That classroom atmosphere of trust is not by accident. Ide works hard to build a safe place where students can share without fear. "The kids can do a lot more in the classroom as far as expressing themselves and debate than I can, because I'm an extension of the government," Ide says. "The thing that I absolutely, 100 percent demand, is that the classroom environment is safe ... safe from kids feeling like they can't share what they would like to say."

And this appears to be just the sort of thing Face to Faith hopes to accomplish on a global scale — and why Blair's foundation pays for course materials, training and even moderators for video conferencing. "This world has different views and different opinions," Ide says, "and our ability to communicate with each other, and talk with each other, even though we have great differences, is key."