In recent years, there has been much discussion about whether or not universities such as Harvard, Yale, and Princeton are “liberal” schools. Some refer to these institutions as being liberal due to their focus on social justice, while others describe them as strictly academic institutions that prioritize teaching over public engagement.
In fact, this debate goes back quite some time. Back in the 1960s and 1970s, many accused Ivy League universities of being too focused on academics instead of student well-being. Many students feel stressed out by the amount of work they have to put in outside of classes, and some claim that their education is limited to what classroom lessons mean for getting a job rather than exploring other fields or learning something new.
Since then, this issue has become more prevalent as larger media companies begin to gain popularity. Social media sites like Facebook make it easy to track how political most people are, thus creating an even bigger audience to influence. Companies can use this information to determine which courses their marketing department should promote for an degree.
Liberal arts colleges typically do not advertise business or medical degrees because they believe that educational knowledge will help you be happier overall. They also may not market science, technology, or engineering departments due to the negative effect that advertising those areas could have on applicants.
These types of schools often require a large tuition cost, making it difficult for low income students to attend.
Who would dispute the claim?
This is an increasingly tricky question to answer, as many people have labeled it as either clearly liberal or clearly conservative. Some even argue that LIBERTY UNIVERSITY IS NOT A COLLEGE AT ALL!
Many refer to the school’s academic focus and mission statement as “liberal arts” but ignore the word “university” in the phrase “Liberal Arts College.”
This is not only false, it also fails to recognize the important role that education plays in developing well-rounded individuals with moral character.
Furthermore, most students at LU do not identify themselves as liberals or conservatives – instead they describe their worldview as Christian. In fact, over 90% of all full time undergraduates self-identify as Christians according to recent data.
It is worth noting here that while some may use terms such as “conservative” or “libertarian” to describe the political views of certain administrators, chance are high that these individuals received advanced degrees outside of college or university teaching.
We can be quite sure then that none of them ever took courses related to politics in college, so we should probably give this argument little weight. — Natalis Puggiongsane, Professor of Philosophy, Virginia Tech
The truth is that whether you call LU a liberal arts college or not depends largely upon your view of what an educational institution should look like.
The university has a political stance
While the school does not actively promote one party over another, there are some things about the school that indicate it may be more liberal than what people perceive it to be.
The first is the school’s motto which is “With God All Things Are Possible.” Many Christians believe this to mean that nothing is impossible for God, but some non-Christians think this refers to being able to achieve anything through faith in Jesus.
Another example of how the school can seem slightly liberal is its academic focus. Although LU requires students to take courses from various areas like religion or philosophy, many students choose to major in fields such as business, art, humanities, social work, or music instead.
Some students and alumni disagree
Many people associate liberal arts with the humanities, such as sociology, psychology, communication studies, and history. These are all very important fields that explore how humans interact with each other and why certain behaviors are more common than others.
However, some argue that social sciences like economics and business are equally if not more related to liberalism than the hard subjects like literature or art. This is because both economic theory and practice focus heavily on studying patterns of behavior and motivating individuals to perform actions.
This link between capitalism and freedom has been increasingly strengthened in recent years due to the growing influence of the free market ideology. Free markets rely on individual choice and competition for their success so they encourage people to be self-reliant and independent thinkers.
Another way that liberty advocates connect big government with tyranny is through concepts like socialism and communism. Both systems are characterized by central planning of resources which leads to overuse of power and oppression of individuals.
Many experts believe that these ideologies have led to oppressive regimes and limited personal freedoms. In fact, many communist countries are known for having higher rates of suicide and murder than any other country.
Given this connection, it makes sense that many liberals would be attracted to attending a school that teaches about leadership, motivation, and knowledge management. All of these apply directly to the field of business!
Furthermore, several well-known businessmen received no formal education beyond high school before achieving success.
The university is expanding
In 2018, there was an announcement made that Liberty would be making major changes to how it is organized into colleges and departments. This includes changing their name from “Liberty College” to just simply “Liberty.”
The school will now have only one college under its umbrella-the College of Humanities. All other divisions are considered part of the department or center within the college of humanities. These include things like business, education, fine arts, political science, etc.
This organization of the school seems very logical as we see more and more universities moving in this direction. It also means that students can go straight into graduate level studies in areas such as history, English, philosophy, and others without having to take additional courses at the undergraduate level first.
There are several reasons why Liberty has moved towards being categorized as a liberal arts institution. One of these is that they want to emphasize educating students beyond basic skills and knowledge. They believe that once people become well educated, then they can make decisions based off of reasoning rather than emotions alone.
Another reason is that many graduates of the school go onto do great things after leaving so they feel that their educational experience helped prepare them for the rest of their lives.
Some students and alumni are unhappy with this
Many people associate liberal arts education with larger institutions that focus more heavily in the humanities, social sciences, and literature. However, there is no hard and fast rule about what makes an institution “liberal” or not.
Liberty University was founded in 1971 by controversial televangelist Jerry Falwell. At the time, he wanted to create a Christian university that would teach both academic subjects and biblical studies.
Since then, the school has grown considerably and now offers degrees in over 30 fields. It even boasts of having one of the largest fraternities/sororities systems in America!
Many students at LU come from very wealthy backgrounds and enjoy first-class services and facilities. This includes things such as free food, health insurance, laundry service, tutoring resources, and organized activities and clubs.
However, these features are not limited to rich students only. Anyone can use the many services LU provides for FREE!
Some students feel that the overall experience at Liberty University is not like other universities. They say that the intensity of studying the Bible and learning about Christianity is missing.
Furthermore, some professors may seem too focused on their personal faith instead of teaching academic material effectively.
The university has a reputation
Along with its strong academic program, Liberty is known for being an evangelical Christian school that cultivates students’ faith in God. This includes having large amounts of student-led prayer, daily chapel services, and organized Bible studies.
Many people refer to this as “Christian college culture.” Some argue that it can be difficult to separate religion and education at times because Christianity shapes so much of what goes on around you both in and out of class.
Others believe that there are benefits to this type of environment since Christians learn how to apply their beliefs to various situations. Either way, it’s clear that Liberty values Jesus Christ highly and wants to train students to do the same.
“Liberty University was founded upon the principle that all things should be subordinated unto the Lord,” according’the mission statement. “Academics exist to advance knowledge and understanding of truth; they are tools used by God to help us connect more closely to Him.
Some students and alumni like this reputation
Many people associate liberal arts with social justice, diversity, and tolerance. These things are good, of course! But there is another way to define ‘liberal art’ that has less attention paid to content but more focus put onto form or how a thing is done.
This definition is very close to classic education. Schools such as Harvard, Yale, and Oxford have been producing educated, intelligent individuals for centuries now under this banner.
Liberty University was founded in 1971 by controversial preacher Jerry Falwell who wanted to create an institution where Christian values could be taught at length. Since then, LU has grown into a prominent university rich in resources and opportunities.
Many people are familiar with some of these resources including The Student Life website, various student newspapers, and the Liberty Champion, a magazine designed to inspire students to live their lives according to Christian principles.
However, not many know that Liberty does not use the term “Liberal Art” when describing its mission. This may surprise those looking for strong ties to social justice groups or open-minded thinking about different cultures and beliefs.
Instead, Liberty uses the term “General Education” which includes courses like English, history, philosophy, mathematics, and other non-specific categories. General Education classes can easily be identified through the inclusion of writing, literature, math, and anything else related to knowledge and understanding.
The university has a religious affiliation
As mentioned earlier, this school is very clearly affiliated with a religion- Christianity. This means that they promote Christian values and influence in society through education, business, and politics.
The first thing you should notice about this school is that it teaches from a biblical worldview. This means that the students learn about topics such as biology, history, literature, and other subjects from a faith-based perspective.
These beliefs are incorporated into the curriculum and teaching styles at LUV. Students will be exposed to both conservative and liberal ideas, but they will not encounter these concepts from places of pure hatred like at many public schools.
Instead, their lessons will focus on promoting social justice, peace, and moral excellence. These ideals are opposite to how some people perceive liberals, so it makes sense that most teachers here do not teach using political jargon.
It is important to remember that just because someone does not agree with your political views does not mean that they do not have good morals! It may simply show that they believe different things than you do.
