Undercover at an Evangelical University

Parents Forum
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<p>NPR's All Things Considered featured a story in 2009 called Undercover</a> at an Evangelical University where a student at Brown University took a semester off to enroll at Liberty University instead of studying abroad. It was an eye-opening experience for him as he was the product of a liberal, secular upbringing. He explained that drug, alcohol and tobacco use is prohibited, as well as pre-marital sex. There is a strict dress code. No body piercings are allowed, no jeans that have holes in them, no hair below the ears (for guys), no skirts shorter than the top of the knees, no tight-fitting clothing (for girls), no shorts shorter than mid thigh (for girls), no two-piece swimsuits (for girls), no dancing, no hugs longer than 3 seconds, and no cursing. His experience at Liberty lead him to write a book titled "The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University." </p>

<p>Fast forward to today and an article about Liberty University. </p>

<p>Virginia?s</a> Liberty transforms into evangelical mega-university - The Washington Post</p>

<p>Liberty University, located in VA, has become an evangelical mega-university with a total enrollment exceeding 74,000. It was founded by Jerry Falwell in 1971. It is now the largest private, nonprofit university in the country, as well as the largest university with a religious affiliation.</p>

<p>"We believe that Liberty will redefine what is considered an academically prestigious university in the future," said Jerry Falwell Jr, the university's chancellor and president. "It's grown from being a small Bible school towards the goal of being a full-service university."</p>

<p>The university has more than $1 billion in net assets, putting it in the same league as Georgetown University. It offers a multitude of recreational facilities. These include year-round skiing or snowboarding on a mountain peak covered with synthetic snow; a competitive paintball field; a skate park; 60 miles of trails for hiking and mountaing biking; an indoor ice center; and an indoor soccer center.</p>

<p>"The Unlikely Disciple" sounds like an interesting read. I'm going to order it from Amazon today.</p>

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<p>I know a number of families, including not too far of a connection to mine, who have sent their kids there and everyone involved were happy and the graduates doing well and moving along fine in life, with, I might add, fewer issues than many angst driven young adults here in my area. Not the direction I took with my kids,but it works with many families.</p>

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<p>I read the book a few years ago. I was a little surprised by how heavily Roose exploits liberal stereotypes. There are far more references to liberal stereotypes and caricature than there are for the religious right.</p>

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<p>I agree with SaintSaens.</p>

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<p>Hmm 60,000 of these students are on-line but you dont find that out until the last page. </p>

<p>And the tolerance of the WaPo commentors doesnt disappoint.</p>

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<p>I agree with you, cpt. It does work for many families.</p>

<p>What I found so interesting about the NPR All Things Considered story was that a college student from a liberal college decided to forgo studying abroad to attend an evangelical university. It gave him an opportunity to see how people of a different “culture” live. Some of our children have grown up in communities or families where they have not had the opportunity to get to know people who have different religious beliefs. Perhaps, like this college student, our children will learn to have more compassion for those who have different beliefs.</p>