And what a Pride month I’ve had so far! I started off in Mohave County for their annual Pride event, and took a much needed road trip in solitude. My friend created an incredible playlist for me, and I wondered at the majesty of the Redwood Forest and the Oregon Coast.
Last week, I shared an update about the goings-on of Peoria Unified School District (PUSD). A special meeting was requested by members of the governing board asking for the board to consider voting for new leadership. Continue reading →
Well, well, well, Secular FAM! I’m not usually one to celebrate on Cinco de Mayo since it’s a very manufactured excuse for (mostly white) people to drink tequila, but this Tuesday, May 5th, 2026, I may just need to celebrate with a giant margarita! Why, you ask?
There is a special meeting happening in Peoria (PUSD) tonight that will decide if PUSD governing board President Heather Rooks will lose her leadership role that she just secured a few short months ago.
Secular AZ has responded to multiple messages from concerned members of the Vail, Arizona community about Vail Unified School District’s plans to build an LDS/Mormon/Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints seminary on the Cienega High School Campus.
Students would be allowed to to attend religious classes and receive elective credits.
“The school is not where religion is supposed to be taught,” said Dianne Post, the legal director for Secular AZ, a non-profit organization that works to protect the constitutional separation of church and state.
“You may not have a public school favoring a particular religion,” Post said, citing the reasons as to why her organization has taken action against the Vail Unified School District.
Happy Spring, Secular Fam! It’s been a minute, since springtime is my busiest time of the year, but that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a BUNCH of stuff going on. Here in Arizona and across the country, we’ve all been dealing with the never-ending onslaught of chaos, driven by evangelical extremists in elected positions of power.
Sometimes when things are really dark, the universe provides a bright light to remind us of our shared humanity. At a time when the leaders in our nation at every level of government seem to relish in the dehumanization of the most marginalized groups in society, glimmers of hope are important.
Brace yourselves, Secular Fam. We’re about to wade into the deep brown shitwater that has become the standard for PUSD governing board meetings.
Once again, this meeting went on for several many hours (7:07:19 to be exact), and consisted of both a study session and the regular business meeting of the district. Since the meeting was so long, I’m going to do my best to cover the most important parts, and this is either going to break records for my longest Substack or I may just channel my inner King Solomon and split this baby in two!
Oy vey, Secular Fam, I’m tired! It may be the fact that I only got about five hours of sleep last night, or it may be because of [gestures broadly] all of this…
How are you doing? Lately I’ve realized that I’m falling into two states of being: lean and lift. When I’m in “lean mode” it means I need to lean on others. Like, I’m barely surviving and I need to lean on my friends and loved ones. When I’m in “lift mode” it means that I’m doing OK and I can lift others up who may be experiencing “lean mode” in their own lives.
Holy moly, it’s only Thursday, and I’m dealing with a BAD case of whiplash.
My whiplash stems from multiple channels. First, the daily barrage of mind-bogglingly cruel executive orders, statements, and policies coming from the Broligarchy has my head swiveling like someone watching the Australian Open.
Then, in the last two weeks, I tracked both the Peoria (PUSD) meeting that lasted over eight hours, and the Deer Valley (DVUSD) meeting that lasted fourteen minutes. Spoiler alert: they both showed the incompetence of their “leaders.”
In 2023, Secular AZ spoke up against the reading of religious scripture at Peoria Unified School District board meetings by board member Rooks, who filed a lawsuit against the district. This week, the court ruled against Rooks.
Brace yourselves, Secular Fam. This Substack update of the Peoria (PUSD) school board meeting that took place on 1.23.2025 may very well be the dumbest and most dangerous meeting I’ve ever covered. Get your coping mechanisms out, because this is going to be grueling.
