High school and college students have faced harassment from teachers and peers. For many young conservative teens, the pressure to abandon their beliefs comes not only from student bullies but also from adults.
Ella Smith, 16, is a homeschooled student in southern Nevada who is enrolled in her local high school choir as an elective. She works part-time as a door knocker for Commit 100, a joint program coordinated by conservative nonprofit groups Turning Point Action and Citizens Alliance. Her job involves finding 100 registered Republicans unlikely to vote outside presidential elections and helping them plan to vote.
Can conservative students participate openly in their school communities without risking their reputations or physical safety?
Since the assassination of Charlie Kirk last September, hostility from students and teachers with differing viewpoints has escalated.
In mid-September, Ella was knocking on doors in Boulder City, Nevada, with her grandmother. The next day, as she walked through hallways to choir, a school employee asked her to step into the front office and confronted her about her after-school activities. By the end of the conversation, she was left in tears.
According to family reports, the school employee claimed she spoke on behalf of the vice principal. The employee alleged Ella had gone around town telling people how to vote while claiming to represent the school. She also stated that anonymous Ring camera footage of Ella door-knocking had been received and reviewed by the school.
The employee continued pressing these allegations in front of faculty and students nearby, turning the confrontation into public embarrassment. Ella described it as “condescending and intimidating.” Other students and staff remained within earshot throughout the interaction.
Ella’s mother later contacted the vice principal’s office directly. Days later, the vice principal stated she had reviewed the footage, found no wrongdoing by Ella, and confirmed the staff member who confronted her acted inappropriately—leading to an apology.
However, a simple “sorry” is only the beginning of accountability. What corrective actions were taken? Why did an employee without disciplinary authority confidently accuse or discipline a student? What assurances do Ella and other conservative students have this won’t recur?
Ella’s family believes she was treated this way due to her conservative work. While that motive has not been independently established, no one needs to determine motive to recognize how serious her account is—especially given the school’s admission of misconduct.
These incidents are not isolated. Around the same time, a Turning Point-sponsored Club America chapter secretary at Veterans Tribute Career and Technical Academy reported repeated online and in-person harassment from students over the club’s conservative beliefs.
Last September, Clark County School District Superintendent Jhone Ebert announced an unspecified number of teachers were removed after social media posts mocked and celebrated Charlie Kirk’s assassination. The district did not disclose which teachers were affected.
Similar patterns emerged elsewhere: last month, University of Utah investigators dropped a doxxing case against two College Republicans after they shared photos of a liberal student with a cake reading “Happy Kirkiversary.” By then, the damage was done.
Over the past decade, censorship and intimidation have escalated on high school and college campuses nationwide. Ella has continued knocking on doors with her grandmother daily since the incident. Club America chapters persist across the country by the hundreds—especially following Charlie Kirk’s death.
