2006 POINT SCHOLARS

Tyler Dillard

Evelyn W. Harrison Point Alumnus

Rice University

Political Science & Healthcare Policy

Tyler was born in a small, conservative town in lower Alabama.  His grandparents adopted him at young age.  They sent him to a Christian school where homophobia and cultural ignorance were encouraged.  He graduated valedictorian of his class and received a scholarship to Samford University, a Southern-Baptist institution in Birmingham, AL.  Tyler revealed that he was gay during his college career and endured discrimination from family, friends, and even strangers.  Nevertheless, he was still elected president of his class and president of several other organizations on the conservative campus.  He advocated for the removal of university policies that discriminated against sexual minorities and successfully executed the first National Day of Silence without the help of any registered organization.  .  He is also an accomplished musician, winning several local, statewide, and national piano competitions.  Tyler, a Coca-Cola Scholar, transferred from Samford to Rice University in the fall 2006.  He will continue to use his unique talents to bring significant visibility to the LGBT community.  As an attorney and politician, he hopes to establish more funds for AIDS research, prevention, and medication.

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 others as an example.”