The Mothers Institute Mission Statement:

The Mothers Institute is a non-profit educational and networking organization which promotes and supports the principles of Radical Responsible Mothering. As such, the Institute encourages the fostering of a child's sense of individual freedom and personal responsibility as well as the teaching and implementation of such time honored traditions as reason, logic, creativity, civility, discourse, debate and dissent.

The Mothers Institute Promotes and Supports:

  1. Stay-at-home mothering
  2. Homeschooling/unschooling - and the recognition of value in working with educational options and settings
  3. Community and civic awareness
  4. An effective networking system for mothers and families of all ages and stages

“Offering children the opportunity to enjoy their childhood in an open-minded, creative, and loving home environment is not only beneficial to the child, but to the family and society as a whole.”
~ Jan Stover, Founder and Director of The Mothers Institute


JAN STOVER is Founder and Director of The Mothers Institute and a former stay-at-home, homeschooling mom.

Her natural appreciation for children and early childhood education influenced Jan’s work and volunteer experience. Over the years, she has taught two through five year olds in a variety of preschool settings as well as volunteering her time and talents to organizations assisting children of all ages.

Prior to becoming a stay-at-home mom, Jan owned and operated a natural food store with her husband. After her stay-at-home years, she began writing and editing for local news magazines and political publications as well as co-owning a publication for senior citizens with her mother.

Jan resides in Illinois with her husband. Their grown children are currently pursuing careers in real estate development and engineering.

SHARON BREWER is a mother of one grown daughter. Her interest in helping young mothers learn the basic skills of mothering and her efforts in promoting creative thinking and independence have brought her to The Mothers Institute first as a member and now taking a place on the Advisory Board.

She is looking forward to homeschooling her grandson in the near future.

Sharon resides in Oregon with her partner.

LORI LORANGER is an advocate of self-education, initially homeschooling her 2 older daughters, now both in college, and currently facilitating the self education of her younger daughter and son. All four children were born at home. Together, Lori and her husband designed and built the home they share with their family.

Active in the community, she hosts a Non-Violent Communication practice group and serves on the board of a local Food Co-op. She enjoys foraging for roots and berries and eating local weeds.

Lori is a native of Washington State where she resides with her husband and children

JESSICA PERRY is a stay-at-home, home schooling mom and serves as the group organizer for her local homeschooling group.

Jessica has worn a variety of hats in her professional life which includes writing, editing as well as owning a salon business. Her family values their personal freedom and works hard to stay as self sufficient as possible.

Jessica lives in Colorado with her husband and four children.


LESLIE WHITNEY is a stay-at-home, home schooling mom of two boys. She and her family are working toward self sufficiency on their homestead while building their extended community.

Leslie enjoys sharing her love for and knowledge of domestic arts and gardening with others.

Leslie resides in Michigan with her husband, sons, pets and chickens.




Mothers Institute Sister Sites

Mothers Institute Moms Group at CafeMom (formerly Mothers for Liberty National) has 135+ members and offers ongoing conversations for out-of-the-box thinking moms and opportunities for online chats with moms across the country.

Mothers Institute Moms Social Networking Site has approximately 50 members. This site is home to MI’s former Mothers for Liberty Meetup Group efforts, with groups created for moms in CO, IL, MI, NC, OH, OR, TX, and WA. For those moms whose states are not yet organized, the site also includes Regional Groups for members to join. Those not wanting to become involved with a particular group within the site are encouraged to join and participate in the many ongoing Discussion Forums available to members as well as scheduled online chats.

The Mothers Institute Fan page on facebook has 125+ fans and offers another way to show interest in and support for MI’s mission and message.

The Mothers Institute Group on facebook has over 200 members and is another venue for keeping informed about The Mothers Institute’s online and in real life activities and events.

Mothers for Liberty Yahoo Group recently celebrated its 5th year online. In 2010, the group is taking a walk down memory lane by reviewing interesting posts from its founding year of 2005. The group averages 100 members.

Libertarian Moms Group at CafeMom is celebrating its 3rd year online The group has approximately 900 members and shares a wealth of knowledge and experiences via its membership regarding the libertarian philosophy of mothering