Liberty University in Virginia has decided to allow students with concealed handgun permits from the state to carry firearms in dorms.
Currently, students are allowed to carry guns on campus except residence halls. Those who want to keep their firearms in their dorms must get permission from the university and be at least 21 years old, CBN News reports.
University President Jerry Falwell proposed the new policy, which was approved by the board of trustees.
He said the new rule is to help students who have the permits but are limited by the current university rule that says weapons should be kept in the glove compartment of their vehicles.
Falwell said the new rule will affect only a few people since there are not many who live in dorms on campus, The News & Advance reports.
Of the 200 students who live in dorms, only about 20 have permits to date.
He said the university will provide safes to students for use in their dorms. Students will be required to put the guns in the safes immediately upon entering the dorm and keep them there while they are inside.
Falwell added that the implementation of the policy "will be determined by the deans this summer. "
Liberty University lifted the ban on concealed weapons on campus in 2011.
"It [lifting of the ban] was because of what happened just an hour and a half up the road at Virginia Tech," Falwell told students last December. More than 30 innocent students and faculty members were murdered that day.
"From the day that happened, I thought we needed to do something here at Liberty," Falwell said.
The university changed the policy in 2013 to allow concealed weapons in all facilities except in dorms.
Last December, Falwell urged students to arm themselves following the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California.
