[tpcs]

Hi,

As a high school student who is considering Liberty I have a few questions. When did you graduate?, Why did you go to Liberty?, Who you do it all again?, What type of person who you recommend Liberty to?, What do you think of the "Liberty Way"? What are some other memories that you have of LU?

Thanks! Also if anyone came down from Canada where are you from?

[jcmanson]

I just graduated in may of '06. I went to Liberty because I wanted to go to a christian university, but I wanted a school with a legitimate athletic program as well. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I would love to be back there now. I miss it so bad, and the people I met there. I would recommend LU to any person who wants to grow in their relationship with Christ, and are looking for a place that you can have alot of fun. I think the Liberty Way is fine. It keeps getting less strict. The dress code is not a problem anymore. The only thing that might be tough is no "R" rated movies, or curfew.

[BJWilliams]

I am graduating in Spring of 2008 (Possibly December 2007). I went to LU because I liked their education program (I originally wanted to be a math teacher). After I changed to communications, I STAYED because the people are extremely friendly, they love God and they want to see you grow in every facet of your life. Many of the people I have met have had an unbelievable impact on my life since I got here in Fall of 2002 (the stories guys like jcmanson could tell about me from that year...lol)

[Sly Fox]

I'm probably your father's age. I graduated in 1989 with a BS in Communications.

I would absolutely do it all again. I reluctantly went to Lynchburg due to an academic scholarship that far exceeded the ones I was offered at other schools. Once I arrived on campus I realized God had put me there for a reason. After going through public schools all my life, I thoroughly enjoyed being in an envirnment surrounded by likemendid people my age.

Liberty is not for everyone. Many on the outside view our lifestyle as a prison camp. But I doubt you'll find many on campus who feel that way. If you are looking for a school where you can grow personally, academically and spiritually then Liberty may be for you.

As for memories, they are too many to count. Suffice it to say you'd never be bored and you'll meet friends you'll have for a lifetime.

And just so you know, we've had a large contingent of Canucks on campus for decades. And did we mention our hockey team has its own ice?

[vastrightwinger]

I graduated in May '05 with a BS in Government and a BS in Religion. I went to LU because I at first wanted to be a pastor and felt that is where God wanted me. My Parents were reluctant to let me go for several reasons, i.e. distance and cost (i had a full ride to any state school in Florida) but the moment my dad stepped foot on campus he felt that it was God's will for me to be there. I spent 4 years there and loved it. Some of my best memories to date on on that campus. God moved in my life including leading me to a different career path. I miss it everyday of my life. As far as the "Liberty Way", even over the last 2 years it has gotten much more lenient and more tolorable. There are a few things that I didn't like but you learn to live around it. I think LU is for anyone who wants a great Christian enviornment and can stand being "watched over" while there. If you want to break rules and raise havoc, than LU is probably not the place to go. The memories that I have from that place are to many to name. I will say that the people I met there are awesome and I still keep intouch with today. In fact, 3 of my groomsman are friends from there!

[bigsmooth]

i graduated in 93. the main reason i came to LU was i put all my eggs in one basket and when that school fell through, LU was the quick fall back. believe me that im glad i went to LU. i would do it again in a heartbeat, esp. with all the smenities the mountain has now. i learned so much and grew spiritually, academically and socially, and made a ton of lifetime friends. anyone who wants a stromger christian walk and wants a quality christian based education, LU could certainly be for you. the liberty way is not for everyone and many do break the rules. however it is not a boot camp like many outsiders say. i would encourage you to come down for college for a weekend. it will give you a great snapshot of what LU is all about. memories......too many to write here, let's just say i had a great experience.

[kel varson]

I went to a Christian High School so I had no problem with the Liberty Way.

[PeterParker]

Many who went to LU in the late 80's to the mid 90's put up with the Liberty Way because of the amount of scholarship money that was handed out like candy canes at Christmas (they shored this up subsequently when the donor who alleviated the sizable debt burden put his advisors on the books; or so I'm told.) Tough to turn down a sizable chunk of change to obtain an accredited degree from a school with NCAA Division 1 Athletics; putting up with some of the draconian elements of Liberty Way seemed like a reasonable trade off at the time for many.

That being said, the Way has been progressively relaxed over the years (even since I attended.) Like many have said, the atmosphere on the "ground" among the real constituents of the school--the students--is much different than the perception at large and even from what the figure head says and does (in spite of some overzealous RA's.) Most students think for themselves and not all are JF disciples; rather, many are persons who came/come from faith-based backgrounds who want to or were offered a deal they couldn't refuse in order to go to a school with academics in the Christian Intellectual tradition and a school that clearly had intentions on rising academically and athletically to the national scene one day.

[PAmedic]

what Peter Parker said.

Only I'll put it in English for you.

Like many others in the 80's- I really didn't CHOOSE Liberty other than it was

• A. 400 plus miles away- far enough to get outta town, but close enough to get home if need be
  B. CHEAP
  C. athletics that were going DI at the time
  D. CHEAP
  E. one of the few options I had since I procrastinated putting apps out there
  F. CHEAP
  G. I had several friends going there.

In spite of my motivation being WAY off track, the fact that I flaunted as many rules as possible, wasted all my money, let my 3.8 GPA deteriorate to a 2.0, and even though I parted ways with the school after my soph year- I now look back fondly at my time there and wish I had been more mature and taken advantage of all that was offered to me.

I now see LU for the potential it has, and would highly recommend it to anyone. It has come a LONG way since my days.

[Jasmen8182]

I graduated in fall '89/spring '90 (had to take a semester off junior yr.). The scholarship money motivated me; maybe I should've taken more time off after the first two yrs. Definitely make good use of resources available instead of "floating through." While changing one's major is commonplace, university students should have clear goals that could change as they grow and change. (Not everyone can be as focused and driven a my doctor friend- one fond memory. Call me a pack rat, but I still have notes- written in the library while we studied; he also said he wished the Way allowed hand holding. Another friend put a peanutbutter cup in my mailbox and attempted to teach me chess. Having LUPD tell US ( ) not to catch the woods on fire was one of the best!) It's good to hear some rules are relaxed (hand holding??) and some are sticking; if it weren't for my ex-boyfriend's roomie-turned-RA poking his head nto a classroom, my engagment would've been harder. I didn't mind the rules overall, having gone to Christian school for yrs., been somewhat "protected" and shy. If you choose LU, make good use of the time and resourses, have goals and good boundaries-don'ttake for granted that it's a Christian environment... and have confidence in developing those friendships. After reading other posts, I want to try even harder to send cards to old roomies and other friends. I received a B.S. in Human Ecology/Family and Consumer Sciences and an AA in Religon (it used to be that 2 or 3 extra religion classes in addition to the required would get you the AA). Don't seek out an MRS but don't shy away- do pay attention to individual growth and goals.

[SuperJon]

Time for me to chime in here (and every cringes because they think it's going to spark some huge debate with Tally).

First off, let me say I love my school. There are quite a few things I don't like, but I love my school.

Secondly, I'm one of the new breed of LU students. We're the type of kids that are nowhere near the "right wing uber-conservative" that LU is known for. We come from public schools. We like to have fun. We like to be able to live our lives as college students and know that we're not perfect but we are forgiven. We came to LU to be in a Christian environment, not to be judged (something I'll get to later). We love the fact that we can screw up and have people there to support us and help us through the problems.

There are some things in the Liberty Way that I don't like. However, I understand why they're there. I don't have a problem with someone going out and having a beer with a burger while they watch a football game or a glass of wine with a nice dinner if they're 21. With that being said, I know that kids our age don't have the discipline to cut it off like that and the complete ban on alcohol is good for those people.

Curfew, rated R movies, kissing - all of that stuff I think is stupid. Just don't get caught. RAs will even tell you that.

Dress code - it's better than it was. I know that. Personally, I don't have a problem with it. I got used to it and it wasn't that big of a deal. The only thing I would like to see changed is for them to allow guys to wear nice khaki shorts with a collared shirt. If you wear shorts, you have to have a collared shirt (no hoodie). Girls are allowed to have skirts and capris, I just think this would be the male equivalent of that.

I said we'd get back to the judging and here is where I'm going to do it. There are people at Liberty that are so overly religious and self righteous that they judge every person for everything they do and if you screw up they will condemn you and write you up as a demon kid who's going to Hell. There are a lot of these people. There are people who are overly religious and take things way beyond where they should go. If you asked them what they wanted for dinner they would say they should pray about it and wait for God to let them know. If He didn't give them a sign, then He was telling them they should fast that meal. Ok, I exagerated a little bit.

There are a lot of kids who have been home schooled and everything their entire life has been about them. They live in a complete "me" world. Most of these kids are the same ones I mentioned as being judgement in the last paragraph, but they never do anything wrong. I want to punch them in the face.

Spiritually things can be insanely hard here. There have been many times in the semester and a half that I've been here where I felt farther away from God than I have my entire life. You are around religious events so much here that sometimes you just have to step back and figure things out for yourself. In a lot of cases people will make you feel like dirt for things that you believe or the way that you are comfortable worshipping. There are a ton of times where it feels like you aren't living up to what you should be. There are a lot of times where you have no clue where God is taking you and it's very frustrating. It's more tempting to slip at Liberty than it is at a state school.

Liberty girls are, well, a different breed. We'll leave it at that.



I've said what I didn't like. Remember how I said I loved my school? Here's why:

Teachers pray in class. Teachers genuinely care about you and how you're doing. One of my professors told our class that if any of us couldn't make it home for Thanksgiving to let him know and we could have Thanksgiving dinner with him and his family. You're not getting that at another school. If you have a problem with anything in your life whether it be school, girls, money, spiritually, family, or whatever, all you have to do is walk into one of your professors offices and they will help you through it. Most schools have a few people that will do this. Liberty has an entire facutly.

The chance to grow in your faith is here. Remember how I said I've never felt further away from God? I've also never felt closer at times. If you keep an open mind about things, and figure out why you believe what you believe, things are awesome. If you take a step back from everything and get away from it all for a little bit, it becomes clear how amazing God is. Whether it's just taking a drive down the parkway or sitting at the park or sitting in your room with the lights off, make sure you have time to get away from everything and clear your head. That's when you grow the most.

Some of the people you meet will be the coolest people you will ever know in your life. At this point in time, I still don't have a solid "core" group of a friends. I know a ton of people that are amazing but I'm still looking for that "core" group. Part of growing up that is fun is finding the people to be in that "core" group. Shrug off the douchebags and keep an open mind about people and you'll have a ton of fun. The kids that you may have thought were "nerds" in high school will turn out to be hilarious and a ton of fun to be around.

There's nothing more fun than Division I sports. Period. There just isn't.

People say there's nothing to do in Lynchburg, but those people are just boring idiots who don't know what they're talking about, or they don't know how to create fun. People don't realize there are parts of Lynchburg outside of Wards Road and Candler's Mountain (the two main roads around campus in case you didn't know). The main things we have are movie theaters, bowling alleys, putt putt, and go carts. There are also a bunch of parks, disc golf, the river, the mountains, and you're close to whatever you could want to do. People don't realize how fun capture the flag is, or dodgeball, or anything involving water guns/balloons. Make your own fun and college will be amazing.


If you're close-minded, stuck up, and/or judgemental then please, find another college. However, if you're open-minded, ready to have good, clean fun, and open to knew things, then I'll personally welcome you to the mountain.

(I'm growing up, aren't I?)

[PAmedic]

nicely done, SJ.

must say I'm impressed.

ya dun good- boy

[Jasmen8182]

I did have a friend that was a senior there when I was a fresh.- we grew up in the same church; after he mentioned LU, I went to College for a Weekend. He went back for grad. work while I was still attending.

[SuperJon]

nicely done, SJ.

must say I'm impressed.

ya dun good- boy

Thanks, Short Stuff. Glad I could impress you with something other than breaking the 6' mark.

[Jasmen8182]

SJ, I liked your summation, believe it or not. Yes, I do believe youre growing. Just be carefull not to be judgemental yourself. (More on that sme other time and I have yet to rea John Ficsher's book abt.it).

[PAmedic]

nicely done, SJ.

must say I'm impressed.

ya dun good- boy

Thanks, Short Stuff. Glad I could impress you with something other than breaking the 6' mark.

you had me when you broke 300 lbs

[bigsmooth]

nice job SJ, and the" putting it in english blast" from the medic made me laugh out loud!

[ATrain]

I'm graduating in May '07. I love Liberty...no, its not a perfect school, but then again such a school doesn't exist.

I came to LU because:
1. FULL TUITION SCHOLARSHIP (yes, I admit it, I went to LCA)
2. A quality communications program

At the time, I wasn't really looking for a school that was distinctly Christian, but am happy that Liberty is. If you want to grow in Christ, the opportunity is there, but it is not forced on you (except by the homeschoolers who'll try to darn your soul to heck as SJ mentioned). Yes, a couple of the rules do seem strict, but in all honesty, you have to be stupid to get caught.

Like SJ, I have no problem with someone who's 21 having a beer when watching football or a glass of wine at New Year's, and I agree that most college students don't know how to handle consumption of alcohol and thus I am completely fine with the total ban. You are allowed to have a job that involves the service of such beverages, however.

I had the privelege of being on LU's campus when we won the 2004 Men's Big South basketball, when we handed Gardner-Webb their first Big South loss and when our women's basketball team went to the Sweet 16. When the student body gets excited about sports, the atmosphere on campus and at the games is simply amazing. I will never forget those games.

You also have the opportunity to be exposed to multiple cultures while you're here if you take the opportunity. I have several close friends from Latin America and Canada as well as Australia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Britain, and Kenya. The things I have learned from each of them are priceless. You also have chances to travel as Light Ministries takes trips to places like India, Thailand, Africa and Latin America not to mention some departments offer trips to Europe and Israel for course credit. I personally have not gone on any of these trips b/c I had already committed to other trips with my church, but you definitely have the opportunity to go places at LU.

I would definitely choose Liberty again if I had to travel back in time and did not have the full tuition scholarship. I have made many friends who are like brothers/sisters to me and they have been a major help to me in my short time at LU, not to mention all the crazy fun times that we have had, like climbing Sharp Top Mountain at 2 in the morning on the way back from a hockey game in Roanoke.

[4everfsu]

TPCS, good questions about LU. Let me jump in and say if Sly is your father's age, I would be closer to your grandfather's
I came to LBC, Lynchburg Baptist College the forerunner to LU in 1972, led by God as where he wanted me. There were no Liberty Mtn, all my classes the next three year was at TRBC, I can say I graduated from LBC with never setting foot on Liberty Mtn. We had no scholarship money, I worked full time and went to school full time. Our majors were bible, religion, education, psychology,etc. at the time. Our sports program were in its infancy. As far as those that attended school with me, I have lost contact since 1975, graduation.
But the one thing I still have to this day, is the biblical teaching of the men who were my professors, men of God who had a vision back then that is still alive today in the young people on Liberty Mtn. The student body had a real concern about winning souls to Jesus Christ. I remember one elderly woman in her 60s who attended the Bible institute who was called to be a missionary to China and this was back in the 70s when it was a closed society. I often wonder if she made it to China. I remember how many students and their family struggled finacially during the year, but still believe God wanted them there. I remember players witnessing to opponents after the game, whether it was football, basketball or baseball back then.
I visited LU last fall for the first time in 30 yrs and I was overwhelmed by the working of God I saw there. I believe there are many good Christian students who love God and I believe God will continue to bless LU.

SJ I have to admit I thought you were very good explaining why you love LU. As far as the negative stuff you have to put up now at LU, this too should pass and one day you will be like me looking back and laughing at it and see how it was so small in the bigger picture. I guess all the praying for you is working

So TPCS I would say Liberty would be a good school for you, it can only help make you a better Christian.

[TallyW]

SJ... well done... well done. I actually found myself agreeing with just about everything you said....


I echo most of the comments on this thread.

I knew if I went to a state school (for me it would have been University of Maryland) I would have ended up in a heap of trouble. Liberty gave me a great spiritual foundation on which to build my life. I absolutely love the school. I have some family who now live in Lynchburg and I get over there every 4 months or so just to get pumped up again. Regardless of the complaints... that ministry and campus are a testiment to what God can do through one person's life and through those who are willing to come along side that one person.

One of the things I loved at LU was that the place never stopped growing. Every semester there was something new being built around campus. Liberty isn't a museum to the past but rather a portal to the future. It's also one college where your degree will be worth more 10 years after you graduate... As the school continues to grow, so will the reputation of the degree.

Liberty will be what you make it. You have great people all around. I've never since been in an atmosphere where so many people wanted to see me succeed. Liberty gives you that.


Aside from the freaks that SJ talks about Liberty is full of people who have a practical faith. A common sense faith. In my experience most of the students at LU are not legalistic. They are conservative in their theology and liberal in their methodology. I tended to get along with most people on campus...

Anyway... I love Liberty and I think its a fantastic place to spend some of the most important and formative years of your life.

[Sly Fox]

Let me echo the sentiments of everyone else ... nicely stated, SJ. That's the type of insight that doesn't usually come to much further into one's collegiate experience.

tcps - I think you see a different type of response than you would receive from students & alumni on other boards. That's part of what makes Liberty special.

[bigsmooth]

wow!! when tally and SJ agree something has to be wrong!!!!

[TallyW]

bigsmooth... I'm as dumbfounded as you are... I think SJ and I are going to exchange Christmas cards this year....

We've actually been in agreement more than not over the last week or so. (I've been away from the board for a while)

[prototype]

One of the best part about Liberty is the friendships you will acquire. I have 8 brothers and sisters. I know - my family was Catholic:)

Of my 8 siblings, 7 went to colleges other than Liberty. I'm the only one who has friends from college that I see on a regular basis. Not only ones that stayed around this area, but friends all over the country.

Liberty has it's issues, but so does every College or University, but at Liberty - people have the chance to grow in many more ways than just academically. Liberty rules are minor - they were minor when I was there. Class of 1996. I am one of the few who liked wearing a tie every day, not to the cafeteria, but to class. When I got into the real world - it was no big deal to wear one. So many of the rules are gone - and stop lying to yourselves. We went to R movies when I was there and I know the students still go now - I was in a movie a month ago - the theater was packed and there were many students in Liberty sweatshirts.

[bigsmooth]

it's getting deep if tally is sending christmas cards to SJ