A theater professor in Tennessee is back on the job – and $500,000 richer – after being fired over a social media post in the wake of conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
Darren Michael, an associate professor of acting and directing at Austin Peay State University, was reinstated last month and the school will pay him half-a-million dollars as part of a settlement agreement related to his termination, local outlet WKRN News 2 reported on Tuesday.
The public university will also reimburse Michael for “therapeutic counseling services.”
“APSU agrees to issue a statement acknowledging regret for not following the tenure termination process in connection with the Dispute,” the agreement, obtained by WKRN News 2, reads in part.
“The statement will be distributed via email through APSU’s reasonable communication channels to faculty, staff, and students,” it continues.
Michael was fired on Sept. 12 – two days after Kirk was shot and killed by a sniper at Utah Valley University – for posting “insensitive” content on social media related to the Turning Point USA founder.
In one Facebook post – which caught the attention of Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) – Michael shared an article titled, “Charlie Kirk says gun deaths are ‘unfortunately’ worth it to keep 2nd Amendment.”
The professor did not add any additional caption to the post.
Blackburn shared a screenshot of Michael’s Facebook on X, with the caption: “What do you say, Austin Peay?”
The senator’s post included a photograph of Michael and his resume.
Austin Peay State University released a statement later that day indicating that Michael had been fired for social media comments that were “insensitive, disrespectful and interpreted by many as propagating justification for unlawful death,” according to the Tennessean.
“Such actions do not align with Austin Peay’s commitment to mutual respect and human dignity,” APSU President Mike Licari said in the statement. “The university deems these actions unacceptable and has terminated the faculty member.”
