Liberty University Student Sues School Over ‘Glacially Slow’ COVID-19 Response

A student of Liberty University has filed a class-action lawsuit against the school, alleging that a “glacially slow” response to the coronavirus crisis put the health of students at risk. The unidentified student accuses the school and its president, Jerry Falwell Jr., a vocal Trump supporter, of downplaying the coronavirus threat and refusing to refund students for “room and board and other campus fees” after classes were moved online. “Liberty University is, in a very real sense, profiting from the COVID-19 pandemic—keeping its campus and campus services ‘open’ as a pretext to retain Plaintiff’s and the other Class members’ room, board and campus fees, despite no longer having to incur the full cost of providing those services, all the while putting students’ finances and health at risk,” the lawsuit reads. The university said Tuesday that the lawsuit had no merit and $1,000 in credit was being offered to students who had moved out of campus housing. Falwall decided to partially reopen the university after Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency in mid-March due to the coronavirus. Subsequently, the university confirmed that almost a dozen students had fallen ill and were exhibiting symptoms consistent with the coronavirus, The New York Times reported.