2006 POINT SCHOLARS

Tyler Dillard

Rice University

Political Science & Policy Studies

Evelyn W. Harrison Point Scholarship

Tyler was born in a small, conservative town in lower Alabama to two teenage parents. His grandparents adopted him at a young age and sent him to a Christian school where homophobia was encouraged. The high school preached that homosexuals were perverted and forced him deep into the closet. He redeemed his self worth with extracurricular activities, impeccable grades and countless leadership positions. He graduated valedictorian of his class and received a scholarship to Samford University, a Southern-Baptist institution in Birmingham, Alabama.

Tyler revealed that he was gay during his college career. As a result, he endured rejection from his family, prejudice from friends, and harassment from other students. Nevertheless, he was still elected president of his class and president of several other organizations on the conservative campus. Through his influence in student government, he advocated for the removal of a university policy that defined homosexual acts as "sexual misconduct" and successfully executed the first National Day of Silence without help from any campus organization. He began the first annual "Womanless Beauty Pageant" at Samford, charged a fee for admission, and contributed the proceeds to local community service projects. Tyler is an accomplished musician and has won several local, statewide, and national piano competitions.

Tyler is now studying for the LL.M. in Human Rights Law at Queen's University in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

In Tyler's own words: “I want to transcend the image that ignorant societies have of LGBT individuals. A homosexual is not a vile, repulsive person that can not believe in a higher power or be successful. Being gay is not a sickness to cure, but a difference to be respected and embraced. I hope to challenge a culture by such an example.