordable by describing the tuition costs per credits rather than per course The salespeople were also instructed to not inform potential students of the Christian orientation of the education the first classes include three required Bible studies classes The credits for the Bible studies classes are usually not transferable to other universities which disincentivizes students from leaving Liberty University for other universities According to a former employee the university accepts any student with a grade point average above 0 5 equivalent to a D minus 25 Sponsorships edit Liberty University has sponsored NASCAR driver William Byron also a LU student since 2014 in a late model program run by Dale Earnhardt Jr s JR Motorsports 305 Liberty is in the midst of a deal with Byron and NASCAR Cup Series team Hendrick Motorsports that runs through 2026 306 307 Federal funding edit In 2019 Liberty University reportedly received about 700 million in federal funding 308 Student loans and defaults edit Liberty University students have a lower default rate compared to the national average of graduates from all schools However Liberty University students have a higher rate of defaults within three years of completing their studies compared to graduates of other private non profit four year colleges 18 238 Liberty University spends far less on instruction than traditional private universities for profit colleges and other nonprofit religious colleges 18 In connection with being named to a Trump administration task force on deregulating higher education university president Falwell alluded as an example of regulatory overreach and micromanagement to Obama era regulations that govern student loan forgiveness for students who have been cheated by fraudulent colleges 112 309 Beliefs and values editLiberty University is a conservative Evangelical college which is reflected in its honor code and other policies The university teaches creationism alongside the science of evolutionary biology 10 310 The university s honor code called the Liberty Way emphasizes purity culture 71 The university s former president Jerry Falwell Jr was accused of nepotism racism and alcohol use contravening Baptist teaching on teetotalism 311 Falwell and his wife Rebecca were involved in a number of sex scandals 312 313 311 314 These eventually led to his resignation on August 24 2020 315 Standing for Freedom Center editIn November 2019 Liberty and Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA launched a think tank subsidiary called the Falkirk Center for Faith and Liberty 316 317 The think tank hired Trump attorney Jenna Ellis and Trump surrogate Sebastian Gorka as fellows and paid for political Facebook ads promoting Trump and other Republican candidates during the 2020 election campaign 318 In March 2021 the university renamed the organization the Standing for Freedom Center having chosen not to renew Kirk s contract several months earlier 319 In November 2021 the Standing for Freedom Center hosted former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo author Eric Metaxas and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee 320 Politics editInfluence edit Liberty University has been described as a stage of choice in Republican presidential politics 22 and a pilgrimage site for GOP candidates 20 According to The Washington Post Republican candidates are drawn to the university because it is viewed as a bastion of the Christian right 22 Ronald Reagan s close relationship with the university gave it significant publicity in its early years 20 In 1990 41st U S president George H W Bush was the first sitting U S president to speak at Liberty s commencement 321 In 1996 U S Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas gave the commencement address at Liberty University 322 Republican leaders Ronald Reagan George W Bush Mitt Romney Newt Gingrich Jeb Bush Bobby Jindal and John McCain have visited the campus 18 24 Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson spoke at the university 323 In 2017 President Donald Trump gave his first college commencement speech as sitting president at Liberty University 324 In 2019 Vice President Mike Pence gave the school s commencement address 325 326 Liberty was a satellite location for CPAC 2019 hosting numerous conservative speakers on campus 327 328 nbsp President Donald Trump speaks at Liberty University Commencement Ceremony In 2009 LU stopped recognizing LU s Democratic Party student group school officials said this was because the Democratic Party platform goes against the school s conservative Christian principles 329 Democrats such as Ted Kennedy Bernie Sanders and Jesse Jackson have spoken there 20 21 In 2018 former 39th U S president Jimmy Carter gave the commencement speech 330 However Barack Obama Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton have rejected invitations to speak at LU 20 In 2021 Interim President Jerry Prevo told Scott Lamb then the university s senior vice president for communications and public engagement that he wanted the school to become a more effective political player by helping to influence elections Prevo said getting conservative candidates elected was one of our main goals Politico wrote that his comments raise new questions about the blurred line between education and politics at the university which as a 501 c 3 charity is not supposed to participate directly in political campaigns 23 2015 concealed handguns remarks edit In a December 5 2015 convocation speech President Jerry Falwell Jr encouraged the student body to obtain concealed handgun permits 331 Falwell discussed the 2015 San Bernardino attack and said If more good people had concealed carry permits then we could end those Muslims before they walked in 331 This was met with public condemnation for singling out the Muslim religion rather than the act of terrorism Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe called the statement repugnant Falwell later said he was referring to the Muslim shooters in the San Bernardino attack not all Muslims 331 332 Links to Donald Trump edit The school is noted for its official embrace of Donald Trump before and during his term as U S president The businessman twice spoke at the university Convocation in 2012 when he was awarded an honorary doctor of business degree 333 and in 2016 334 As U S president Trump was the keynote speaker at the May 2017 commencement when he received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree Falwell Jr commended Trump for bombing those in the Middle East who persecute and kill Christians and that Trump had proved that he is a man of his word 334 As of 2022 three honorary degrees Trump received from other institutions have been rescinded but Liberty has not rescinded the two it granted Trump 335 Falwell Jr s uncritical support for Trump 336 337 was characterized as a repudiation of Christian values 338 339 Various school officials and students criticized this support and the university s ties with Trump 24 340 Among them was Mark DeMoss Falwell s chief of staff who was forced to resign from Liberty s board of trustees 341 Another was Liberty alumnus Jonathan Merritt whose invitation to speak on campus was rescinded Still another was Christian author Jonathan Martin who was expelled from campus 341 342 The school reportedly censored articles critical of Trump in the student newspaper In 2016 a student editor said that Falwell had censored an opinion column that criticized Trump 24 27 238 343 for his lewd comments caught on an Access Hollywood tape 343 Other articles in the student newspaper which mentioned Trump were reportedly spiked by faculty members 344 345 In 2018 two student editors were fired reportedly for running articles critical of Trump one of the student editors lost a 3 000 a semester scholarship 344 346 In 2019 this censorship and other factors led the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education to rank Liberty University among the worst universities in terms of free speech 347 nbsp Donald Trump and Jerry Falwell Jr at Liberty University s commencement ceremony in 2017In 2017 some students protested after President Trump criticized both white supremacists and counter protesters at the August Charlottesville rally where three people died and 33 were injured 348 Following Trump s remarks Falwell said that he was so proud of Trump for his bold truthful statement on the tragedy 348 A number of alumni returned their diplomas to Liberty University and called on the university to disavow Trump s remarks 348 349 350 The graduates argued that Trump s remarks were incompatible with Liberty University s stated values and incompatible with a Christian witness 348 In 2018 some Liberty students went to Washington D C to support President Trump s Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh 351 That same year students at the university gave a standing ovation to First Lady of the United States Melania Trump along with several Trump cabinet officials who spoke at the university during a town hall about the drug epidemic 352 353 354 In spring 2018 Liberty s Zaki Gordon Cinematic Arts Center co produced a feature film called The Trump Prophecy The film focuses on a retired firefighter from Florida who says God revealed to him in 2011 that Trump would one day be president The film was shown in some cinemas in October 2018 355 356 In 2019 The Wall Street Journal and Inside Higher Education reported that Liberty CIO John Gauger allegedly accepted cash through his IT consulting firm unaffiliated with the school to rig two online polls for Trump before he became a candidate 357 358 Subsidiary businesses editFreedom Aviation edit Freedom Aviation is a subsidiary company housed at the Lynchburg Regional Airport 359 Notable alumni editMain article List of Liberty University people Michael Andrew Olympic swimmer 360 361 Allison Ball Kentucky State Treasurer Susan Wise Bauer author and English instructor at The College of William amp Mary Peter Alan Bell osteopathic medicine doctor and current dean at Liberty University and the College of Osteopathic Medicine Shannon Bream Host of Fox News Night Supreme Court reporter Fox News 362 Sid Bream former MLB baseball player William Byron racing driver competing in the NASCAR Cup Series Jerry Falwell Jr former president of Liberty University Antonio Gandy Golden professional football player Bob Good Republican member of the U S House of Representatives William Franklin Graham IV evangelist grandson of Billy Graham Kevin Grantham former President of the Colorado Senate Eric Green former NFL Tight End for the Pittsburgh Steelers Scottie James born 1996 basketball player for Hapoel Haifa in the Israeli Basketball Premier League Rashad Jennings former NFL running back Pete Kelly former President of the Alaska Senate Tim Lambesis lead vocalist of the metalcore band As I Lay Dying Michael Licona New Testament scholar and apologist associate professor of theology at Houston Baptist University Alex McFarland director of Christian World View at North Greenville University Vic Mignogna anime voice actor Troy Nehls Republican member of the U S House of Representatives Samantha Ponder ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown host Vic Shealy NCAA D1 football head coach at Houston Baptist University former defensive coordinator at the University of Kansas TobyMac Grammy Award winning Christian hip hop artist former member of DC Talk Jackie Walorski Republican member of the U S House of Representatives Malik Willis professional football player Debbie Yow athletic director at NC State nbsp Shannon Bream Fox News Host nbsp Dondi E Costin President of Liberty UniversityFormer President of Charleston Southern UniversityMajor General Ret and former Chief of Chaplains of the USAF nbsp Bob Good U S Representative for Virginia s 5th congressional district nbsp Kevin Grantham Former president of the Colorado Senate nbsp Pete Kelly Former president of the Alaska Senate nbsp Vic Mignogna Anime voice actor nbsp Troy Nehls U S Representative for Texas s 22nd congressional district nbsp Tony Perkins President of the Family Research Council nbsp Samantha Ponder American sportscaster host of Sunday NFL Countdown on ESPN nbsp Adrian Smith U S Representative for Nebraska s 3rd congressional district nbsp Jackie Walorski U S Representative for Indiana s 2nd congressional districtNotes edit Other consists of Multiracial Americans amp those who prefer to not say The percentage of students who received an income based federal Pell grant intended for low income students The percentage of students who are a part of the American middle class at the bare minimum References edit Liberty University Quick Facts Liberty edu Archived from the original on October 5 2017 Retrieved August 13 2016 As of June 30 2020 U S and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 Report National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA February 19 2021 Retrieved February 19 2021 a b c d e f College Navigator Liberty University nces ed gov Rankings usnews com Archived from the original on May 18 2017 Retrieved May 18 2019 Colors amp Fonts Liberty University Archived from the original on May 13 2019 Retrieved May 13 2019 Team LUCMS July 11 2023 What We Believe Liberty University s Mission and Values Liberty University Residential Retrieved September 9 2023 a b McDonald Michael February 26 2013 God a Click Away as Web Courses Fuel Falwell s College Bloomberg Business Archived from the original on March 18 2017 Retrieved March 8 2017 Jenkins Jack April 27 2018 Liberty University is no longer the largest Christian university Religion News Service Archived from the original on May 25 2018 Retrieved May 27 2018 Liberty University is a private non profit Christian university Archived from the original on August 27 2017 Retrieved August 27 2017 a b Montet Virginie March 10 2010 US creationists unswayed by evolution exhibition The Daily Telegraph ISSN 0307 1235 Archived from the original on February 15 2019 Retrieved February 15 2019 Jerry Falwell Jr relishes new fight for Donald Trump as Liberty University peaks Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved June 14 2018 Chumney Richard October 3 2020 Liberty University enrollment spikes despite statewide drop in new college students News amp Advance Retrieved August 23 2021 Liberty University s Rawlings School of Divinity Liberty edu Retrieved February 28 2022 Liberty University Quick Facts About Liberty Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on October 5 2017 Retrieved January 11 2019 a b Liberty Moving to Conference USA for 2023 24 Season Liberty University A Christian University in Virginia and Online Liberty University Retrieved December 9 2022 Prevo Jerry September 26 2022 President s Post Distinguishing Mark of a true Champion for Christ The Liberty Champion Retrieved December 9 2022 a b c d e f MacGillis Alec April 17 2018 How Liberty University Built a Billion Dollar Empire Online The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on April 22 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 The Liberty Way liberty edu October 2022 a b c d e Boorstein Michelle March 25 2015 Here s why Liberty University has become a pilgrimage site for GOP candidates The Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b c Strauss Valerie October 30 2015 The world s largest Christian university relaxes some rules for students The Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b c Anderson Nick March 23 2015 Virginia s Liberty University A mega college and Republican presidential stage The Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b Stratford Michael Ambrosino Brandon October 27 2021 Liberty U president says on tape that getting people elected is his goal www politico com Politico Retrieved June 4 2022 a b c d e How Trump Is Dividing Jerry Falwell s University Politico Magazine Archived from the original on April 25 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 a b c MacGillis Alec April 17 2018 How Liberty University Built a Billion Dollar Empire Online The New York Times Magazine Archived from the original on April 22 2018 Retrieved September 15 2018 Falwell supports move to rename Lynchburg July 10 2020 Retrieved July 20 2020 a b c d e f g h i Jerry Falwell Jr relishes new fight for Donald Trump as Liberty University peaks Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Moody Josh May 12 2017 LU sees tremendous growth with second generation at helm decade after Falwell Sr s death NewsAdvance com a b Parry Robert read https www latimes com url https 3A 2F 2Fwww latimes com 2Farchives 2Fla xpm 1997 nov 16 op 54375 story html The GOP s Own Asian Connection Rev Moon Los Angeles Times Retrieved September 8 2021 Miller Norm November 16 1999 SBCV amp Liberty University strike covenant agreement Baptist Press Archived from the original on January 18 2018 Retrieved June 12 2017 Colleges and Universities Southern Baptist Convention Archived from the original on June 6 2017 Retrieved June 12 2017 Sherman Gabriel January 24 2022 Inside Jerry Falwell Jr s Unlikely Rise and Precipitous Fall at Liberty University www vanityfair com Vanity Fair Retrieved June 5 2022 Claybaugh Michael July 7 2008 Sen Jesse Helms friend of Liberty University dies at 86 www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved July 18 2022 Barron s Profiles of American Colleges 26th Edition Barron s 2005 This comprehensive guide provides an index of college majors admissions requirements tuition and financial student faculty ratios extra curricular activities and campus life for more than 1650 schools What do you mean by a competitive college Centerforpubliceducation org January 15 2010 Archived from the original on September 12 2011 Retrieved September 11 2011 a b c Stevens Ashlie November 7 2020 How Trump and Falwell Jr became evangelicals golden calves despite obvious moral transgressions Salon Retrieved November 10 2020 Lederman Doug May 26 2009 One Party State at Liberty U www insidehighered com Inside Higher Education Retrieved July 12 2022 a b Barry Liz March 27 2011 Liberty tops state in federal aid for its students The News amp Advance Lynchburg Virginia Archived from the original on August 14 2011 Retrieved March 28 2011 Fall Headcount Enrollment Research schev edu Archived from the original on July 22 2012 Retrieved July 23 2012 Johnson Jenna April 13 2011 Falwell s Liberty University blocks campus access to newspaper Web site The Washington Post Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Liberty U Is Said to Block Campus Access to Local Newspaper s Web Site The Ticker Blogs The Chronicle of Higher Education Chronicle com April 12 2011 Archived from the original on April 24 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Menard Drew June 27 2013 Liberty employees occupy former Sears building Liberty News www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved June 15 2022 Liberty University Forbes September 21 2017 Archived from the original on July 30 2017 Retrieved September 21 2017 a b Moody Josh March 18 2017 Report Finances healthy at area colleges Liberty Randolph show perfect scores in fed study Archived from the original on March 19 2017 Retrieved October 14 2017 Young Will E Inside Liberty University s culture of fear The Washington Post Retrieved July 24 2022 Young Will E September 12 2019 Jerry Falwell Jr Is Corrupt but Liberty U s Problems Go Far Deeper religiondispatches org Religion Dispatches Retrieved August 7 2022 Gardner John S September 28 2019 The Immoral Majority review how evangelicals backed Trump and how they might atone The Guardian Retrieved June 5 2022 Coronavirus Liberty University s Jerry Falwell Jr welcomes students back amid pandemic NBC News March 24 2020 Archived from the original on March 30 2020 Retrieved March 30 2020 Mangan Katherine March 30 2020 As Liberty University Reports First Covid 19 Case Students and Parents Grapple With Conflicting Information The Chronicle of Higher Education Archived from the original on April 1 2020 Retrieved March 31 2020 Liberty University pressing charges against journalists NBC News April 10 2020 Retrieved April 10 2020 MCCAMMON SARAH June 9 2020 Liberty University President Apologizes For Tweeting Racist Image NPR Retrieved July 7 2021 SCHOR ELANA RANKIN SARAH June 24 2020 Evangelical Liberty University rattled by its own racial reckoning www whsv com WHSV Retrieved July 7 2021 a b Ex Liberty exec files lawsuit alleging racial discrimination Associated Press July 7 2021 Retrieved March 17 2022 Beasley Cynthia July 6 2021 Former Liberty University Executive sues for racial discrimination breach of contract wset com WSET Retrieved July 7 2021 Severns Maggie Ambrosino Brandon August 20 2020 Falwell s use of yacht comes under scrutiny Politico Retrieved August 21 2020 Liberty University s Falwell taking leave of absence August 7 2020 Retrieved August 7 2020 Burke Daniel Schuman Melanie August 24 2020 Jerry Falwell Jr resigns as president of Liberty University amid a sex scandal CNN Retrieved August 24 2020 Jerry Falwell Jr agreed to resign from Liberty University and then reversed course school says The Washington Post August 24 2020 Retrieved August 25 2020 Lovett Ian August 25 2020 Jerry Falwell Jr says he s resigned from Liberty Univ after sex scandal revelations confusion over future Fox News Retrieved August 25 2020 Lovett Ian August 25 2020 Jerry Falwell Jr Says He Has Resigned as Liberty University President The Wall Street Journal Retrieved August 25 2020 Burke Daniel Jerry Falwell Jr to receive 10 5 million in compensation for resigning from Liberty University CNN Retrieved August 31 2020 Basken Paul July 20 2021 Liberty after Falwell struggling with diversity www timeshighereducation com Times Higher Education Retrieved September 7 2021 Stack Megan K April 28 2022 Can Liberty University Be Sved newyorker com New Yorker Retrieved July 11 2022 Flynn Meagan From quiet Falwell acolyte to bombastic Marjorie Taylor Greene ally A freshman lawmaker s political evolution The Washington Post Retrieved July 27 2022 Graham Ruth April 16 2021 Liberty University Sues Jerry Falwell Jr Alleging Deception The New York Times Archived from the original on December 28 2021 Retrieved April 24 2021 SEVERNS MAGGIE June 2021 An Evangelical Battle of the Generations To Embrace Trump or Not www politico com Politico Retrieved September 3 2021 Kay Jones and Hollie Silverman Liberty University sued by 12 women claiming school policies made sexual assault and rape more likely CNN Retrieved July 25 2021 Lawsuit claims Liberty University mishandled sexual assault claims The Washington Post ISSN 0190 8286 Retrieved July 25 2021 Maye Fran West Chester law firm gets high profile sex case at Liberty University Daily Local News Archived from the original on July 25 2021 Retrieved July 25 2021 Dorrian Patrick Black Gay Liberty University Diversity Director Alleges Job Bias news bloomberglaw com Bloomberg Law Retrieved August 5 2022 a b Blesener Hannah Dreyfus Sarah October 24 2021 The Liberty Way How Liberty University Discourages and Dismisses Students Reports of Sexual Assaults ProPublica Retrieved October 25 2021 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Stratford Michael Ambrosino Brandon October 25 2021 Former Liberty U official claims he was fired for raising concerns about sexual assault cases www politico com Politico Swaminathan Aarthi September 2021 Liberty University COVID 19 outbreak on campus worsens vaccinations now offered finance yahoo com Yahoo Finance Retrieved September 3 2021 Office of Communications amp Public Engagement August 26 2021 Liberty University enacts temporary mitigation period to slow spread of COVID 19 www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved September 3 2021 Lee Amanda September 5 2021 Liberty University allows full capacity at first football game of the season www wfxrtv com WFXRTV Retrieved September 5 2021 a b Svrluga Susan October 3 2023 Liberty University broke safety laws for years government asserts Washington Post Retrieved October 23 2023 Tyree Elizabeth Hoffman Chris February 5 2018 Tallest building in Lynchburg Liberty s Freedom Tower open to the public ABC 13 News Archived from the original on March 27 2019 Retrieved March 8 2019 Liberty celebrates new Hancock Welcome Center with full day of festivities liberty edu Liberty University December 14 2012 Hazard Charlotte November 8 2021 Liberty Plans To Build Onto the Hancock Welcome Center to Honor the Life of Jerry Falwell Sr liberty edu champion Liberty Champion Retrieved July 12 2022 McIntosh Brenna October 9 2021 Liberty University honors founder Jerry Falwell Sr with addition of new center wset com WSET Retrieved June 15 2022 Chumney Richard June 23 2018 Miss Virginia crowned at Liberty University NewsAdvance com Archived from the original on June 24 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 Hoffman Chris Doss Catherine August 24 2017 Miss Virginia competition officially makes the move to Liberty University WSET Archived from the original on October 4 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 Krystal Becky November 29 2009 In Lynchburg a skiing adventure minus the snow The Washington Post Archived from the original on December 4 2010 Retrieved November 10 2010 Liberty to launch new observatory center The Liberty Champion September 11 2012 Archived from the original on October 7 2018 Retrieved April 1 2020 Va university to open on campus shooting range PoliceOne Archived from the original on December 29 2016 Retrieved December 28 2016 Amy Trent January 16 2014 Falwell Library opens to the public News Lynchburg Virginia Area NewsAdvance com Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved April 16 2015 Media wall helps increase engagement at Liberty University library OnWindows onwindows com Archived from the original on August 8 2014 Retrieved July 28 2014 Falwell library opens to the public The News amp Advance newadvance com January 16 2014 Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved April 10 2014 Liberty University dedicates Jerry Falwell Library wdbj7 wdbj7 com Archived from the original on April 13 2014 Retrieved April 10 2014 Liberty Biblical Museum www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved June 15 2022 We ll Be Back Chaplainsmuseum org Archived from the original on April 25 2012 Retrieved June 8 2012 Local Attractions National Civil War Chaplains Museum Discover Lynchburg Archived from the original on April 27 2012 Retrieved June 8 2012 New Museum Will Honor Civil War Chaplains Civilwarnews com Archived from the original on September 23 2015 Retrieved June 8 2012 Damon W Root When bigots become reformers the Progressive Era s shameful record on race May 2006 a b National Register of Historic Place Inventory Nomination Form PDF Dhr virginia gov Archived from the original PDF on September 23 2015 Retrieved April 16 2015 Falwell s family preserving his office at Carter Glass mansion News amp Advance May 15 2008 Retrieved April 1 2020 Creation Studies www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved August 5 2022 Schneider Robert J VIII YOUNG EARTH CREATIONISM community berea edu Berea College Retrieved August 5 2022 Anderson Nick For many at Liberty University guns and God go hand in hand The Washington Post Retrieved June 11 2022 a b Creation Studies Display www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved August 5 2022 Athletics Facilities Williams Stadium Liberty Flames Liberty University Retrieved July 12 2022 ATHLETICS FACILITIES INDOOR FOOTBALL PRACTICE FACILITY www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved July 12 2022 ATHLETICS FACILITIES LIBERTY ARENA www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved July 12 2022 Pruden Cathleen May 9 2016 Liberty University Building 50 Meter Pool with Full Diving Tower Separate Diving Well Swimming World Retrieved July 22 2021 a b c Keith Braden June 28 2020 Diving Platform at Liberty University Collapses No Injuries Reported SwimSwam Retrieved July 22 2021 a b Anderson Jared March 21 2018 Michael Andrew Swims to 2 17 18 100 Breast All Time with 51 18 SwimSwam Retrieved July 22 2021 Boyer Gary June 14 2021 LU clears land for Liberty Mountain lake expansion www wfxrtv com WFXTR Retrieved September 1 2022 Board of Trustees Archived from the original on January 19 2019 Retrieved September 28 2019 Board of Trustees Liberty University Board of Trustees Retrieved November 10 2020 a b Billion Dollar Blessings ProPublica April 17 2018 Archived from the original on June 18 2020 Retrieved August 16 2020 Ambrosino Brandon September 9 2019 Someone s Gotta Tell the Freakin Truth Jerry Falwell s Aides Break Their Silence www politico com Politico Retrieved August 6 2022 a b With Falwell as Education Adviser His Own University Could Benefit The New York Times February 1 2017 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on April 25 2018 Retrieved April 24 2018 Liberty University Academics Archived from the original on December 19 2017 Retrieved January 10 2018 a b About Liberty Archived from the original on September 14 2017 Retrieved September 13 2017 Carnegie Classifications Institution Lookup Carnegieclassifications iu edu Archived from the original on September 13 2018 Retrieved May 25 2016 Federal agencies name Liberty University a Center of Academic Excellence in cyber education August 19 2018 Archived from the original on August 20 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 College of Arts and Sciences Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on December 9 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 a b c d e f U S News amp World Report U S News amp World Report Archived from the original on September 5 2011 Retrieved March 12 2019 Desrets Christa February 14 2009 Liberty University disputing evolution The News amp Advance Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved June 10 2009 Liberty University readies new medical school Lynchburg News and Advance July 13 2014 Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved July 13 2014 Bruyn Sarah September 16 2011 Liberty University s medical school recommended for 12 million grant Roanoke com Archived from the original on November 10 2011 Retrieved June 8 2012 Liberty Mountain Medical will open June 29 Lynchburg News and Advance May 22 2015 Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved May 22 2015 The doctor will see you now at a new Lynchburg medical partnership Lynchburg News and Advance July 14 2015 Archived from the original on March 17 2017 Retrieved July 14 2015 LUCOM partners with local family physicians to open community care clinic WSLS com June 15 2015 Archived from the original on October 19 2015 Retrieved June 15 2015 Moody Josh May 11 2018 LU College of Osteopathic Medicine gets initial accreditation NewsAdvance com Archived from the original on August 16 2019 Retrieved August 16 2019 Moody Josh June 30 2018 LU College of Osteopathic Medicine launches first residency program NewsAdvance com Archived from the original on August 16 2019 Retrieved August 16 2019 About Helms School of Government Helms School of Government Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 27 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 Degree Programs Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on March 6 2019 Retrieved March 4 2019 BRAND MADELEINE FOLKENFLIK DAVID FOLKENFLIK Remembering Sen Jesse Helms NPR NPR Retrieved September 3 2021 Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 16 2015 Retrieved November 16 2015 Divinity Degree Programs Liberty University School of Divinity Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 17 2015 Retrieved November 16 2015 Find a School www ats edu Retrieved January 18 2023 Degree Programs Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate School Liberty University February 4 2014 Archived from the original on June 2 2015 Retrieved February 8 2014 Feature Freedom Tower About Liberty Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 27 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 Seidel David February 6 2018 Liberty University Changing The Skyline Of Lynchburg Wvtf org Archived from the original on December 17 2018 Retrieved August 16 2019 Wingfield Mark October 24 2022 What s the largest seminary in America today You might be surprised Baptist News Global Retrieved January 18 2023 Degree Programs School of Aeronautics Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on August 15 2017 Retrieved August 14 2017 About the School of Aeronautics School of Aeronautics Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 26 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 School of Aeronautics signs agreement with American Eagle Liberty University Liberty edu May 31 2013 Archived from the original on August 14 2017 Retrieved August 14 2017 Wayman Aviation partners with Liberty University to help meet Pi Archived from the original on February 22 2017 Retrieved February 22 2017 Piedmont Airlines partners with Liberty University s School of Aeronautics Archived from the original on August 15 2017 Retrieved August 14 2017 School of Behavioral Sciences Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Retrieved April 7 2020 School of Behavioral Sciences Liberty University Graduate Programs and Degrees petersons com Archived from the original on March 4 2020 Retrieved April 7 2020 Master s Degrees Community Care amp Counseling Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Community Care and Counseling Retrieved April 7 2020 Doctoral Degrees Community Care amp Counseling Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Community Care and Counseling Retrieved April 7 2020 Master s Degrees Counselor Education amp Family Studies Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Counselor Education Retrieved April 7 2020 Doctoral Degrees Counselor Education amp Family Studies Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Counselor Education Retrieved April 7 2020 a b Bachelor s Degrees Psychology Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Psychology Retrieved April 7 2020 Master s Degrees Psychology Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Psychology Retrieved April 7 2020 Doctoral Degrees Psychology Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Psychology Retrieved April 7 2020 BS in Social Work Social Work Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Social Work Retrieved April 7 2020 Kenyon C Knapp Ph D School of Behavioral Sciences Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Retrieved April 7 2020 Faculty and Staff School of Behavioral Sciences Liberty University School of Behavioral Sciences Retrieved April 7 2020 Bachelor s Degrees School of Business Liberty University School of Business Archived from the original on March 6 2019 Retrieved March 5 2019 Master s Degrees School of Business Liberty University School of Business Archived from the original on March 6 2019 Retrieved March 5 2019 Doctoral Degrees School of Business Liberty University School of Business Archived from the original on March 6 2019 Retrieved March 5 2019 Details ACBSP Acbspsearch org Archived from the original 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usnews com U S News amp World Report Retrieved June 6 2022 Wilson Patrick January 25 2017 Former U S Rep Hurt to head new government law center at Liberty University Richmond Times Dispatch Archived from the original on August 16 2019 Retrieved August 16 2019 New School of Music announced Liberty University September 14 2012 Archived from the original on February 3 2014 Retrieved February 8 2014 New School of Music announced for Liberty University The News amp Advance Lynchburg VA September 17 2012 Archived from the original on September 20 2012 Retrieved August 13 2016 New Liberty University School of Music Announced WAFB 9 News Baton Rouge LA September 15 2012 Archived from the original on February 5 2013 Retrieved August 13 2016 All Steinway Schools Steinway amp Sons Archived from the original on September 24 2015 Retrieved September 18 2015 Bachelor s Degree Programs Liberty University School of Music School of Music Archived from the original on July 13 2019 Retrieved July 13 2019 Master s Degrees amp Doctoral Degrees Liberty University School of Music School of Music Archived from the original on July 13 2019 Retrieved July 13 2019 Miller Emily McFarlan July 19 2019 Michael W Smith Kevin Jonas Launch Liberty University Music Label News amp Reporting Archived from the original on July 22 2019 Retrieved August 16 2019 College of Applied Studies and Academic Success CASAS Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on June 13 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 Find a Training or Assessment Center Nccer org Archived from the original on August 16 2019 Retrieved August 16 2019 AAS in Technical Studies College of Applied Studies and Academic Success Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on September 14 2017 Retrieved September 14 2017 College Scorecard Liberty Collegescorecard ed gov Retrieved August 5 2022 2023 2024 Best National Universities U S News amp World Report Retrieved September 22 2023 2022 National University Rankings Washington 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October 22 2022 Commission on Colleges Institution Details Archived from the original on September 27 2017 Retrieved September 20 2017 About Liberty Institutional and Program Accreditation Archived from the original on October 5 2017 Retrieved September 20 2017 Accreditation Details Liberty University United States Department of Education 2009 Retrieved February 28 2009 Commission Action November 2008 PDF Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools November 2008 Archived from the original PDF on June 21 2009 Retrieved February 28 2009 About Liberty Institutional and Program Accreditation Liberty University Liberty edu January 7 2014 Archived from the original on April 7 2015 Retrieved April 16 2015 Liberty University School of Law Awarded Full Accreditation by the ABA College amp University News College amp University Catholic org Archived from the original on October 7 2018 Retrieved March 11 2019 Member list PDF Sacscoc org Archived from the original PDF on July 22 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Scorecard Liberty University United States Department of Education Retrieved May 8 2022 Riggins Katlyn July 21 2021 Liberty University Bigger Problems than Jerry Falwell s Actions edreformnow org ERN Retrieved June 8 2022 Liberty University www petersons com Petersons Retrieved September 5 2021 Rankings Usnews com Archived from the original on April 13 2017 Retrieved May 18 2019 Liberty University Quick Facts About Liberty Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on September 13 2017 Retrieved September 17 2017 a b Liberty University Quick Facts About Liberty Liberty University www liberty edu Archived from the original on October 5 2017 Retrieved April 7 2020 How Diverse is Liberty University College Factual February 20 2013 Archived from the original on July 14 2019 Retrieved April 7 2020 Boorstein Michelle June 2 2010 Liberty University reviewing claims that seminary president lied about his past The Washington Post Archived from the original on March 16 2017 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University Now He s Suing May 13 2021 At Jerry Falwell s Christian College It s Don t Ask Don t Tell on Gay Marriage Daily Intelligencer Archived from the original on April 25 2018 Retrieved April 25 2018 LGBTQ students file class action lawsuit against Department of Education NBC News March 30 2021 Retrieved June 26 2022 Liberty University Denies Tuition Discounts to LGBT Military Spouses November 30 2015 Archived from the original on April 25 2018 Retrieved April 25 2018 Kapsidelis Karin Liberty psychology course omits LGBT related content Richmond Times Dispatch Archived from the original on June 16 2019 Retrieved April 25 2018 Non Discrimination Policy www liberty edu Liberty University Retrieved September 3 2021 Liberty University Responds to Eastern Zone s Anti Discrimination Resolution SwimSwam October 5 2019 Archived from the original on October 8 2019 Retrieved October 8 2019 LGBTQIA People Harmed Under Trump s 3 Years In Office New Brief Details The Rainbow Times January 27 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National Debate Tournament Spring 2009 Report Archived December 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine National Debate Tournament 2009 MS Word file National Debate Tournament Spring 2010 Report Archived December 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine National Debate Tournament 2010 MS Word file National Debate Tournament Spring 2011 Report Archived December 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine National Debate Tournament 2011 MS Word file Debaters boycott championships at Liberty U over Falwell s anti Muslim remarks Archived August 23 2018 at the Wayback Machine The Washington Post 2016 04 15 Retrieved 2018 07 19 VHSL votes to move state championship games away from Liberty University The News amp Advance 2016 05 05 Retrieved 2018 07 19 Debate Team sweeps all three national tournament titles Liberty University Liberty edu April 18 2017 Archived from the original on December 2 2018 Retrieved January 11 2019 a b LU seeking to join FBS conference in all sports The News amp Advance newsadvance com May 15 2012 Retrieved April 1 2020 Big East Adds Liberty Quinnipiac For Field Hockey Press release Big East Conference December 8 2015 Archived from the original on January 26 2016 Retrieved January 17 2016 Liberty announces move to FBS in 2019 USA Today Archived from the original on August 15 2017 Retrieved August 14 2017 Sordelett Damien November 1 2020 Liberty cracks AP Top 25 poll for first time newsadvance com 2020 College Football Rankings for Preseason Flames News Libertyflames com Archived from the original on July 4 2012 Retrieved April 16 2015 Liberty First to Win 5 Straight Sasser Cups Liberty Flames June 1 2012 Archived from the original on January 27 2013 Retrieved July 10 2012 Liberty University athletic director gets top award wdbj7 com June 25 2012 Archived from the original on February 5 2013 Retrieved July 10 2012 News amp Events News Article Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on August 18 2010 Retrieved August 5 2010 a b Athletics Facilities Williams Stadium Liberty Flames Liberty edu Archived from the original on May 31 2019 Retrieved July 13 2019 Walls Dave December 22 2019 Liberty Football wins Cure Bowl over Georgia Southern 23 16 WSET Retrieved April 7 2020 Willis Leads Flames to 2021 LendingTree Bowl Victory Liberty Flames Liberty edu December 18 2021 Retrieved February 28 2022 Hugh Freeze Football Liberty Flames www liberty edu Retrieved April 7 2020 Facilities Vines Center Basketball Liberty Flames Archived from the original on April 3 2008 Retrieved July 10 2012 NBA Draft Picks From Liberty University Basketball Reference com Archived from the original on July 10 2012 Retrieved July 10 2012 NBA Players who Attended Liberty University Basketballreference com Databasebasketball com Archived from the original on May 6 2006 Retrieved July 10 2012 Big South Conference History Bigsouthsports com Archived from the original on June 28 2012 Retrieved July 10 2012 Sordelett Damien March 17 2019 Liberty claims No 12 seed in East Region of NCAA Tournament NewsAdvance com Retrieved May 16 2019 Here s who Liberty University will play in the 2019 NCAA Tournament Wtvr com March 17 2019 Archived from the original on March 27 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 Bhatia Akash Here are 5 NCAA Tournament bracket busters that could be this year s Cinderella MarketWatch com Archived from the original on March 27 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 2015 NCAA Ballpark Experience Rankings Stadium Journey Archived from the original on November 17 2015 Retrieved November 15 2015 Liberty Baseball Stadium Liberty Flames Liberty edu February 23 2013 Archived from the original on November 17 2015 Retrieved November 15 2015 Liberty Baseball Stadium Reviews Liberty Flames Stadium Journey March 14 2014 Archived from the original on January 6 2016 Retrieved November 15 2015 2015 Baseball Promo Schedule Announced Liberty Flames Liberty edu February 24 2015 Archived from the original on January 6 2016 Retrieved November 15 2015 a b News amp Events News Article Liberty University Liberty edu Archived from the original on November 22 2011 Retrieved September 16 2010 a b c Lohmann Bill Playing for the Lord Liberty finds it has passion for ice hockey Richmond Times Dispatch p G 1 February 4 2007 Liberty University Hockey Schedule 2011 12 Liberty edu Archived from the original on December 12 2010 Retrieved October 12 2011 LaHaye Ice Center LaHaye Ice Center Archived from the original on June 21 2012 Retrieved July 10 2012 25th Anniversary Profile Josh McDougal Big South Conference Chelanga Clicking off Fast Times Liberty Flames Archived from the original on March 26 2017 Retrieved June 17 2018 Liberty University Inc propublica org ProPublica May 9 2013 Retrieved June 4 2022 Liberty University Annual Disclosure Report PDF www liberty edu Newton Derek The Student Aid Pipeline We Can t Afford Forbes Retrieved September 2 2022 a b Fisher Marc Leen Jeff A Ch, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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