When Jerry Falwell Jr. resigned from Liberty University in August 2020, it wasn’t just a career ending. It was a cultural earthquake. For thirteen years, he had been the face of a multibillion-dollar evangelical empire. He was the man who turned a struggling Christian college in Lynchburg into a powerhouse of conservative politics and online education. Then, suddenly, it all came crashing down amid a swirl of Instagram photos and "pool boy" headlines.
Honestly, if you look at the numbers, Jerry Falwell Jr. was a business genius. He took over after his father, Jerry Falwell Sr., died in 2007. At that point, the school was doing okay, but it wasn't the giant it is now. Falwell Jr. saw the potential in online learning way before most people did. By the time he left, Liberty had an endowment of over $2 billion. That’s massive. He built a literal skyline in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
But the success came with a weird, mounting tension. You've probably heard the stories. The school had strict rules—the "Liberty Way"—which banned students from drinking or having premarital sex. Meanwhile, the president was increasingly acting like a provocateur. He’d post photos of himself with guns or tweet inflammatory things that made even his supporters cringe. It felt like two different worlds were colliding in one office.
The Breaking Point and the "Pool Boy" Scandal
The real trouble started in Miami. Back in 2012, Jerry and his wife Becki met a young man named Giancarlo Granda. He was working as a pool attendant. Most people don't just "go into business" with their pool attendant, but the Falwells did. They helped him buy a youth hostel.
For years, rumors bubbled under the surface. Then came 2020.
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A photo hit Instagram showing Jerry with his pants unzipped, holding a glass of "black water," with his arm around a woman who wasn't his wife. He said it was just a "trailer park" themed party. Nobody bought it. The board put him on an indefinite leave of absence. But the knockout blow came from Reuters. They published a story where Granda claimed he had been in a years-long sexual relationship with Becki Falwell—and that Jerry liked to watch.
Jerry denied being involved in the sexual acts, though he eventually admitted his wife had an affair. He claimed he was being blackmailed. It was a mess. One day he resigned, then he withdrew the resignation, then he resigned again late at night on August 24.
The $15 Million Settlement You Probably Missed
People think the story ended in 2020. It didn't. For the last several years, Falwell and Liberty have been locked in a nasty legal war. Liberty sued him for $40 million, claiming he breached his contract by not disclosing the scandal. Jerry sued back for defamation.
By mid-2024, they finally got tired of paying lawyers.
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In May 2025, tax documents finally revealed the price of peace. Liberty University paid Jerry Falwell Jr. roughly $15.3 million. That’s a staggering amount for someone who left under such a dark cloud. Most of it—about $9.7 million—was categorized as retirement benefits he’d earned over his tenure. Another $5.5 million was to settle the lawsuits once and for all.
In exchange, Jerry had to pay back about $440,000 for "disputed expenses." Basically, the school let him keep the house and the money to just go away. They also reached an agreement on how the university could use the name and image of his father, Jerry Sr. It was a business deal, plain and simple.
Life After the Mountain
So, what is he doing now?
In 2026, Jerry Falwell Jr. is mostly living a quiet life, at least compared to his days on the stage at Convocation. He’s had some serious health scares. He’s been treated for pulmonary emboli—blood clots in his lungs—multiple times. At one point, he told reporters his oxygen levels were so low he didn't have the strength to even go on TV to defend himself.
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He’s still active on social media, though. He mostly posts about his family, his farm, and occasionally takes shots at the people he feels betrayed him. He’s been very vocal about feeling like he was the victim of a "coup" by the university board.
Why the Falwell Legacy Still Matters
You can't talk about modern American politics without mentioning the Falwells. Jerry Sr. started the Moral Majority. Jerry Jr. was one of the first major evangelical leaders to endorse Donald Trump in 2016. That endorsement changed the course of the GOP. It proved that for a lot of voters, "business results" and "toughness" mattered more than a candidate's personal piety.
- Financial Growth: He grew Liberty’s assets from roughly $250 million to over $3 billion.
- Political Shift: He moved the evangelical focus from "moral character" to "cultural winning."
- Legal Outcomes: The 2024-2025 settlement effectively ended the "Falwell Era" at Liberty.
The university has moved on. They have a new president, Dondi Costin, and Jerry’s brother Jonathan is the chancellor. They’re trying to return to a more traditional, "ministry-first" vibe. But the buildings Jerry built are still there. The $2 billion endowment he built is still there.
He basically built a kingdom and then got kicked out of it.
If you’re trying to understand the current state of Liberty or the Falwell family, the best move is to look at the official 2024-2025 settlement filings. They show a man who was deeply flawed but also incredibly effective at what he was hired to do: build a massive, wealthy institution.
To keep tabs on what's next, you might want to look into the upcoming documentaries and books being written by former Liberty insiders. Several are slated for release later this year, and they promise to shed even more light on the financial inner workings of the Falwell years.