Liberty University board accepts Jerry Falwell Jr.’s resignation

Liberty University accepted its embattled president Jerry Falwell Jr.’s resignation on Tuesday, a day after he initially tendered his resignation and then withdrew it hours later.

In a statement, Liberty University said the school’s board of trustees had accepted Falwell’s resignation as president and chancellor of the university, as well as his resignation of his seat on the board. Both were effective immediately.

“Our students are ready to be world changers as Champions for Christ. Their spirit is strong as they look to the future. I intend to do all I can to nurture their spiritual side as they grow academically and enjoy all our campus has to offer,” said Jerry Provo, the school’s acting president who took control earlier in August.

Tuesday’s action by the board followed a chaotic chain of events Monday in which Falwell tendered his resignation and then withdrew it after reports of it were leaked to the news media ahead of Tuesday’s board meeting. Falwell Jr. later clarified late Monday evening that he had officially tendered his resignation.

“On the first day of classes of Liberty University’s fall term, Jerry Falwell, Jr., agreed to resign as its President and from its Board of Directors, but following media reports about the resignation, withdrew it,” the university explained in a statement issued Monday evening.

Falwell Jr.’s ouster from the university comes after he was placed on indefinite leave in early August by school officials after he posted a photo of himself on a yacht with his arm around a young woman and his pants unzipped. The yacht was reportedly owned by a NASCAR mogul with whom the university has a sponsorship deal.

On Monday, he was also the subject of a Reuters story revealing that a longtime business partner claimed to be having an affair with Falwell Jr.’s wife and Falwell Jr. himself. Falwell Jr. countered that he was being blackmailed by his former business partner.