Former Elon professor of accounting Ray Knight filed a federal lawsuit complaint against Elon University on Feb. 6, 2026.
Former Elon professor of accounting Ray Knight has filed a federal lawsuit against Elon University, alleging the university retaliated against him for whistleblowing, wrongfully denied him tenure, wrongfully terminated his employment and violated both federal whistleblower protections and North Carolina public policy.
Knight, who taught in the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business starting in 2017, alleges he discovered in 2021 that a faculty colleague had improperly provided students with answers to Internal Revenue Service Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) certification exams — required for participation in the federally sponsored tax-preparation program. Knight says in the lawsuit that he reported the misconduct to his department chair, dean and the university’s human resources office.
According to the lawsuit, Knight was removed from his role as VITA program director a week after making his initial report and was later denied tenure despite receiving a favorable recommendation from his department evaluator. The suit also claims university officials failed to investigate or self-report the alleged misconduct to the IRS or the business school accreditor, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business…