One issue worth considering: his rise at CofC coincided pretty neatly with the height of trans bathroom panic in the Carolinas, fueled by the controversy over North Carolina's HB2. It wasn't so much of a national story, but it was a very big deal in the region. I wouldn't be suprised if it was a factor in why the college went shopping for a trans faculty member, and in turn became a factor in granting him tenure despite the department's obvious misgivings -- the local political climate, especially in academic circles, would have made the likelihood of a scandal even greater.Do you think his initial hiring was fueled to some extent by kool-aid?










