About
Bring Change to Mind (BC2M) is a San Francisco-based nonprofit working to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness. The organization empowers young people to build connected, empathetic, and supportive school communities where conversations about mental health are welcome and stigma-free.
Mission
BC2M envisions a world where mental illness is met with understanding and care — never judgment. Its North Star statement: to activate and empower people to join the fight to end the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness, creating and advancing innovative approaches and partnerships to start mental health conversations, share resources, and tell stories so everyone can thrive in a stigma-free world. Its guiding principles include starting the conversation, amplifying voices, being an ally, empowering the future, supporting science, and fighting for human rights.
What they do
- High school program: peer-led BC2M Clubs where students lead conversations, reduce stigma, and build more supportive school communities, supported by trained faculty advisors and dedicated BC2M staff
- Club support: a $500 annual club grant, more than 50 educational presentations, suicide prevention resources, a proprietary digital portal, and annual student summits
- Middle school program and an alumni program
- Public service announcements (PSAs) and conversation resources such as Mental Illness 101 and the Talk Tool
- Research: BC2M surveys students and faculty advisors annually to track stigma reduction, help-seeking behavior, and school climate, and has partnered on academic research with Indiana University and UC Berkeley
History
BC2M was launched in August 2009 with its first PSA, filmed in Grand Central Station, directed by Ron Howard and featuring John Mayer's donated song Say. The organization was established by actress Glenn Close and her family; Glenn's sister Jessie was the inspiration behind its founding, and the Close family was honored at the American Giving Awards in 2012 for establishing BC2M. A university program launched in 2014 with a four-year research project at Indiana University, and the high school program launched in 2015 with a 25-school pilot in the San Francisco Bay Area accompanied by a two-year UC Berkeley research project. In 2020, the organization celebrated its tenth year, and Glenn Close and NBA player Kevin Love hosted the first national virtual BC2M high school club meeting during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Scale and impact
- BC2M Clubs operate in schools across 42 states, in urban, suburban, and rural communities
- An Equitable Opportunity Schools framework gives the most under-resourced schools priority access to funding, staff support, and programming
- 2025-2028 goals include more than doubling high school reach, expanding middle school programming, and scaling capacity through an AI-powered digital portal
Financials
Per IRS Form 990 data on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (fiscal year 2023): total revenue of $2.73 million, total functional expenses of $2.71 million, and total assets of $4.88 million. Bring Change 2 Mind is a 501(c)(3) organization, EIN 01-0974537, based in San Francisco, CA.