Christian school accused of shutting down students honoring Charlie Kirk

A Christian school in Tennessee is under fire after squashing a student tribute to slain conservative Charlie Kirk.

A group of students at Lipscomb Academy, a Christian school in Nashville, planned to wear suit jackets and red ties on the day after the shocking assassination of the Turning Point USA co-founder. But, despite conflicting reports from the school and other spokespersons, parents told The Tennessee Star that the students “were tracked down by faculty and forced to remove their formal attire.”

Andrew Kolvet, executive producer for The Charlie Kirk Show, posted about the incident on X, saying he had been ” inundated with texts and calls from parents and students connected to this supposedly Christian high school in Nashville.”

“On the day after Charlie’s assassination, a group of young men decided to honor his legacy by wearing ties and sports coats. The leadership of the school decided that instead of praising their gesture, to round them up, crush their spirits, and force them all to remove the ties and jackets they were wearing in his honor. Why? They said it was a violation of dress code,” Kolvet wrote.

What on earth is going on at Lipscomb Academy in Nashville?! I have been inundated with texts and calls from parents and students connected to this supposedly Christian high school in Nashville (which is run by Lipscomb University).

On the day after Charlie’s assassination, a… https://t.co/wRdboGWJxU pic.twitter.com/YtPXvKqaI6

— Andrew Kolvet (@AndrewKolvet) September 28, 2025

“I’m told the faculty has been veering far left for years. They have even refused to utter Charlie’s name since his murder, even while so many of the school’s students are hurting and reeling in the aftermath,” Kolvet added. “Shame on them.”

“Feel free to RESPECTFULLY let the school leadership know that punishing kids for honoring Charlie is wrong, and not in keeping with Lipscomb’s Christian heritage,” he wrote, providing contact information for school officials.

A Lipscomb Academy spokesman explained events to The Tennessee Star, claiming students were going to be allowed to wear the attire on a later date.

“While the students gained approval and planned to wear a red tie, they ultimately chose to collaborate with administration to plan a future chapel focused on being impactful in their faith,” the spokesman told the outlet.

But parents had a different take on what transpired, with one telling The Star that the head of the high school, Jesse Savage, “targeted” the students.

“Mr. Savage hunted down the boys that day, made them take off their red ties and suits, and when they explained that they were paying respects to Charlie Kirk, he said, ‘You are out of dress code,’” she said. “The student body feels attacked by Mr. Savage because he intentionally disrespected them and the ministry of Charlie Kirk.”

Another parent said he “couldn’t believe this was happening at a Christian school, literally the day after Charlie was murdered.”

“Principal Savage even sent an email to the faculty telling them to send any kid wearing a red tie to his office,” the father told the outlet. “He targeted them specifically.”

“The parent body is calling on Dr. [Candice] McQueen, the head of Lipscomb University and Academy, to immediately terminate Mr Savage from this institution,” the father added, noting that “Our kids are still reeling from this experience.”

In an update, the school decided to create a new “director of academics” position to be filled by Savage.

The school created a new position, which deals “directly with faculty,” for the person who originally made the decision https://t.co/b9Nu2gQcxX

— Tom Pappert (@realTomPappert) September 28, 2025

The school’s actions in the wake of Kirk’s murder sparked debate on social media, where many condemned the way things were handled.

Those young men showed more backbone than the entire faculty combined.

— Jared Reid (@JaredReidYT) September 28, 2025

I get it, but if you allow dress code (LA has a uniform reqt) violations for one issue, you would have to allow for other issues. The lack of addressing the Charlie’s assassination is a bigger problem.

— Todd Lilly (@toddlilly) September 28, 2025

I haven’t met them, but I love these young men!

— PLSBH (@chrisconserv) September 28, 2025

Also note that Lipscomb is the sister University to Pepperdine in Malibu. They’re both operated by the Church of Christ. Pepperdine was brought back from the brink recently but sounds like Lipscomb was taken over by woke radicals while no one was paying attention.

— Tenn Bear (@akaBarni) September 28, 2025

Sickening. Very disappointed

— Mary Robinson (@rob62447493) September 29, 2025

Obviously Lipscomb Academy – judging by its despicable actions against these young men – has only given lip service to having Christian values.

— GB Bari (@TheBigGuy49) September 28, 2025

Most Christian schools have strict dress code requirements (my son’s did) and any deviation is announced by the administration.
Here is the dress code for Lipscomb Academy.
Perhaps the administration can approve a Charlie Kirk Day dress. pic.twitter.com/LgY34En10M

— Sandy (@RightGlockMom) September 25, 2025

Senior Staff Writer
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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