Students at Seattle Pacific University protested the school’s LBGTQ policies by refusing to shake hands with the interim president during commencement on Monday, handing him a gay pride flag instead.
The protest was in response to SPU, a Christian institution affiliated with the Free Methodist Church, upholding a ban on hiring people in same-sex relationships.
“While this decision brings complex and heart-felt reactions, the board made a decision that it believed was most in line with the university’s mission and Statement of Faith and chose to have SPU remain in communion with its founding denomination, the Free Methodist Church USA, as a core part of its historical identity as a Christian university,” SPU Board Chairman Cedric David said in a statement.