Brave Voices in Education - The Podcast

In this engaging conversation, Craig Aarons-Martin and Desiree Whitehead explore themes of personal growth, branding, and the importance of integrity in business. They share their journey of meeting at a marketing conference, the significance of trusting one's passion, and the value of mentorship. Desiree emphasizes the importance of community support and the necessity of failing forward in the pursuit of success. The discussio...

This episode right here. It’s the reminder so many of us need: your body is not a machine, and burnout is not a badge of honor.

I’m joined by my sister-friend and powerhouse healer, Dr. Jewel White Williams — founder of Living Legacy Health, health scientist, educator, faith-centered leader, and advocate for whole-person, trauma-informed wellness.

Dr. Jewel lives at the intersection of science, spirituality, education, and health equ...

What happens when the political movement that promised to “restore fairness” ends up harming the very group it claimed to protect?

In this powerful episode of Brave Voices in Education, Craig Aarons-Martin breaks down a reality many are whispering about but few are willing to confront:

Anti-DEI bans are destabilizing white men — and still hitting Black men and Black women harder.

Drawing on reporting from The Washington Post and TheGr...

What happens in our schools when national leaders dehumanize entire communities — Somali, immigrant, Muslim, Black?
What happens in classrooms the morning after rhetoric turns violent?
And what does brave leadership look like when belonging itself is under attack?

In this Brave Bites episode, Craig Aarons-Martin reflects on an overheard coffee shop conversation that revealed the deep cracks in our national discourse — and the ...

What does it do to a school community when the President of the United States publicly dehumanizes an entire group of people?

And what happens when some of the people he attacked… actually voted for him?

In this Brave Voices in Education episode, Craig Aarons-Martin breaks down the emotional, cultural, and political shockwaves following President Trump’s statement calling Somali Americans “trash” — including new CNN reporting showing...

I’m joined by my friend and powerhouse principal, Trelane Clark — national president of the Black Women Education Leaders, mother, truth-teller, sister-friend, and the kind of educator whose presence shifts the whole room before she even speaks.

We talk about:

• Teaching from the heart — the kind of teaching children feel, not just receive
• The weight and responsibility of this work in a country where educators’ rights are shrink...

It shouldn’t take a hashtag or a month on the calendar for Black men to be seen, heard, and held.

In this special Brave Voices in Education conversation, I’m joined by a powerful panel of brothers for a sacred check-in on Black men’s mental health, masculinity, and what it really means to stay alive and present in this season:

• Vladimir Louissaint – @vladlouissaintspeaks
• Bernard King – @krown_bgk
• James O’Neal – @mr.jameson...

When culture meets code, innovation becomes liberation.
In this dynamic episode, Craig sits down with Victor “Coach” Hicks—educator, step coach, and founder of Coding with Culture—to talk about how HBCU pride, Black creativity, and culturally responsive teaching are transforming STEM education for the next generation.

They dive into:
💻 How coding and culture unlock identity and brilliance for Black and Brown youth
🤖 Why A...

In this soulful and empowering conversation, Craig sits down with Dr. Tremain Holloway — a visionary school founder and lifelong educator — to talk about the journey from the hardwood to Harvard, the power of HBCU roots, and what it means to build schools that reflect community, culture, and possibility.

🗣️ Topics Covered:

• From athlete to educator: How one injury shaped a lifelong calling

• Founding Maritime High School and reimagi...

Family isn’t just who raised us — it’s who chooses us, holds us, and helps us become.

In this episode of Brave Voices in Education, host Craig Aarons-Martin brings together two powerful voices — Shaplaie Brooks, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Commission on LGBTQ Youth, and Daniel Alfaro, social worker, educator, and commissioner — for a heart-centered conversation about family, resilience, and courage in this moment of hist...

This LGBTQ History Month, we’re not just remembering history — we are history.

In this deeply personal episode, Craig Aarons-Martin sits down with his husband, Omari Aarons-Martin, for a conversation that is as intimate as it is revolutionary — a love story between two Black queer men leading, loving, and living boldly in faith and freedom.

Together, they open up about what it means to:

• Stand in truth inside beloved institutions t...

On this episode of Brave Voices in Education, Craig Aarons-Martin sits down with Dr. Patrice Dawkins-Jackson — a mother, educator, philanthropist, and scholar — to talk about leading with love and living equity from the inside out.

They explore:

• Her journey from early childhood education to philanthropy

• Faith as a foundation for justice-driven work

• The meaning of transformation that begins at the soul

• Why belonging is both a persona...

What does it mean to lead with courage and care in education, healthcare, and life?

Craig Aarons-Martin talks with Dr. Phil Echols—Organizational Development & Diversity Specialist at WakeMed, former counselor and educator, and lifelong storyteller.

They discuss:

• Zip codes, predictability, and disrupting inequities

• Lessons from a teacher mom & pastor dad

• Courage as both loud action and quiet strength

• Storytelling, legacy, and...

ducator and movement-builder Kevin Simpson (KDSL Global, AIELOC) joins Craig Aarons-Martin to unpack: the seed that launched his global journey, how Lagos reshaped his lens, why AIELOC “calls in” then “calls out” biased recruitment—rooted in love, and what real equity in international schools requires (leadership, research, retention). Plus identity abroad (“American first, Black second”) and practical steps for building psychologi...

Jonathan Santos Silva is an educator, founder of the Liber Institute, and a catalyst for liberatory education. In this episode of Brave Voices in Education, Craig Aarons-Martin and Jonathan dig deep into what it means to lead with humility, presence, and power:

• The lessons from teaching math on the Pine Ridge Reservation — humility, proximity, and the responsibility of showing up.

• Why representation matters: Black male educators ...

In this powerful episode of Brave Voices in Education, Vladimir Louissaint (CEO & Founder of The Embrace Method) sits down with Craig Aarons-Martin (CCM Education Group) to explore the hidden truths of men’s mental health, the urgency of telling our stories, and the radical act of healing out loud.

Inside this episode:

• Men & Mental Health: The Unspoken Crisis

• Embrace Your Story — why your raw, unmasked truth matters

• “What W...

Filter with fences. Progress over perfection. Show up, then get the coffee.
In this Brave Voices in Education episode, Allison (Allie) Rodman — CEO & Founder of The Learning Loop, ASCD faculty member and Danielson Group specialist, joins Craig Aarons-Martin to talk personalized professional learning, alignment, and what it really means to be a brave school leader in 2025.

We cover:

• Filtering with fences — keeping what matt...

In this powerful episode of Brave Voices in Education, Craig Aarons-Martin sits down with Josh Kraft—lifelong advocate for youth, former CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston, and Boston mayoral candidate—to talk about the power of listening, community, and courageous leadership.

Josh shares heartfelt lessons from his parents, mentors, and decades of community work in Boston’s neighborhoods. Together, they discuss education re...

In this episode of Brave Voices in Education, host Craig Aarons-Martin sits down with Patrick Harris II—award-winning educator, bold storyteller, and author of The First Five: A Love Letter to Teachers—to explore what it takes to bring your full self into the classroom and beyond.

Together, we unpack:

• Embracing the Humanity of Teachers – Why teachers must bring their stories, identities, and passions to sustain the profession.

• Bla...