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.jamesoneal
• Joshua Warren – @coach_warren06
• Michael Teasley – @coach_teasley
• Hosted by: Craig Aarons-Martin – @iamcraigaaronsmartin

Together, we talk about:

• Why every month should be Black Men’s Mental Health Month
• Personal journeys with anger, depression, weight loss, chronic illness, and therapy
• Embracing authenticity as Black men (including queerness, softness, and sensitivity)
• Burnout in hustle culture and the pressure to be “everything for everybody”
• Unlearning harmful masculinity norms, family secrets, and “superhero” expectations
• Building real brotherhood: checking in, not performing; being vulnerable, not “weak”
• What we want Black boys, teens, and grown men to know: you are not alone

This is bigger than a panel. It’s a living room. A barbershop. A healing circle.

If you’ve ever been the “strong one,” the silent one, the funny one, the church kid, the coach, the teacher, the father, the son… this conversation is for you.

🎧 Listen to Brave Voices in Education on all podcast platforms
📺 Subscribe here on YouTube for more honest conversations on joy, justice, and education
📲 Connect with our guests:
– @vladlouissaintspeaks
– @krown_bgk
– @mr.jamesoneal
– @coach_warren06
– @coach_teasley
– @iamcraigaaronsmartin

Call to action:
If something in this episode stirred you, don’t keep it to yourself.
• Share this with a brother who needs a gentle push to get help.
• Send that “just checking in” text.
• Make the therapy appointment.
• Take the nap.

Generate your own joy. Never go it alone. Get free. And always love your brave. 🖤

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 AI isn’t a cheating tool—it’s a tool for justice and equity
🎮 From MySpace to Minecraft: reclaiming tech spaces through Black joy
🏫 How educators can innovate their teaching in the age of AI
🌍 The diasporic genius that shaped ancient technology—and why it still matters now

“Once you connect access to our kids’ natural creativity and tenacity, the world is their oyster.” — Coach Hicks
“Computational thinking is ancient; the only thing that changed is the computer.”

🎧 Listen, follow, and share this episode with your village.
We are the culture that codes.

Connect with Coach Hicks:
🔗 LinkedIn
📸 Instagram
🌐 codingwithculture.com

Follow Craig & Brave Voices:
🌍 bravevoicespod.com
📸 @iamcraigaaronsmartin

#BlackSTEM #CodingWithCulture #AIinEducation #CulturallyResponsiveTeaching #HBCU #InnovationInEducation #BlackTech #BraveVoicesInEducation #BlackBoyJoy #EquityInAction

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 reimagining equity through innovation

• Balancing faith, family, and leadership

• Legacy, love, and being a good ancestor

• Hope as a framework: Helping Other People Evolve

💡 “People don’t change unless they feel something — that’s how systems change.”

🎧 Available wherever you stream podcasts
🌍 More: https://bravevoicespod.com

👇 Connect with the Tremain - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tremain-holloway/
LinkedIn:

👇 Follow the Host: Instagram: @iamcraigaaronsmartin
LinkedIn: Craig Aarons-Martin

#BraveVoicesInEducation #BlackBoyJoy #EducationalLeadership #HBCU #HarvardEducation #LiberatoryLeadership #EquityInAction #PodcastConversation

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 history.

Together, we explore:

• The difference between blood family, chosen family, and brave family

• How educators can model love and belonging for LGBTQIA2S+ youth

• Why “hate is taught, but kids are built for love”

• Joy as resistance and advocacy as love

• What it means to stand firmly on the right side of history

This conversation honors LGBTQ+ History Month as both remembrance and resistance — a reminder that we are the history being written.

🎧 Listen to all episodes: BraveVoicesPod.com
👤 Connect with our guests:
• Shaplaie Brooks → LinkedIn | Instagram
• Daniel Alfaro → LinkedIn

#BraveVoicesPod #LGBTQHistoryMonth #ChosenFamily #QueerJoy #Belonging #Education #Leadership #ProtectTransKids #JoyIsResistance

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 that weren’t built with you in mind

• Live and love openly as queer Black men of faith in today’s America

• Reconcile calling and community when the two seem at odds

• Lead with integrity, tenderness, and courage in public and private spaces

• Build a partnership rooted in spiritual liberation and radical belonging

This episode is both testimony and invitation — to love out loud, lead without apology, and write a new chapter of what faith, family, and freedom look like for us.

🎧 Listen to all episodes: BraveVoicesPod.com
👤 Connect with Omari:
• LinkedIn
• About: AaronsGroup.org

❤️‍🔥 This LGBTQ History Month, remember — we are the ones our ancestors prayed for, and we are still becoming the ones the next generation will thank.

#LGBTQHistoryMonth #WeAreLGBTQHistory #BlackQueerLove #QueerFaith #BlackLove #LoveIsRevolutionary #Belonging #FaithAndJustice #Leadership #BlackChurch #QueerVisibility #BlackExcellence #Bravery #LoveWins #RadicalLove #Courage #Authenticity #BlackBoyJoy #QueerJoy #BraveVoicesPod

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 personal and collective act

🎧 Listen: BraveVoicesPod.com
🔗 Connect with Patrice: LinkedIn | Instagram

Tags: leadership, equity, organizational learning, philanthropy, education, brave voices, faith, belonging

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 leadership rooted in love

🎧 Podcast: https://BraveVoicesPod.com
🔗 Connect with Phil: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philechols | https://www.instagram.com/philechols | https://philechols.com

Chapters (to refine with timestamps):
00:00 Intro
05:00 Roots in family + Southern upbringing
10:00 Journey: teacher → counselor → leadership
20:00 Zip codes & healthcare inequities
30:00 Courage as quiet + loud
37:00 Storytelling + social media
42:00 Legacy: kindness, love, joy
50:00 Brave or Nah game (UNC, barbecue, Kung Fu Panda, The Wiz)
55:00 Closing & legacy

Tags: leadership, healthcare equity, organizational development, DEI, storytelling, school counseling, Brave Voices in Education

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 psychological safety.

Links:
IG: @kdslglobal | aieloc.org/team | LinkedIn: Kevin Simpson (KDSL Global)
Show: BraveVoicesPod.com | IG: @iamcraigaaronsmartin

#international education #AIELOC #recruitmentreform, #cultural competence #leadership #equity #psychologicalsafety