Parents send their children to a Christian school to learn Biblical values.
They never expected to find their kids being indoctrinated with cultural Marxism.
And what a Tennessee Christian school did to parents who complained got the government involved.
The $24,000 School That Banned Parents From Speaking Out
Lipscomb Academy is an elite Church of Christ-affiliated K-12 institution in Nashville – one of Tennessee's premier Christian schools for over a century – and parents pay $24,000 a year to send their kids there.
But last fall, the school's leadership started looking more like a leftist HR department than a Christian academy.
Head of School Brad Schultz became the center of growing parent outrage after The Federalist obtained a copy of his 153-page doctoral dissertation – a document Lipscomb officials refused to provide and wouldn't confirm they even kept on file.
The dissertation, written while Schultz earned his education doctorate from Georgia Southern University, is titled "Intentionally Diverse: A Historical Investigation of a Southern Private School's Ten-Year Diversity Initiative."
It leans heavily on the work of Paulo Freire – the Brazilian Marxist philosopher best known for injecting radical leftist ideology into education.
Parents had already been alarmed by the school's direction. In September 2025, students wore red ties to honor Charlie Kirk following his assassination – a tribute the school's upper school administrator ordered removed for a dress code violation.
The backlash was swift. More than two dozen parents and supporters protested on Lipscomb's front lawn.
The Gag Order Parents Had to Sign
Rather than address the growing unrest, Lipscomb Academy's leadership did something that should alarm every parent in America.
On February 24, 2026, the school sent parents a new code of conduct – one they were required to sign by March 5 or lose their children's enrollment spots for the following year.
The document barred parents, students, and staff from publicly "disparaging" the school or its leadership.
"Families violate confidentiality requirements if they … Publicly speculate or criticize personnel decisions or school matters," the policy states.
Lipscomb's general counsel had already threatened The Federalist with legal action for its reporting on parent complaints. The message to parents was the same: stay quiet or face consequences.
"It's being weaponized against parents," one parent told The Federalist, asking not to be identified for fear of reprisal.
The enrollment deadline was no accident. Parents who refused to sign risked scrambling for school alternatives at the busiest enrollment window of the year.
Ferguson Steps In
That's when Trump's FTC chairman moved.
In a letter to Schultz, Andrew Ferguson told the school its code of conduct violates the Consumer Review Fairness Act – a federal law protecting consumers' right to share honest opinions about businesses, including private schools.
"I encourage you to conduct a comprehensive review of your form contracts – including any Code of Conduct – to ensure that they comply with the CRFA," Ferguson wrote.
He copied Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti on the letter.
The CRFA voids contract provisions that prohibit consumers from criticizing a business or impose penalties for doing so. Courts have already applied the law to strike down similar gag schemes – a Washington State federal judge found a medical clinic violated the CRFA with pre-service agreements it required more than 10,000 patients to sign before treatment.
Lipscomb's approach hits the same legal wall.
The Pattern Every Parent Needs to Recognize
This is how the Left captures Christian institutions.
It doesn't happen overnight. A radical diversity hire here, a DEI-laced curriculum shift there – and by the time parents start asking questions, the administration has decided the parents are the problem.
Schools pulling this move count on parents to feel trapped. Blow up your child's education over a signature, or swallow it and keep quiet. Most families choose the latter.
Ferguson's letter doesn't open a formal investigation – it's a warning shot.
But it puts every institution in America on notice that Trump's Washington is watching schools that try to silence parents with federal-law-violating non-disclosure agreements.
Parents at Christian schools across the country need to read this story. A school that calls itself Christ-centered while threatening its own customers into silence isn't protecting the community. It's protecting itself.
Sources:
- M.D. Kittle, "FTC Tells 'Woke' Christian School To Rethink Speech-Freezing Code Of Conduct," The Federalist, March 13, 2026.
- M.D. Kittle, "Parents and Staff Claim Expensive Nashville Christian Prep School Has Gone 'Woke,'" The Federalist, February 26, 2026.
- "Nashville School Works With Students on Honoring Charlie Kirk After Facing Complaints From Parents," Fox News, September 29, 2025.
- "Consumer Review Fairness Act," Federal Trade Commission, ftc.gov.
