Five years ago, Liberty University sent 3,598 graduates into the world as Champions for Christ, the last senior class under my father’s leadership.
At our 39th Commencement in May, we honored the Class of 2012 — 14,012 graduates strong.
The numbers aren’t the only signs of forward progress on this campus in five years. The blessings are tremendous and we can only thank our Creator for the works He has done on this mountain as we push toward a total enrollment of 100,000 students, with more than 78,000 studying online around the globe.
Liberty has been blessed with the addition of top-notch facilities for our athletics teams and recreation programs, including a renovated Williams Stadium, indoor soccer center, an artificial ski slope that is the first of its kind in North America, and a Broadway-ready theater.
This issue of the Liberty Journal will be distributed in newspapers across the state on June 17, Father’s Day. On this day, I am also celebrating my 50th birthday. This special time has caused me to reflect on my own father’s impact on me and on this world.
In this issue we give God the glory for five years of miracles at Liberty since my father’s death. In this calendar year, Liberty will become the youngest American university to reach $1 billion in net assets, guaranteeing that it will be able to fulfill its mission of Training Champions for Christ for generations to come.
Liberty is well on its way to establishing a medical school that will train physicians to work in underserved areas in Virginia and around the world. Our quarter-of-a-billion-dollar campus transformation is under way, with the new Jerry Falwell Library already under construction. The project, Liberty’s largest investment in any one structure to date, will offer key services and resources as the academic hub, or heart, of the university.
Liberty’s story is too exciting to keep within its own borders. With thousands of new online students, alumni, and supporters joining the Liberty family every year around the world, it is always a challenge to keep them connected and informed on current happenings. In this edition, you will read about how to stay up to date with Liberty through new digital connections.
You will also read many stories of how our students are impacting their generation for Christ as the salt of the earth and the light of the world like never before, through community service and outreach as students, and through careers in every profession as graduates. Every time a student tells me how their life has been changed because of the personal attention, care, and guidance they received from a Christian professor, staff member, or student leader, I am reassured that Liberty is fulfilling its mission.
I am also reminded that I am the one who is truly blessed and privileged to serve as their Chancellor.
Sincerely,
Jerry Falwell, Jr.
Chancellor and President
Chancellor and President
