Your Podcast Playlist | Featuring Podcasts To Enhance Your Listening Experience
2023 | ISSUE 10
The Exit Interview Revisionists & Two Dope Teachers
Dr. Asia Lyons
Bio: Dr. Asia Lyons is the founder of Lyons Educational Consulting LLC, a consulting and coaching firm that supports foundations, educational institutions, non-profits, and local governments with culturally responsive programming, onboarding creation, curriculum development, and job-embedded coaching through equity-centered design thinking. Dr. Lyons has her educational doctorate in Leadership for Educational Equity from the University of Colorado - Denver. Her research focuses on how racism-related stress and racial battle fatigue cross over from Black educators to their families. In addition to her work in consulting, Dr. Lyons is the co-host of, The Exit Interview: A Podcast for Black Educators, a podcast focusing on the lived experiences of former Black educators. Finally, she co-facilitates the Black Educator Wellness Cohort, a healing space created to support Black educators in healing their racial trauma.
Name of your podcast? The Exit Interview: A Podcast for Black Educators For 12 years I was an educator in a Denver area school. In my last year of teaching I experienced racism related stress from my administrator, some of my colleagues and parents of some of my students. When I decided to leave I requested an exit interview with the superintendent of the school district. During the interview I shared my racialized experiences. After leaving the conversation I realized that a vast majority of Black educators leave the field of teaching without people hearing their story. I decided at the moment that I needed to be someone to create a platform to amplify the voices of former Black educators.
What is your mission / goal? The mission of the podcast is to be a place where former Black educators can tell their story of why they left the field of teaching.
Why is a role like your's important to the podcast space? The more podcasters there are to create space for the lived experiences of Black folks the better.
What made you want to work in the podcast industry? In my mind, I figured it was one of the best ways to share the stories of former Black educators. It's not until recently that I've come to realize the enormity of podcasting.
What is your occupation outside of podcasting (if any)? I own an educational consulting company that offers onboarding, curriculum development, program co-creation, and job-embedded coaching services for youth-serving organizations. I am also a co-facilitator for the Black Educator Wellness Cohort, a space for Black educators working in the Denver Metro area who are working on in healing racial trauma experienced in the workplace.
Why is there a need for an organization like yours? Regarding the podcast, there is a great deal of conversation about hiring and retaining Black educators but where is the focus on finding out why we are leaving education.
How'd you get into podcasting? After the exit interview with the superintendent I knew I wanted to start a podcast but didn't know where to start so I sat on the idea for a while. Then the hosts of Too Dope Teachers and a Mic reached out to me about coming onto their show (I had emailed them several months before). After sharing my story on their show I pitched the idea of having my podcast (now a collaboration with one of the hosts, Kevin Adams) as a special feature of their podcast once a month. They agreed and that's how it all started.
How long have you been in the podcasting space? Since Jan 2021.
In a few sentences tell me briefly, about one of your favorite episodes or interviews from your podcast? The Origins of Racial Battle Fatigue with Dr. William Smith - We talk a lot with our guests about how racial battle fatigue impacts them. This particular episode was one of my favorites because Dr. Smith coined the term and he shared with our audience what we can do to lessen the impacts of racial battle fatigue in their lives.
What are some resources or tips you've learned in your podcast journey? Reach out to people who you would like to be on your podcast even if you feel that they won't want to be bothered or are too "important". There are way more podcasts out there than I thought. Collaboration is key.
What are your hopes for the future of podcasting? That it continues to be a space where people are able to show up as their authentic selves.
What's one thing you wished you'd known about podcasting when you started? Everything. It was not until signing up for TPA and BIPOC podcasters that I started understanding all of the tools, conferences, and communities in the podcasting space.
In a few sentences tell me briefly, about one of your favorite episodes or interviews from your podcast? The Origins of Racial Battle Fatigue with Dr. William Smith - We talk a lot with our guests about how racial battle fatigue impacts them. This particular episode was one of my favorites because Dr. Smith coined the term and he shared with our audience what we can do to lessen the impacts of racial battle fatigue in their lives.
What are the names of some of your favorite podcasts and why? Too Dope Teachers and a Mic - It gives you The Bodega Boys (RIP) feel and they started me on this podcast journey. Hello Seven - She is a Black millionaire who talks about her journey, and tips on how to increase revenue in our business and her guests are great. Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell - The man is brilliant and a fantastic storyteller. The Diary of a CEO - Which is more of a talk show. The people he has on his show have all of these fascinating ways that they have come to being CEOs or leaders in their field.
Too Dope Teachers And A Mic
Host: Kevin Adams and Gerardo Muñoz
The only Black and Brown teachers in their school, respectively. Before they knew it, they had met and would laugh, yell, cry, complain and hype each other up to teach another day in *they* schools. Race, Power, and Education have always mingled since the foundation of this country, but Kev and Gera seek to remix the conversation about it. Give us a listen!
Revisionist History
Host: Malcolm Gladwell
Revisionist History is Malcolm Gladwell's journey through the overlooked and the misunderstood. Every episode re-examines something from the past—an event, a person, an idea, even a song—and asks whether we got it right the first time. From Pushkin Industries. Because sometimes the past deserves a second chance.