Mission:
Our mission is to offer a safe conversational space, resources, and support for people seeking to turn ideological doubts into ideological change.
Vision:
To make the world more open-minded.
In America at this moment in time, it is incredibly difficult – and often impossible – for a person to publicly change their mind about their politics, their principles, or the beliefs they express through the way they live. And for people who are embedded in intolerant families or communities, expressing doubts or asking questions can be unthinkable, and even dangerous.
Where are the safe spaces for these individuals? Many of the communities we belong to – religious or otherwise – are inextricably intertwined with politics and values, and in our sprawling, decentralized neighborhoods, we have no public square. We cannot come together as a country when people have no one to talk to and nowhere to turn if they have doubts about the principles and beliefs espoused by everyone around them.
Open/Minded offers a helpline (phone and text) and support groups for individuals who wish to move beyond dogma and rigid ideologies. Helpline agents create a safe, non-judgmental space for conversation; ask open-ended questions to help clients explore their own beliefs; and provide supportive resources and referrals as needed.
About the Founder
Jane Dimyan Ehrenfeld is an educator, civil rights lawyer, mediator, writer, and mom. She started her career teaching elementary school in underserved American public school systems in Maryland and Massachusetts. While she was teaching in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, her friend, the author Jonathan Kozol, would often visit her classroom. He later wrote about this, and about their many conversations about education, in his book Letters to a Young Teacher.
After almost a decade in the classroom, Jane headed to law school, intent on becoming a public interest lawyer. She then went on to hold an eclectic variety of jobs, including:
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Clerk for a federal appellate judge in Washington, D.C.;
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Staff attorney at the U.S. Department of Education;
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Director of Teaching and Learning
and -
Executive Director of Center for Inspired Teaching, a DC-based nonprofit dedicated to helping teachers create authentically engaging, playful classrooms for their students;
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Policy Attorney at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); and
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Supervisory Policy Attorney at the U.S. Department of Education.
(Whew! That's a lot.)
For six years, Jane was a member of the Board of Directors of the Maya Angelou Public Charter Schools in Washington, D.C., including two years as Vice Chair and three years as Chair. She is a trained mediator; has volunteered with Negotiation Works, an organization teaching negotiation skills to marginalized adults; and has published her writing in numerous publications, including Slate, The Washington Post, Quartz, and Education Week.
And last but definitely not least, Jane resides in Silver Spring, Maryland, with her
three daughters👧👧👧 ,
one dog 🐕🦺,
two cats🐈🐈⬛,
one python🐍,
and varying numbers of fish🐠🐟🐠🐠🐟🐠.
She is also engaged to a wonderful public interest attorney. In her (minimal) spare time, Jane enjoys hiking with her family, baking, tackling word and jigsaw puzzles, and adding to her somewhat alarming collection of houseplants.