I should probably preface what I’m about to say by noting that I self-identify as a liberal Christian. Without getting too far into the theological weeds—or alienating those who are rightfully skeptical about some current Christian churches’ lack of commitment to feeding the poor, etc.—I have been a church member and/or employee for decades, off and on.
All the way back to the 5th grade, in fact, playing “Angels We Have Heard on High” on my flute and swapping out my little-kid animal ears for a white robe and tinsel halo in the church Christmas pageant. Good times.
Or maybe—not so good. I’ve dealt with the insertion of religious tunes into public school holiday programs for my entire career. It’s the evergreen issue for music teachers in December. Bottom line: Public schools need to tread lightly, when it comes to the separation of church and state, even at times when you are hearing angels on high in your local grocery store or used car lot.
I retired—for good—from my last church music director position after Easter, and have since had the pleasant experience of being asked to play in several local churches, which are always looking for free talent.
Last summer, I was surprised to play a service and see two dozen teenagers seated together. There was a junior trad-wife fashion sense for the girls, all with long, curled hair and cute summer dresses. The girls were mostly carrying Bibles; the boys, with their llama-head haircuts, were carrying phones (and scrolling on them during the sermon).
Later, I learned that they were a newly organized chapter of Youth for Christ, meeting with their leaders (an attractive, early-20s married couple), in their home for coffee and prayer before school. Several of them had been baptized by that couple in Lake Michigan, earlier that month.
The guy sitting next to me at the service whispered that he was hoping that these kids were associated with Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA, which claims over 1000 chapters in high schools across the country: ‘Turning Point USA is also getting an assist from Republican leaders. The U.S. Department of Education announced it was partnering with the organization, along with dozens of other conservative groups, to launch a coalition to produce educational programming for schools and universities in advance of America’s 250th birthday next year.’
Eek.
I can’t tell you, precisely, what made me most uneasy about seeing perhaps 25 teenagers attending a conservative church en masse. None of the small, rural churches in this county have dozens of HS-aged members, for starters—so their organizational point was obviously somewhere other than an actual church. And the occasional teenager who showed up at the church where I worked never came dressed like a candidate on Bama Rush or looking like a Department of Labor poster boy.
It turns out that the Youth for Christ leaders are salaried, and were posted here to start a chapter, a task they accomplished by volunteering at a local school district. They got some help from a friendly uncle (real estate here is sky-high), and found a place downtown to meet, then began recruiting the kids they met while volunteering as tutors and cafeteria supervisors.
And, miracle of miracles, parents in this conservative community didn’t like it. There were 78 non-consent forms, representing 109 minor children, filed with the Youth for Christ leaders and their organization, saying, essentially: Hands off our kids. If we want them to have religious experiences, we’re in charge of that.
It’s a small school—109 minor children represent a third of the school population. YFC is undeterred, planning to establish a ‘teen hangout’ in the tiny resort downtown, courtesy of Generous Uncle. And downtown merchants, perennially cramped for space, parking and business have turned this into a zoning issue. They might actually win—as I noted, this is a conservative, business-friendly town.
But I want to return to the Christianity—if that’s the right word—inherent in recruiting members for your religious club from a public school setting. When I think about all the angst about not referencing equity, inclusion or diversity in school curricula, and all the book-banning Moms 4 Censorship types showing up at school board meetings, shouldn’t there have been outrage over paid recruiters “volunteering” and proselytizing during lunch?
Not long after Charlie Kirk was killed, CA Governor Gavin Newsome remarked on his goal of organizing young men as effectively as the TPUSA model does. He asked why left-leaning young men have not collectively fought the ‘epidemic of loneliness’ with liberal activism. I don’t have an answer for that, but it’s a good question.
In the season where Jesus sneaks into the daily life of families and communities—Joy to the World!—I am in favor of parents’ careful attention to who’s recruiting their kids.
Teacher in a strange land 
I read about that on the Ticker this morning and it turned my stomach. Wrong on every level.
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I’m happy the Ticker and Glen Arbor Sun are covering it. The meeting yesterday was postponed as over 100 people showed up.
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When I was in high school (1960’s) there was a Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) club at my school. They were disciples of Goldwater conservatism at a time when others at our school were organizing and attending teach-ins on voting rights, the war in Viet Nam, women’s rights, etc. Looking back, YAF seems a bit quaint compared to modern iterations of militant youth conservatism.
Fast forward to my younger daughter’s high school diversity assembly–a chance to highlight the many club activities at her very large high school. One of the clubs presenting was the Gay-Straight Alliance, which my daughter attended. The Youth for Christ group sued because they were not able to represent their perspective–that being gay was a sin. (It was a big deal, and they won the lawsuit). My take on this is/was that “some of us are more equal than others” (Animal Farm).
As a teacher of students with disabilities, and an advocate for students who are disproportionately excluded from school, I am wary of the kinds of clubs that seem to be created to keep others out.
However, not wishing to jump to conclusions about motives, I would welcome further discussion about the role of clubs in schools. Especially as the boundaries of a free and public education seem to be further transgressed by the introduction of politics and religion in school social clubs.
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When I was in high school (1960’s) there was a Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) club at my school. They were disciples of Goldwater conservatism at a time when others at our school were organizing and attending teach-ins on voting rights, the war in Viet Nam, women’s rights, etc. Looking back, YAF seems a bit quaint compared to modern iterations of militant youth conservatism.
Fast forward to my younger daughter’s high school diversity assembly–a chance to highlight the many club activities at her very large high school. One of the clubs presenting was the Gay-Straight Alliance, which my daughter attended. The Youth for Christ group sued because they were not able to represent their perspective–that being gay was a sin. (It was a big deal, and they won the lawsuit). My take on this is/was that “some of us are more equal than others” (Animal Farm).
As a teacher of students with disabilities, and an advocate for students who are disproportionately excluded from school, I am wary of the kinds of clubs that seem to be created to keep others out.
However, not wishing to jump to conclusions about motives, I would welcome further discussion about the role of clubs in schools. Especially as the boundaries of a free and public education seem to be further transgressed by the introduction of politics and religion in school social clubs.
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Hartland used to offer space to small groups of students who wanted to do private bible study with one of the teachers serving as advisor. They met for a few years, but were ultimately informed they had to meet elsewhere when they sponsored a “Meet at the Flagpole” event, before school, of kids who wanted to promo Christianity.
On the other hand, I took my MS band to the “Fantasy of Lights” parade in Howell for many years. After I left, the teacher who took my place was Jewish and refused to do the parade, because it had a Christmas theme (not overtly–is Christmas now secular?). She quit after a year; community was enraged that kids didn’t march in local parade.
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I was once invited to a “Meet me at the flagpole” event, but I thought going out there, chanting in Latin, and drawing pentagrams with sidewalk chalk might not be my best career move.
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Is the statistic, 80% of private school parents choose religious schools correct?
Have public school defenders largely chosen to remain silent about the threat posed by politicians advancing right wing religious sects through initiation and passage of school choice legislation? In exceedingly rare reporting about politicized religion’s wins, ProPublica researched Mich.’s neighboring state, “On a mission from God: inside the movement to redirect billions of taxpayer dollars to religious schools.” The Bradley Foundation funded a center at Marquette University to honor one of the most prominent originators of the change in public policy to fund private schools with tax dollars. Public school defenders could review the success of Prof. Nicole Stelle Garnett (friend of a SCOTUS jurist) in advancing religious charter schools.
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Nov. 13, 2025, Florida’s Dept. of Education was the first state to adopt the Heritage Foundation’s Phoenix Declaration- calls for religion.
The Heritage Foundation’s president founded a school of a major religious sect and he was president of a college of the sect.
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Clearly, YFC has looked for schools where it might be possible to plant one of these groups here. I expect this will not be settled by mere parent resistance. The YFC forces have money and lawyers here.
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It may be of value to compare the impact of the state by state passage of the Phoenix Declaration, to the advance of YFC.
The Heritage Foundation (and, Leonard Leo) have resources that likely surpass YFC’s.
I expect GOP states like Ohio which are led by members of the same religious sect to which Kevin Roberts belongs, to follow Gov. DeSantis’ Dept. of Ed. in adoption of the Phoenix Declaration. Until 8th grade, DeSantis attended the schools of the same sect.
Speaking of law firms, the one that Daniel Suhr is associated with is having GOP political wins relative to media (the Guardian reporting). Suhr and Trump appointee, Brendan Carr, have been quite successful. I’m curious if it’s the same lawyer named Daniel Suhr who posted in 2008-2009, his opinion for the deans of a religious sect’s colleges, “Lessons for law school deans regarding…in political life.”
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