Capistrano Unified School District (CUSD) has recently made headlines for its school board, which has been increasingly infiltrated by trustees with ties to far-right political movements. In 2024, two newly elected and one re-elected board member—Lisa Davis, Lisa Zollinger, and Jennifer Admans—ran on a platform of parental notification policies, book bans, anti-CRT rhetoric, and were openly endorsed by Moms For Liberty. Their campaigns were bankrolled by political networks deeply embedded in Christian nationalism and radical conservatism, including the Council for National Policy (CNP) and its affiliates.
The public nature of their connections became evident when the three trustees participated in a panel at Calvary Chapel Orange County, with overtly religious undertones —blurring the lines between church and state. Funding for their campaigns came from Kim Bengard, a CNP member who donated $3,750 between all four conservative candidates that ran in 2024. Bengard’s nonprofit, It Takes a Family Foundation, has funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars to anti-LGBTQ+, anti-abortion, and anti-student inclusion organizations, as well as SPLC-designated hate groups such as the Family Research Council and the White Rose Resistance. This influx of dark money is steering CUSD away from inclusivity and toward a culture war-driven agenda.
Judy Bullockus: From Low-Profile Trustee to Flashpoint of Controversy
While much attention has been given to the three newly elected trustees, another board member, Judy Bullockus, has managed to escape the same level of scrutiny—until now. Originally elected unopposed in 2018, Bullockus has quietly championed extreme policies ranging from censoring books on climate change, pushing for harmful parental notification policies that target transgender children in public schools, and voting for a Hillsdale College Classical Academy charter school. Although Bullockus can often be seen around town wearing her red MAGA hat, she recently made national news for a more explicit act: using the N-word at a CUSD board meeting on March 12, 2025.
The incident occurred during a discussion over approving the book James, a novel that expands on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Rather than reading the word in context from the book, Bullockus used the n-word in a completely avoidable and jarring way, as described by representatives from Our Schools USA CAPO, a pro-public education nonprofit. The moment, described as one that “sucked the air out of the room,” has prompted a closer look at Bullockus’ history and the forces backing her.
A Pattern of Opposition to Inclusion
Bullockus’ past actions reveal a long-standing resistance to racial and LGBTQ+ inclusion efforts. In June 2020, as protests for racial justice swept the country following the murder of George Floyd, CUSD parents and students rallied for a call to action to address systematic racism while recounting personal experiences with racism in the school district. CUSD proposed a Cultural Proficiency Plan to address racist incidents, create a more welcoming school climate, and support LGBTQ+ students. When the plan was first introduced in December 2020, Lisa Davis was the sole “No” vote, while Bullockus remained publicly in support.
However, when the plan came up for final approval in May 2021, Bullockus reversed her stance, aligning with Davis to vote against it. This shift coincided with a small amount of public opposition from far-right speakers at board meetings, who labeled the initiative as “cultural Marxism” and falsely equated it with Critical Race Theory. This kind of backlash, amplified by conservative dark money networks, is part of a larger effort to weaponize race in public education and turn school boards into ideological battlegrounds.
Follow The Money
Bullockus’ campaigns have been fueled by political action committees (PACs) that operate in the shadows, funneling funds from anonymous donors. Among her backers:
– The Lincoln Club of Orange County, which donated $500 to Bullockus’ re-election in 2022. That same year, Kim Bengard of the CNP contributed $4,000 to the Lincoln Club, showcasing how funds are laundered through multiple entities.
– The Orange County Freedom Fund (OCFF), a PAC started by former GOP chair Michael Schroeder, who is part of the Republican National Lawyers Association, another group heavily connected to the CNP. OCFF has faced scrutiny from the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) for campaign finance violations, raising concerns about transparency.
– Atlas PAC, a major donor to Judy Bullockus’ 2022 campaign( found in Netfile), has also been entangled in financial scandals, including a 2012 complaint alleging it was involved in a conspiracy to obscure its funding sources. As an interesting side bar, Atlas PAC gave money to Bell, McAndrews, & Hiltchk in 2021, who is listed on the OCFF FPPC violations report as OCFF legal representation through KC Jenkins. What a tangled web!
Bullockus and TPUSA: A Direct Line to Christian Nationalism
Bullockus has openly aligned herself with Turning Point USA (TPUSA), the far-right youth organization founded by Charlie Kirk. At a CUSD high school chapter, she is noted as giving talking points on how to help campaigns and affect local politics. TPUSA, which has been accused of fostering racial discrimination and whitewashing history, is another extension of the CNP’s influence though its founder, Charlie Kirk, who is another member of the CNP. Through TPUSA Action, the group funds extremist school board candidates, while TPUSA Faith promotes Christian nationalist policies that aim to dismantle the separation of church and state in public schools.
In addition, Bullockus has publicly opposed the Anti-Defamation League’s “No Place for Hate” program, which is designed to combat bias and create safe school environments. Her rejection of this initiative, combined with her votes against inclusion policies and her ties to radical groups, paint a clear picture of an official intent on reshaping CUSD into an exclusionary institution.
The Manufactured Optics of the "James" Book Approval
In an apparent attempt to counteract public perception of their extremism, the CUSD board unexpectedly approved James, despite its explicit discussions of race and slavery—topics typically opposed by the same forces backing these trustees. Trustee Gila Jones, known for her opportunistic political shifts, used the moment to deliver a defensive speech, chastising the public for questioning the board’s integrity. The approval felt like a staged performance designed to refute accusations that the board was engaging in book banning. Jones’s stated that the public “complained about terrible trustees and [that] our board has been flipped” then angrily lectured the audience, “did you hear that tonight?” going on to say she’d “rather not keep hearing that from the audience” Yet the hypocrisy was laid bare by Bullockus’ racial slur just moments after…
The Role of CNP-Affiliated Legal Tactics in CUSD Elections
The influence of far-right think tanks doesn’t end with school board campaigns. The California Policy Center (CPC), an arm of the CNP, has been actively involved in CUSD elections. Craig Alexander, CPC’s chief legal counsel, has made a career of suing school districts over public records requests, aiming to drain funds from public education through frivolous lawsuits. Alexander, who has also worked with the Heritage Foundation, endorsed Zollinger, Davis, and Admans in the 2024 election, demonstrating yet another avenue through which right-wing forces are manipulating school boards to serve their ideological agenda. Also during a contentious school board meeting in 2023, members of the CPC were in attendance wearing matching dark blue shirts with slogans on the front. Will Swain, president of the CPC was even there to champion an agenda Item to pass a discriminatory parental notification policy.
The Bigger Picture: Public Education Under Siege
Judy Bullockus’ casual use of the N-word at a board meeting was not an isolated incident—it was a symptom of a larger effort to dismantle public education in favor of ideological indoctrination. The same forces pushing school privatization, religious indoctrination, and book bans are using school boards as a gateway to their broader political goals.
With Bullockus up for re-election in 2026, Capistrano Unified voters have a crucial opportunity to push back against this radical agenda. If there’s one lesson to take from this moment, it’s that vigilance is necessary. The dark money machine and far-right think tanks funding these candidates in non-partisan races thrives in secrecy. Exposing it is the first step toward reclaiming public education for all students, not just those who fit into an extremist political worldview.
Special thanks to David Armiak with the Center for Media and Democracy, Glendale Extremist @ourschoolscapo, @prideatthepier and parents of CUSD.
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