September 7, 2007

In the Closet in Academe

To the Editor:

The low number of openly gay college presidents is a disgrace ("And Now There Are 3," The Chronicle, August 10). ... However, that number is due not only to the pusillanimity of trustees, as Paul Fain's article suggests, but also to the fears of closeted gay faculty members and administrators. The terror of being exposed (and it is terror) can still infect whole institutions at every level. It is not unlikely that a significant percentage of any faculty is gay or