Liberty University, the Falwell-affiliated college in Lynchburg, Virginia, has ordered all classes to be held virtually after in-person classes, started last week, sparked an outbreak of the coronavirus, the Washington Post reports.
There were 124 confirmed cases among students and another 35 among faculty at the university, according to the dashboard posted on the school’s website. The university said its capacity at its 500-bed quarantining site is reaching capacity. “The campus infection rate is higher than at anytime last year, our only local hospital is reaching capacity for ICU COVID treatment, and we project our Annex quarantine capacity to be reached soon,” school officials wrote.
Prior to being ousted by university leadership for financial and moral scandals, Jerry Falwell, Jr. ordered students and faculty to return to in-person classes last Spring semester without implementing any public health guidelines. “Ninety-nine percent of them are not at the age to be at risk,” he argued at the time, “and they don’t have conditions that put them at risk.”