How to make more Charlie Kirks: Inside TPUSA's gap-year alternative to the 'college scam'
For decades, aspiring young Americans have followed a predictable formula: high school, college, debt. But at the Turning Point USA prep year program, 18-year-old students are encouraged to pause, learn...
By Fox News · Fox News
For decades, aspiring young Americans have followed a predictable formula: high school, college, debt. But at the Turning Point USA prep year program, 18-year-old students are encouraged to pause, learn how to think, and discover their true purpose before committing to that considerable investment. Dr. David Arnott, dean of the program, reflects on why the biggest problem in America isn't merely economics: it's character and wisdom. The mission is bold: use a year of classical, liberal arts education to mold the next generation of America's conservative leaders. CHARLIE KIRK'S 10 MOST POWERFUL MOMENTS FROM COLLEGE CAMPUSES TO THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION Dr. Arnott sat down with Fox News at FreedomFest in Las Vegas to discuss how TPUSA's prep year is fulfilling Charlie Kirk's educational vision for America's youth: "It is an ‘education about economics’ problem. I started my lecture here yesterday at FreedomFest asking the question, ‘why do we keep falling for socialism?’ And I tried to answer that question. And that's what I've been studying over the last 12 years as a Christian economist. "How do we distribute goods in a fallen world? And so, I was asked by the people at Turning Point USA to be their dean of the prep year program in Fort Worth. Charlie Kirk's first book in 2022 was called ‘The College Scam.’ In 2026, he implemented his idea for education. "On Sept. 2, the first class met in Fort Worth. He was assassinated eight days later on Sept. 10. What we're trying to do at prep year is to implement Charlie Kirk 's idea for education." Yet, Dr. Arnott emphasizes that the purpose of prep year is not to dissuade young people from pursuing a college education, but to ensure that they are prepared to do so if they make that choice. "We're having this interview at FreedomFest. So I think people should have the freedom… they should have the freedom to go to college. They should have the freedom to go into the trades. The problem is the government puts their th…