Liberty University Board of Trustees shares in the student experience during campus visit

When members of the Liberty University Board of Trustees gathered for their biannual meeting on campus April 11-12, their first stop was one of the most popular places on campus: the dining hall.

The new 120,000-square-foot Reber-Thomas Dining Center opened at the start of the school year. The two-story building seats over 3,000 and offers 27 different food stations.

Board members were welcomed at the doors by student leaders who helped them navigate the facility and joined them for a meal.

“Our Liberty students are the most impressive part of our university. I enjoyed getting to know them and sharing a meal in the new Reber-Thomas dining facility,” said Liberty Board Chairman Tim Lee. “Our time of food and fellowship allowed me to take a break between meetings and to hear our students share what is most important to them and what their goals and aspirations are as future Champions for Christ.”

Liberty students have also been invited to take part in meetings by sharing their stories. This meeting featured junior Brandan Bowers, who learned about Liberty through a social media clip of a Campus Community service. Curious to explore, he came to LU to play lacrosse but found Jesus at his first Campus Community, getting saved after hearing Chancellor Jonathan Falwell preach. He quickly got baptized and changed his focus to ministry, enrolling in the John W. Rawlings School of Divinity. He got involved in student leadership and now serves as a Resident Shepherd preparing for a lifetime of vocational ministry.

“Hearing our Liberty students share firsthand the testimony of God’s calling on their life is one of the most rewarding aspects of being a Liberty board member and alumna,” said CEO and President of Concerned Women for America Penny Nance (’88). “I always look forward to coming back to Liberty because I know I’ll be encouraged and inspired by these wonderful students. I love seeing the joy on their faces and hearing about how God is calling, training, and equipping them for a lifetime of kingdom service.”

The Board holds two on-campus meetings each school year, in the spring and fall. There are 31 current members, two of whom attended their first meeting this spring since being elected in the fall. The spring meeting featured a move from paper binders to a digital application that allowed members to access the meeting documents in an electronic notebook.

During the meeting, the Board conducted business on the following items:

• Elected Tim Lee to another three-year term as chairman and William F. Graham IV to another three years as vice chairman.
• Approved proposal to move forward in the accreditation process for 11 new academic programs, including several graduate programs, in the areas of computational linguistics, information studies, mathematics, art history, international counseling, fashion merchandising, interior design, and chaplaincy.
• Approved fiscal year 2024-25 budget for both operations and capital expenses. The previously announced tuition freeze was officially approved in the operations budget; rates will remain the same for both residential and online programs through the 2024-25 school year, marking the sixth year in a row for residential and ninth-straight year for online. (Liberty University School of Law tuition was not part of the freeze.) *
• Approved a capital improvement budget of about $130 million. The budget includes funds for planning a new academic building for the old Reber-Thomas Dining Hall site among over 90 construction projects touching most every area of campus, including a fire station, various residence hall renovations, 14 sports facility upgrades, enhanced backup power for campus, and six academic facility improvements.
• Approved name change for new multipurpose facility under construction behind Hancock Welcome Center. Recognized “The Champion Center” as a nod to Liberty’s deep historical roots in the past and its desire to remain innovative and on mission in the future. The building will present and preserve the original vision that God gave Liberty’s founder, Jerry Falwell, Sr., and show what God has done at Liberty because of Falwell’s faithfulness. Among the features are a multipurpose events space that can seat 2,000 and a 24/7 prayer and worship space.
• Endorsed the direction of Liberty’s strategic plan following a report by Provost Scott Hicks and Deanna Keith, Vice Provost for Institutional Effectiveness and Research, on the plan’s progress.
• Approved a new real estate policy that outlines the due diligence and approval process for the purchase and sale of on- and off-campus properties.

In addition to the strategic planning report, several university leaders gave presentations to the Board, including Chancellor Jonathan Falwell on the campus spiritual climate and spiritual development, President Dondi Costin on various campus operations, President Emeritus Jerry Prevo on the progress with The Champion Center, and Ashley Reich, Senior Vice President for Equity and Compliance, who gave an update on recent and planned enhancements to Liberty’s Clery Act and Title IX compliance program.  The various board committees reported on their business, including the growth of the university’s endowment from the investment committee and how the university’s whistleblower program has been operating from the audit committee.

* Tuition rates vary based on number of credit hours enrolled, program level, and program. To view a full list of tuition rates, visit the Tuition and Financing page.