Image Credit: Lipscomb Academy / Facebook
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
Lipscomb Academy, a private Christian school in Nashville, is facing severe community critique for its handling of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, specifically the way some students chose to memorialize and mourn their role model.
The controversy began on Sept. 11, the day after Kirk’s death, when roughly 20 students were prohibited from wearing suit jackets and red ties in honor of Kirk as the school stated the students did not have permission to wear clothing that deviated from the dress code.
Initially telling The Tennessee Star that students were eventually granted permission to wear the memorial outfits on a later date, a school spokesman later stated that this did not take place and the students instead opted to plan a chapel service, which did not occur until several weeks later.
Parents of the students were upset not only by Head of Upper School Jesse Savage’s insistence the boys remove the clothing, but also about the general lack of acknowledgement by the school about Kirk’s assassination.
“When my children came home and told me that Principal Savage had rounded up the boys who were wearing red ties to show their love for Charlie Kirk, and demanded that they take them off, I couldn’t believe this was happening at a Christian School, literally the day after Charlie was murdered,” said one father.
Several parents then appealed to Candice McQueen, the President of Lipscomb University, which oversees Lipscomb Academy, to have Savage terminated, but he was instead reassigned to a new position as Director of Academics, a role which reportedly had no specified list of responsibilities. That move prompted some other parents and teachers to protest in solidarity with Savage by wearing black or even refusing to instruct students.
In an email to parents, the school later acknowledged that “engaging in a conversation to understand [the students’ emotions] would have been more beneficial”, but the belated reaction appears to have fallen flat as critics pointed out the disparity between the school’s silence on Kirk compared to their messaging about George Floyd in 2020, where his death was called “tragic and inexcusable” and they pledged to “do better”.
The story also attracted national attention a couple weeks later when Turning Point USA (TPUSA) spokesman and “Charlie Kirk Show” executive producer Andrew Kolvet relayed he had been inundated with texts and calls from distressed parents and students connected with the school.
“Shame on them,” he wrote, calling on the public to contact Savage and President McQueen to, “RESPECTFULLY let the school leadership know that punishing kids for honoring Charlie is wrong, and not in keeping with Lipscomb’s Christian heritage.”
Kolvet later told The Tennessee Star he believed Savage’s lateral promotion to academic director was not an attempt to “repent and reform”, but the school’s way of handling the situation through appeasement.
“They tell me the school is riddled with ideologues that are hostile to the Christian values held by the vast majority of the families that make up this community. This is a time to set things right with clear action,” Kolvet said. “This is their choice to make, not mine. But I know many will be watching. I personally hope the school rejects half measures.”
Former Lipscomb student, Nashville business owner, and TPUSA spokeswoman Savanah Chrisley has also taken up the crusade pressing for accountability from the school and urging them to admit their blunder and make things right.
During an appearance on Newsmax, she shared that she found the school’s unwillingness to condemn the violence against Kirk and refusal to speak about him during chapel services or acknowledge the grief of many students “heartbreaking”, especially as her little sister also attends Lipscomb. She lamented that the memorial service in Kirk’s honor only lasted 23 minutes and called the school’s promotion of Jesse Savage a “cop out.”
“It was a cowardly response to something so tragic,” said Chrisley. “That would have been the perfect opportunity for the school to say, ‘We failed these students. We failed our community.’”
Chrisley also appeared on The Benny Show, revealing she and other concerned community members have been in contact with the heirs of David Lipscomb because the school’s deed to its land could theoretically be revoked should the school run contrary to his original intentions.
“He stated in the deed that if the school is not ran how he intended it to run, then it needs to be handed back to his rightful heirs,” she said. “It [the school] could actually be taken from them and given back to the rightful heirs of David Lipscomb, because they are not running as a Church of Christ school.”
The school has not commented on whether they believe Chrisley’s legal claims to be valid, but regardless of the deed claims, Chrisley also pointed out Lipscomb receives a significant amount of federal funding which could be revoked if the school is found to be in defiance of federal requirements to eliminate DEI and other woke espressions from curriculums and hiring practices.
“On their website, they’ve got books and teaching professors on how to be an anti-racist, how white supremacy still exists. There is the pride flag that is hanging on the Bible class doors. So when you’re receiving federal funding, this can’t be happening,” she emphasized. “You’ve got the head of the school that wrote his dissertation in college on implementing DEI in Southern, Christian, private schools. So, it’s very alarming that this is where this school is headed.”
It is to be seen if Chrisley or others will take definitive legal action or if the school will further acknowledge the complaints of the community.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
