Anti-LGBT Discrimination on the University Level
Chip Futrell is Director of Conferences, Event Operations, and Contract Management at Winston-Salem State University. In addition, he is Chair of the Wilson County Board of Elections. He and his husband own a historic house in Wilson, and he is active in both historic preservation and the arts in Wilson.
From 2013 to 2018, he was the Director of Continuing and Professional Education at NC State, where he had gotten undergraduate and master’s degrees. After being named Interim Vice Provost of Continuing Education at NC State in 2018, Chip applied for the permanent position of Vice Provost. He was selected for a first-round interview, but was not chosen as one of the 3 finalists for the permanent Vice Provost position. Further investigation of the process turned up written evidence of anti-gay bias. He filed a job discrimination lawsuit in federal court, which resulted in an out-of-court settlement.
That experience has led Chip to ponder the nature of anti-LGBT discrimination as it compares with other kinds of discrimination (as well as thoughts about writing on the subject). Because the settlement did not entail a gag order, he is free to share his experience and his thoughts with us.