Jerry Falwell Jr., an evangelical leader and president of Liberty University, has accepted a role leading the Trump administration’s higher education task force, the Chronicle on Higher Education and NBC News reported Tuesday night.
Falwell told the Chronicle that in the role, he will target “overreaching regulation” of colleges and universities, like rules on accreditation.
“The goal is to pare it back and give colleges and their accrediting agencies more leeway in governing their affairs,” he said. “I’ve got notebooks full of issues.”
Falwell told the Chronicle that he declined President Donald Trump’s offer to be the education secretary because he wanted to remain in his role leading Liberty University. He added that Trump asked him to lead the higher education task force back in November.
The Liberty University president was a prominent supporter of President Donald Trump during his campaign, and he was one of the first evangelical leaders to endorse the Republican. He said he would stand by Trump following the release of a tape that revealed Trump bragging about grabbing women’s genitals, even though Falwell’s students at Liberty University opposed his support of Trump.
