Turning Point USA’s High School Campaign
Turning Point USA has announced a plan to establish clubs in every high school in the country. The following is information educators and school boards might want to consider if they are asked to approve a club.
First off, what is Turning Point USA?
Turning Point USA is a religious and political organization operating under the tax code as a 501c3 organization. It was founded in 2012 by Charlie Kirk and the late businessman Bill Montgomery. It is now led by Charlie Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, after Kirk’s murder in September 2025.
Turning Point USA described itself in its 2023 tax form (the most recent available) as an “educational organization dedicated to empowering civic and cultural engagement” grounded in “American exceptionalism and American values” such as “patriotism, respect for life, liberty, family, and fiscal responsibility.”
TPUSA has several projects, including:
Turning Point Action, which is TPUSA’s sister organization operating as a 501c4 organization and which has endorsed candidates such as Reps. Lauren Boebert and Paul Gosar, and Sen. Rick Scott.
TPUSA Faith, which is dedicated to “eliminating secular totalitarianism and Wokeism from the church.”
Turning Point Education, which has as its goal “restoring God as the foundation of education.”
TPUSA Field, which promotes the establishment of chapters on college and high school campuses.
The organization’s income in 2023 was $80 million. It does not report who its contributors are, which is one reason Dark Money author Jane Mayer wrote about it in 2017. She focused on instances of racial bias within TPUSA and its electoral activities, which are forbidden under the tax rules regarding tax-exempt 501(c)3 organizations. In 2024, the Southern Poverty Law Center documented TPUSA’s embrace of Christian Nationalism, gun rights, and the idea that “the Democratic Party believes everything that God hates.”
What is Club America?
In July 2025, Turning Point USA changed the name of its high school chapters to Club America. A New Jersey organizer told a recruiting meeting that the name was changed in order to establish some distance from the tone of the parent organization. It is possible they were having trouble finding teacher advisors for the high school clubs, given the fact that students are encouraged to report to the national organization their teachers and school boards if they do or say something that the student considers “woke.” The national organization maintains a “School Board Watch List,” which is the high school equivalent of the organization’s notorious “Professor Watch Lists” that lists hundreds of professors, many of whom say they have received death threats and other harassment.
None of this is immediately apparent from Club America’s homepage, which says:
With 1,200+ high school chapters and counting, Club America is the leading youth movement for freedom-loving American values. We empower bold student leaders to promote free thinking, engage in grassroots activism, and bring their beliefs to life—both on and off campus. With support from 54 full-time Field Representatives, club leaders receive eye-catching materials, resources, and guidance to host impactful events. Start a Club America chapter and make a difference at your school!
According to the organization’s chapter handbook, at least three students are required to start a club, filling the roles of President, Vice President, and Secretary/Treasurer. They must provide their personal information to headquarters and they must start social media accounts that have the name @ClubAmerica at [name of high school]. Club officers must provide the passwords to accounts on their application, and are told that the national headquarters can take over the accounts. They are told that they will receive marketing texts and asked to affirm that they are 18 years old, with no verification required. Clubs are not permitted to bring in any speakers who are not approved by the national organization or to undertake activities without receiving approval.
There are reports that teachers are being offered $1,000 stipends if they agree to be an advisor to a Club America chapter, which might be in violation of some school district’s policies. An extremist political action committee in Missouri, Francis Howell Families, has offered students $1,000 if they start a local chapter. That is likely to be replicated elsewhere, if it hasn’t been already.
In addition, students are encouraged to apply for grants to pay for pizza, “fun activities,” and travel and attendance at national conferences. In 2023 the organization reported that it spent half a million dollars on student grants.
Should Schools Approve the Formation of a Club America Chapter?
Most school districts permit students to form what are called “non-curricular” clubs–that is, clubs that are not specifically tied to a particular high school course. If districts permit any non-curricular clubs, the assumption is that they must permit all clubs regardless of the purpose or viewpoint. So, for example, if students are able to form a chess club, then they must also be allowed to form a political or religious club. Generally speaking, if clubs are able to find a teacher willing to be an advisor, they are able to gain official recognition. Official recognition usually means that the club can make announcements on bulletin boards and over the public address systems, they can set up information and recruiting tables, and, in some districts, their teacher advisors can be paid stipends. In addition, they are able to apply for any money that is allocated for student clubs.
Congress made it very clear in the Equal Access Act that no school can discriminate against an organization because of its political or religious affiliation, and the Supreme Court upheld the EAA in Board of Education of Westside Schools v. Mergens (1990).
That said, the law–as laid out in this guidance from the Department of Education–does permit school boards to have policies that ensure the safety and well-being of their students and staff and to ensure that students–not outside organizations–direct the activities of student clubs.
Certainly the fact that a club is affiliated with a national organization should not be grounds for denial of official status. Many high school clubs have national affiliations. Future Farmers of America, Young Thespians, National Honor Club, and Key Club are examples of national organizations with high school chapters, and they provide valuable opportunities for students to connect to the wider community. The question for school boards is whether the requirements Turning Point USA has for high school chapters represent violations of school board policies designed to ensure the safety of students as well as their ability to control their clubs without outside interference.
Ashley Morel, a parent in Royal Oak, Michigan, gave testimony before her school board which argued that the requirements that students be in regular touch with Turning Point USA field organizers and that they provide the passwords to social media accounts violate the school district’s requirement that clubs be student-directed. She also asked whether the fact that students were encouraged to report teachers and school boards to “School Board Watch” might create a hostile work environment for teachers. She noted that any student who wants to join Club America can join a regional chapter unconnected to the school, so denying official school status does not amount to a denial of an opportunity for students.
Questions to ask the superintendent and general counsel:
What are the district’s policies governing school clubs?
Are the policies consistent with the Equal Education Act?
Would an outside stipend for teacher advisors violate the district’s employment policies?
Do the policies sufficiently protect students’ ability to govern their clubs without outside interference?
Do the policies sufficiently protect students from harm?
Are the district’s policies enforced equally across clubs? (For example, if there is an objection to students providing the password to their social media accounts to the national organization, is that objection enforced with all student clubs? )
Note: School board members should be aware that unequal treatment of clubs could be used as evidence of bias if a case regarding official recognition goes to court. The same is true if there are recorded or written records of personal disagreements with the political or religious stances of any club that is denied recognition.
This brief benefited from the work done by the New Jersey Public Education Coalition, a statewide coalition working against right-wing extremism. NJPEC, led by attorney Mike Gottesman, has requested that the New Jersey Attorney General clarify requirements related to student privacy, parental consent, and data security in regard to student clubs. This brief also benefited from the legal thinking of Ryan Jayne, Senior Policy Counsel at the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Democracy and Education’s January 2026 monthly national call had a fuller conversation on this topic. It was recorded and is available on the Forum, which is open to members of Democracy and Education.
This is a living document and may be changed or updated.
