Classrooms vs. extracurriculars: GOP leaders draw a line on political neutrality in schools

By: Ryan Suppe

Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on April 16, 2026

BOISE, Idaho — Spokespeople for Gov. Brad Little and state superintendent Debbie Critchfield say there’s a difference between promoting political ideologies in the classroom and promoting “extracurricular” and “student-led” political activities outside the classroom.

But you might have to squint to see where the line is drawn.

Little and Critchfield’s offices defended the Republicans — both running for reelection this year — after they caught flak for promoting “Club America,” Turning Point USA’s campaign to equip and educate conservative activists in high schools.

Last week, Little signed a proclamation encouraging Idaho students to form Club America chapters at their schools. Republican governors in Arkansas and South Carolina recently signed similar proclamations. Critchfield also spoke in support of the program, and Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke attended the event at the governor’s office.

Leaders of another youth organization, Babe Vote, picked up on the irony. Idaho Republicans for years have rooted out so-called “woke” and “leftist” influences from public schools, colleges and universities — critical race theory, DEI, gender ideologies, etc. — under the guise of keeping classrooms politically neutral. Now, the governor and the state’s top education leader are encouraging students to join an overtly ideological group. 

“The hypocrisy of this partnership is staggering,” said Babe Vote’s statement condemning the proclamation. “…This move by the governor and superintendent proves that their concern isn’t about removing politics from schools — it’s about ensuring only their politics are allowed.”

Last year, Little signed into law House Bill 41. The law prohibits public school teachers from hanging classroom flags and banners that represent “political ideologies” in order to “maintain a neutral and inclusive environment for all students.” Critchfield’s Idaho Department of Education is responsible for enforcing the law. 

Teachers, for instance, are not allowed to hang the “Everyone is Welcome Here” poster that spurred debates on classroom politics after West Ada School District administrators ordered former teacher Sara Inama to take it down. The poster’s “rainbow colors and progressive symbols” made its “political purpose unmistakable,” according to Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador.

Whether a poster representing inclusion has a “political purpose” is debatable. But there’s no mistaking where Turning Point USA (TPUSA) stands.

What is TPUSA?

The late activist Charlie Kirk founded TPUSA in 2012 to counter liberal influences on college campuses. The group in 2016 launched a “watchlist” of professors who “advance leftist propaganda.” It later published a similar database for public school trustees. 

Today, TPUSA is an influential political organizer in the conservative movement, hosting annual conferences with high-profile Republicans. In 2024, the nonprofit raised $85 million, according to ProPublica.

Club America, which launched last year, extended the group’s campus efforts to high schools, offering student leaders a framework, resources and incentives for activism. Before Kirk was killed by a gunman at Utah Valley University last year, he hoped to establish Club America chapters at 25,000 high schools across the country, said TPUSA chief field officer Andrew Sypher, who spoke at last week’s Statehouse event. 

“(Kirk) was a man with a vision, a man that believed one day we could have a presence in not only every high school and college in America, but that we could take over the American culture,” Sypher said. “We could influence American culture to show that conservatism is not just a left-right thing, but it is an American ideology, one that will prevail nationwide.”

Club America chapters already exist in 15% of Idaho high schools, Sypher said. A “chapter constitution” says the mission of clubs is to “educate students on the importance of freedom, free markets, and limited government — while building a strong network of trailblazers ready to lead in their schools and communities.”

Aiden Shingler, a Boise high schooler and Club America member, thanked the governor for his “willingness to stand with students like me.” Shingler said his club has faced protests and intimidation from fellow students and discouragement and delays from school administrators.

“When activism is encouraged in one direction but discouraged in another, it certainly sets a tone,” Shingler said at last week’s event. “…This selectivity is not neutrality, and selectivity in education does not create informed students.”

Little, Critchfield offices defend proclamation

Little and Critchfield didn’t mention TPUSA’s politics while discussing the governor’s proclamation at last week’s event. They framed it as supporting free speech and civic engagement — and this is mostly what the proclamation itself covers.

But only one student organization was mentioned. “I encourage any student who is interested in leading or joining a Club America or Turning Point USA chapter to do so,” the proclamation says.

So where’s the line on political neutrality in schools?

Joan Vargas, Little’s press secretary, drew it here:

“Encouraging students to participate in extracurricular activities on their own time is fundamentally different from promoting political viewpoints in the classroom,” Vargas said by email. “Gov. Little’s proclamation underscores the importance of ensuring students can exercise their First Amendment rights in a safe and respectful environment, and he supports students’ ability to join clubs that reflect their individual interests and beliefs.”

A spokeswoman for Critchfield made a similar contrast. Club America is a “student-led extracurricular … similar to others on campuses, including those that might be described as ‘liberal activism,’ such as Gay-Straight Alliance, Babe Vote, and BLM (Black Lives Matter),” Andrea Dearden, chief communications officer for the Idaho Department of Education, said by email.

“The line is drawn when one viewpoint is promoted over others or to the exclusion of others,” she said.

Dearden also distanced Critchfield from the classroom flag and banner restrictions, noting that IDE “has not been involved in policymaking” on the issue.

Asked whether teachers and administrators should also encourage students to join Club America, Dearden said: “We encourage all students to lead and participate in activities and organizations that matter to them, and we see that happening in many forms across the state. As long as clubs operate within state and federal guidelines, districts and charter schools may host them regardless of focus or affiliation.”

National network offers resources, incentives to conservative students

Ultimately, Club America is a volunteer organization, and students can choose whether it’s right for them. The club’s resources clearly appeal to students interested in conservative politics.

Club America’s website includes a library of videos, presentations, games and activities organized into Gen Z-coded “activism themes” covering topics like “taxes are shady,” “socialism kinda sus” and “big gov scares.” Club members can also order “activism kits,” which include posters and stickers with messages like “strengthen America’s borders,” “America First” and “protect our kids, arm our schools.”

An online handbook lays out the ground rules for maintaining an active chapter: Each club must have a student leadership team, sign an agreement with TPUSA and organize at least one “activism initiative” per semester while communicating with a Club America field representative “on a regular basis.” 

The handbook prohibits chapters from endorsing political candidates or aiding in political campaigns. Chapters must obtain approval from Club America headquarters before hosting a speaker on campus, according to the handbook.

TPUSA also offers incentives to student activists who complete “noteworthy activism,” according to the group’s website. “Patriot rewards” include free swag along with “VIP experiences” at TPUSA’s national conferences.

While Club America may be an “innocuous” student group, it also draws students into TPUSA’s broader political organization, said Liz Yates, program director at Western States Center, a nonprofit based in Portland, Oregon, that researches “anti-democracy actors.”

Roughly one-third of the 31,000 attendees at TPUSA’s AmericaFest convention last year were students, Religion News Service reported. Speakers at the event included mainstream Republicans like Vice President J.D. Vance and fringe figures in the conservative movement, like Christian nationalist theologian and pastor Doug Wilson of Idaho.

Among other controversial takes on politics, Wilson has advocated against women’s suffrage, arguing that the 19th amendment granting women the right to vote was part of a “war on the family.” 

“This is the kind of person that you are exposed to through the TPUSA network,” Yates said. “Clubs at schools are one thing. This is a pipeline into a much bigger ecosphere that I think many, many parents would have a lot of concerns about.”