The Exit Interview: A Podcast for Black Educators

Kelly Mitchell's journey through education is a crash course in recognizing when systems are working exactly as designed...not for us. From stumbling into teaching via Craigslist after the 2009 recession, to middle school math teacher, to high school dean managing 350 students, to state workforce development, Kelly kept asking, "Who can fix this?" only to realize the system kept saying, "Not us."Kelly's revelation: education's recruitment problem isn't about signing bonuses, it's asking Black people to return to systems that actively harmed them their entire childhood. The retention problem? Leaders who laugh off racism when test scores are good, colleagues who outsource racial incidents to the "Black representative," and the invisible tax of carrying everyone else's learning curve.Now running Inclusive Design Group and pursuing her PhD, Kelly's done the full bingo card: classroom, admin, state, nonprofit. Her conclusion? The answer was never in climbing higher within broken systems; it's in collective power, teaching local Black histories, and helping our people understand the systems of oppression to reclaim what's ours.

Kai Hamer's journey from aspiring rapper to special education teacher to parent engagement director is a love letter to the Bronx. Starting in shelters and after-school programs, she spent 10+ years teaching in her own neighborhood, collecting kids from behind soda machines, visiting grandmothers who couldn't leave home, and fighting for students whose gifts didn't show up on standardized tests. But when colleagues went to the principal instead of coming to her about her social media post on police brutality, she realized some teachers couldn't truly love the Black children they taught. She left the classroom to train educators in what she never got: real support for building authentic relationships with families. Her mission now? Help teachers get free, because you can't pour into kids when your own cup is dry.

This conversation is a testament to how classroom teaching can birth movements that extend far beyond what we could ever imagine.In this episode, Dr. Asia sits down with Latoya Turner, M.A., a Detroit-born educator, author, and filmmaker who spent 13 years in the classroom before pivoting to create Brown Hands Literacy, a nonprofit dedicated to educating children about HBCUs through books, films, and community events.LaToya shares her journey from a high school cadet teaching program to teaching across Detroit, Maryland, and Cincinnati, where she discovered her passion for literacy and began writing children's books during lunch breaks and planning periods. She opens up about the pull of family that moved her from city to city, the birth of her son August (now a published author himself), and how she coached 90 Black men ages 18-24 through the Leading Men Fellowship program, planting seeds of literacy that will impact generations.From turning her book "Brown Hands, Black Schools: HBCUs" into an animated film featured at the Essence Film Festival, to being inducted into Central State University's Alumni Achievement Hall of Fame, LaToya embodies the Detroit hustle culture while centering community care. She discusses the challenges of retaining Black educators, the importance of creativity in the classroom, and what wellness looks like as a full-time entrepreneur and mother.

What does it mean to be the only Black teacher at the table year after year? In this powerful episode of The Exit Interview: A Podcast for Black Educators, Dr. Asia Lyons sits down with Monika Robinson, a former public school teacher, instructional coach, nonprofit leader, and founder of Reparations Ed, to unpack the quiet isolation many Black educators experience in predominantly white and suburban school systems. For six years, Monika was the only Black teacher in her building. While she describes her experience as not bad, she also names the subtle but persistent exclusion of being left out of informal gatherings, navigating leadership roles without support, and carrying the weight of representation alone. Her story highlights how school isolation is often normalized, minimized, or dismissed even when it impacts retention and wellness.

This episode with Whitney Tolliver is essential listening for educators at any stage of their career, administrators who wonder why they can't retain staff, and anyone who's ever sacrificed their well-being for a job that demands perfection over presence.In this powerful episode of the Exit interview, Whitney shares her journey from enthusiastic first-grade teacher to assistant principal and ultimately, to leaving education altogether to prioritize her wellness. Whitney opens up about the toxic workplace culture she encountered early in her career, including a principal who demanded perfect attendance even after losing both parents, and how that mentality permeated her entire educational experience.Now the founder of The Teacher Retreat, a nonprofit dedicated to educator wellness, and All Things Well Collective, Whitney is on a mission to help educators understand that self-care isn't just spa days and massages, it's moisturizing your whole body, drinking water, and learning to rest without guilt. She challenges school districts to move beyond professional development and invest in human development, reminding us that we can't check our humanity at the classroom door.

In this episode, Dr. Asia Lyons interviews Khiara Mills Mills, a licensed therapist and former school counselor, about her journey through education, mental health, and personal growth. Mills shares how setting boundaries became a cornerstone of her healing, both professionally and personally. She discusses the challenges of working in behavioral schools, the importance of self-care and core values, and how grief and resilience shaped her path. Listeners will gain practical insights on wellness, the power of boundaries, and supporting Black educators in schools.

In this episode, Dr. Asia welcomes Jeanine L. Williams, PhD, a retired educator turned ancestral medicine woman, for a powerful conversation about liberation, sovereignty, and healing beyond academia. Dr. Williams shares her journey through higher education, the challenges of navigating oppressive systems, and the importance of community care and ancestral wisdom. Together, they discuss the need for Black educators to reclaim their wholeness, set boundaries, and embrace self-care. The episode offers inspiration and practical advice for anyone seeking healing, empowerment, and a deeper connection to their roots.

In this episode, I sit down with educator and bibliophile Kamye Hugley to explore what happens when Black women in education refuse to stay quiet in the face of harm.Kamye traces her journey from her grandmothers urging to be a teacher, to a Teach For America placement that threw her from third grade to Head Start mid-year, to a Head Start classroom tucked in a portable with coyotes underneath and systems that treated early childhood like babysitting instead of brain-building.She shares the heartbreak of referring students for support only to be ignored, the letter she wrote to a district leader that quietly shifted hiring practices, and her time teaching high school intensive reading, where one administrators careless comment about test scores pushed seniors out of school entirely.Together, Kamye and I discuss how these moments accumulate as racial battle fatigue and weathering and why, for Kamye, remaining silent feels like violence against herself. This episode invites listeners to consider: What does it mean to protect your wellness and still tell the truth about the systems harming you and your students?

In this powerful episode of The Exit Interview, Dr. Ashlee Saddler shares her journey from mental health professional to educational leader, and the unique challenges she faced as a Black woman in predominantly white school systems. Dr. Saddler opens up about the emotional and physical toll of leadership, including her battle with breast cancera diagnosis she links to the relentless stress and self-sacrifice demanded of Black educators.Through candid storytelling, Dr. Saddler and host Dr. Asia discuss the systemic barriers, microaggressions, and expectations placed on Black women in education, as well as the importance of community, self-advocacy, and wellness. Listeners will hear about the power of mentorship, the necessity of setting boundaries, and the ongoing fight for equity and recognition in schools.This episode is both a testimony and a call to action: to honor the lived experiences of Black educators, to believe their stories, and to create spaces where they can thrivenot just survive. Whether youre an educator, leader, or ally, Dr. Saddlers insights will inspire you to reflect on your own wellness and the systems we must change together.