As a Closet Liberty University Alumnus, My 5 Recommendations
It’s (past) time for Liberty to live up to its mission
I’m a closet Liberty University grad.
I don’t promote that I graduated from Liberty.
And when people ask where I went to college, my statement is usually, “I went to school in Virginia.” Or, I lump it into, “I went to Tyler Junior College in Texas, Liberty University and I got my Master’s at Concordia.”
When they respond, “Oh where in Virginia?,” I cringe.
“I went to Liberty. But if you know anything about them, it’s not like that. I don’t align with them.”
I immediately go on the defensive because I know if they know Liberty then I’ve immediately been put into a box as a right-wing, fundamentalist, Trump-loving individual. And I don’t even blame anyone for putting me in that box.
But it doesn’t have to be like that. 99% of the people at Liberty are still some of the best you’ll find.
And yet, because of the 1%, I wouldn’t recommend the school to anyone.
I have low standards and expectations for Jerry Falwell Jr. but even I thought it was a photoshopped picture. (thread can be found on Twitter from @RobDownenChron who broke the story because I’m pretty sure none of us want to see the photo posted again here)
As Meghan McCain said, “How is this Jerry Falwell Jr. photo even real?” Same. I thought it must have been altered. And then Falkirk Center fellow Malachi O’Brien (@malachiobrien on Twitter) tweets out that it is not President Falwell. Naturally, my assumption that it must have been a fake was true.
But upon further review, not only was it a real photo, Jerry posted it himself.
The fact that it had to come to this to finally put Jerry on indefinite leave is tragic in and of itself. Had he been held accountable for his narcissistic and racist actions in the last several years, might it have saved him and the University from the current debacle they find themselves in?
Excerpt from Calum Best’s excellent article:
The Liberty community has always looked at Falwell and seen things that made us uncomfortable. He’s always shown us too much. For instance, Falwell has explicitly said that he takes no responsibility for the spiritual growth of Liberty students, even though the school is a Christian university. A loyal supporter of Donald Trump, Falwell has openly said that his political activities are not influenced at all by his faith. He called a Liberty parent — which is to say, someone who helps pay his salary — a “dummy.” He told one well-known evangelical pastor to “grow a pair,” and chided another for being unqualified to speak “on any subject.” Falwell even told Liberty students to “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s,” then threw his support behind a bizarre plan for Virginia counties to secede from the state and join West Virginia.
If the photo of his unzipped pants wasn’t bad enough, he doubled down.
The enablement is why, rather than apologizing for the photo, he could make a joke of it, “She was pregnant, she couldn’t get her pants up… I had on a pair of jeans I haven’t worn in a long time so I couldn’t get mine zipped either. And so I just put my belly out like hers.”
So why did I attend Liberty University?
Well, that’s easy. DC Talk went there. And it was a Division 1 Evangelical school. So it checked all the boxes for me, that simple.
I loved my time at Liberty. (I know that’s a hard thing to swallow if you only know Liberty from the news and from Jerry Falwell Jr)
Sure, I wasn’t sold on every aspect of it but as far as a University, the professors were great, the student body is full of incredible people, central Virginia is gorgeous, and Lynchburg (although terribly named) is a cute, quaint town.
When I decided to work there after graduating, I started to see the under belly rising.
Jerry Falwell Jr. had just become president and a shift was taking place.
It became less about people and more about numbers and money.
I should rephrase, it became only about a certain inner circle of people and ALL about numbers and money.
I left shortly thereafter.
I wanted a change of scenery myself and I also didn’t want to be in that atmosphere any longer but I had no idea how far things would go.
The perception of Liberty from the outside is both worse than it actually is and better than what people think it is.
Those who think it is a Christ-centered evangelical school would be incorrect. It is more of a right-wing hub of politics, power, and money… all in the name of faith. (See: Falkirk Center)
Those who think it is an awful place and wonder why anyone would want to attend school there… it has incredible professors (although many have left), amazing facilities, an incredible student body, and surprisingly to many, a very diverse landscape of thought both theologically and politically from the staff, professors and students.
I’ve met a lot of people in the world. They all seem to like me, I’m a likable guy. And then they find out I went to Liberty and they hesitate and then they’re like well, you’re ok though.
And I’m not even mad at them. I get it. I’d probably judge me too.
The sad part is, the one man (Jerry) doesn’t represent the people of the University at all. But the one man is THE representative of the entire University.
I’ve been in touch with some friends who still work at Liberty or stayed on after I left and they’ve shared sentiments over the years of how Liberty is still a great place but the Executive Leadership has little interest in biblical decision-making and are more politically-minded than spiritually-minded. And they’ve shared that 99% of the faculty there feel that same way. As I stated earlier, it’s the 1% there in power that are heard from the rest of the public.
My 5 Recommendations for Liberty University moving forward
1. Terminate Jerry Falwell Jr’s Relationship with Liberty University
After a thorough review, terminate Jerry Falwell Jr’s relationship with Liberty University completely. The recent announcement that Liberty made was, “The Executive Committee of Liberty University’s Board of Trustees, acting on behalf of the full Board, met today and requested that Jerry Falwell, Jr. take an indefinite leave of absence from his roles as President and Chancellor.”
While this is an appropriate response at this time, the indefinite needs to end in dissolving his relationship with the University.
I share Jonathan Merritt’s (@JonathanMerritt)concerns who posted on Twitter:
Anyone who thinks Jerry Falwell Jr just got “fired” doesn’t understand how Liberty University (or white evangelicalism, for that matter) operates. He’ll be back.
This isn’t an issue of someone thinking about their actions, apologizing for their past behavior and given another chance and another chance and another chance (as Liberty is too good at doing).
As Diana Butler Bass (@dianabutlerbass) stated on Twitter:
Jerry Falwell Jr will be back at Liberty. He’ll be gone long to hire a ghostwriter and publish a memoir about growing up under the shadow of his dad, how he never really knew Jesus personally, that he sinned, and then found true forgiveness for the first time in his life.
Yes, he is forgiven and will be continually forgiven. But he has shown himself over and over again to not be morally or spiritually fit to lead Liberty University in its mission.
Under Liberty’s Statement of Mission and Purpose, it states, “Encourage a commitment to the Christian life, one of personal integrity, sensitivity to the needs of others, social responsibility and active communication of the Christian faith, and, as it is lived out, a life that leads people to Jesus Christ as the Lord of the universe and their own personal Savior.”
It’s a University, not something to be passed down through a family.
If he’s to have a relationship with Liberty in the future, that can be determined at a later time. For now, it needs to be dissolved completely.
2. Terminate all Enablers of Jerry Falwell Jr, including Members of the Board of Trustees and Executive Leadership Team
The Board of Trustees is being praised for putting Jerry on indefinite leave. And while this is the right decision at this time, many of them are the reason Jerry felt so enabled in his actions.
Excerpt from Christianity Today: Marybeth Davis Baggett, who concluded 17 years as a professor at Liberty this spring, told CT she was “surprised and profoundly grateful to hear about the board’s decision.” Baggett didn’t expect the board to recommend leave since Falwell had kept his position despite prior scandals.
“I am relieved for my former colleagues, for their students and parents, and for Liberty’s alumni that there is now an opportunity for the board to install leadership more fitting of the high calling of this great institution,” she said.
I went on Liberty’s website to see who their Board of Trustees and Executive Leadership team are. I wasn’t surprised to find that it is made up of mostly white men who likely see the world like Jerry does. (Can Laura get a picture at least, please?)
If they wanted to show me different, they had 10+ years to hold him accountable, and not once did they. The one time I recall a board member, Mark DeMoss, attempting to hold Jerry accountable, he was forced to resign from the board. Jerry has been the face of Liberty but has also encircled himself with those who have propped him up and not held him accountable. His actions and comments have shown that not only did he think his behavior was okay, but that its quite acceptable and humorous.
If they have not spoken up against Jerry’s actions in the past, then they are 100% complicit in his actions in the present.
The fact Jerry has been enabled this long gives me little confidence in the Board of Trustees or the Executive Leadership team, in their stewardship or in the direction they will take the University.
3. Apologize
There is an active alumni base anxious for Liberty to live up to its mission and its motto of ‘Training Champions for Christ.’ Apologize to them. Apologize to all of the great professors and staff who have been hurt by Liberty leaderships actions and have either been fired or found jobs elsewhere. Apologize to all those who have been hurt by the University.
4. Disband the Falkirk Center
It has nothing to do with building champions for Christ, it is simply a right-wing hub of politics.
Those leading the Falkirk Center should be more concerned with living out their faith than defending it.
“The Falkirk Center exists to uphold the Christian faith and defend America’s Constitution.”
“We believe that all citizens have a duty to promote, preserve, and defend American values through continuous cultural renewal and political engagement.”
Christ followers need not spend overt time defending their faith and American values but should be more concerned with living out their faith, one of selflessness, grace, and generosity which are often antithetical to American values and America’s version of Christianity.
5. Find new leadership and a new President (and start the search with Karen Swallow Prior)
It’s obvious Liberty needs new leadership but where do we start?
Let’s start with those who have invested faithfully in the University for years.
Karen Swallow Prior, another former Liberty professor who left earlier this year, extended her prayers for the university and the Falwells in a statement to CT.
“Liberty University is a Spirit-filled university with many godly professors doing the good work of teaching and discipling young Christians. Any squandering of these talents is grievous, but fortunately we serve a God who, I believe, will continue to bless this school into the future,” she wrote. “I don’t believe I poured my life into the school for two decades for nothing. I love the Falwell family and will be praying for godly sorrow that brings the repentance that leads to life.”
It’s an uphill climb, but I hope I can be a proud Liberty alumnus once again. Let’s not make our focus how many students we have, how big our endowment is, or how many championships our teams win but let’s get back to a quality Christ-centered education, a place where students can flourish and grow, and a place that truly raises up Champions for Christ.
Afterthoughts
So do I regret attending Liberty University?
I don’t.
I love the direction my life has taken and I can’t think of any other way it would have ended up like this without having attended Liberty. While at Liberty, I had the opportunity to get a quality education, travel to India and Thailand, and be an RA to some of the best guys in the world. And Coach Ritchie McKay gave me an opportunity with the basketball team that helped set me up for a career in the NBA. I’ll forever be grateful for that. It was the people I met there, who I still love and still connect with, who helped set me up for the next steps of my life that make me thankful I attended Liberty.
But I do feel Liberty is somewhat of a microcosm of America.
The words it was founded on sounded right, the mission sounded on point but living up to it was always a challenge. There were some good intentions and good people involved at the start. And then a bunch more good people who wanted the school (country) to live up to its principles and values, came on board and started calling for change and for it to live up to its mission.
But there’s been leadership at Liberty that doesn’t lead, that isn’t held accountable, and that is surrounded by enablers.
I don’t want that for Liberty.
I don’t pretend to speak for all alumni. Me and my fellow alumni disagree all the time, and I’m sure you can check my Facebook comments and watch people disagree with my sentiments on here. But regardless of how we feel, I can guarantee you that each alumni wants the best for Liberty, wants it to be a place that lives up to its mission, and wants it to be a place we can all be proud to tell others we went to.
