Lynchburg-area colleges and universities Wednesday reported a total of 47 active COVID-19 cases among students and staffers â the lowest case total since students began returning to local campuses in mid-January. For the second week in a row, Liberty University reported 39 total cases, according to weekly updates from the universityâs COVID-19 dashboard. At least 33 Liberty students and 6 employees currently are sick with COVID-19. Last week, the university reported 29 student and 10 employee cases. Liberty defines an active case as an infection reported in the last 10 days. Liberty, which with 15,000 students is the largest local college or university, began holding in-person classes in late January after students spent the first week of the semester taking online classes to help limit the spread of the virus. The approach was aimed at minimizing a spike in cases in the first weeks of the semester as students from across the country returned to campus.