The Brave Educator Podcast Tim'm West

On the 7th episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his friend Gee Smalls. 
Listen as they talk about the challenges and trials Gee faced as a mixed race child growing up in the South, coming to terms with his sexual identity, and the many hats Gee wears as a husband, father, entrepreneur, author & advocate.
The episode begins with the song "Heavy" from the album, "Gravel and Grit".  After the dialogue with Gee, the episode concludes with the song “Male” from the album "Snapshots".
Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
  
 About our featured guest
Gregory “Gee” Smalls, Sr. is a father, husband, life and relationship coach, entrepreneur philanthropist, author, executive chef and restaurateur.  He co-created “The Gentlemen’s Ball,” an annual black tie fundraising gala which celebrates the accomplishments of Black LGBTQ people and benefits “The Gentlemen’s Foundation,” which promotes holistic development of Black men in the LGBTQ community. Gee, his husband Juan and son Lil Gee live in Atlanta where they operate their first restaurant, Virgil’s Gullah Kitchen & Bar.
www.geesmalls.com

On the 6th episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his cousin, M. Denise Chambers. Listen as they have a conversation about family secrets and mental health.

 The episode begins with the prose "Chipping off the old block", a poem from the book, " Flirtng".  After the dialogue with M. Denise Chambers, the episode concludes with the song “After Midnight” from the album "Fly Brotha  ".


Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
 



 About our featured guest 
M. Denise Chambers is a licensed social worker who earned her Bachlor's degree from Capital University in Bexley, Ohio and her Master's from The Ohio State University.  Denise has dedicated her last 10 years to restoring individuals with severe mental health and various addictions. Additionally, Denise has worked with individuals navigating their end of life experiences with  Zusman Hospice. She has worked in various residential treatment centers, partial hospitalization programs and intensive outpatient programs. Denise uses a robust therapeutic approach that starts where the individual is at and helps them work through their spiritual, emotional and relational goals.


Denise in her core is a caregiver that she has shared with her three children, grandchildren and pets. It is this core that is the impetus for her longing to see individuals restored.  She will remind you that "When you pass through the waters, the Lord will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers,they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; he flames will not set you ablaze." (Isaiah 43:2)
M. Denise Chambers, MSW, LSW, LICDC
denise@duggantherapyllc.com

THE BRAVE EDUCATOR PODCAST
Making He-ART
April 12, 2021 SEASON 2 EPISODE 5
 
On the 5th episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his friend and fellow Duke University Alumnus, Mikael Owunna. Listen as they talk  about making Art and following your Heart. A simple phrase with a lot of significance, following your heart is something that a lot of people identify with but very few ever take action to make a reality.
The episode begins with the prose "Coming to Rhyting", a poem from "Red Dirt Revival: a poetic memoir in 6 Breaths".  After the dialogue with Mikael, the episode concludes with the song “Stone” from the album "Gravel and Grit".
Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
 
 About our featured guest
Mikael Owunna is a queer Nigerian-Swedish American multi-media artist and engineer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Exploring the intersections of visual media with engineering, optics, Blackness, and African cosmologies, his work seeks to elucidate an emancipatory vision of possibility that pushes Black people beyond all boundaries, restrictions, and frontiers.
 
Owunna’s work has been exhibited across Asia, Europe, and North America and been collected by institutions such as the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Equal Justice Initiative, Duke University, and National Taiwan Museum. His work has also been featured in media ranging from the New York Times to CNN, NPR, VICE, and The Guardian. He has lectured at venues including Harvard Law School, World Press Photo (Netherlands), Tate Modern (UK), and TEDx. Owunna’s first published monograph Limitless Africans was released in 2019 by FotoEvidence, and he was awarded as a finalist for the FotoEvidence Book Award with World Press Photo.
 
www.mikaelowunna.com
IG: @mikaelowunna
 

On the 4th episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his friend and colleague Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, who is currently leading work at GLSEN. Listen as they discuss and give us the real “T” or truth about the topic of Intersectionality. 

A concept and framework created by Black feminist scholar, Kimberle' Crenshaw, Intersectionality is defined as the complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism, and classism) combine, overlap, or intersect especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups. (Merriam-Webster)

The episode begins with "Ten”, a song by Tim’m that was featured on his solo debut album, Songs From Red Dirt. The song was originally written as a spoken word poem in his first book, Red Dirt Revival: a poetic memoir in 6 Breaths. After the dialogue with Melanie about their lived intersectionality as Black LGBTQ+ leaders in education, the episode concludes with the poem “Sixteen” which is also on Songs from Red Dirt and which appears in the second edition of "Red Dirt Revival: a poetic memoir in 6 Breaths”.

Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
 
About our featured guest:

Melanie Willingham-Jaggers (They/She), is the incoming Interim Executive Director at GLSEN, a national non-profit that works to ensure K-12 education is safe and affirming for all students, including LGBTQ+ youth. Her vision for the next chapter of GLSENs work is rooted in the belief that education can and should be an experience that is safe, affirming and liberating – and that we can achieve that goal only when we build in racial, gender and disability justice into our education system as a key indicator of success.

Before joining GLSEN in 2019 as Deputy Executive Director, Melanie served as the Program Associate Director of The Worker Institute at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. As a part of the leadership team there, Melanie worked to ensure the strategic, programmatic, and operational excellence of the Institute.

She brings extensive experience in social justice movement and organizations as a manager and consultant with her, including curriculum design, facilitation, organizing within and beyond various marginalized and intersecting communities, including current and formerly incarcerated and underground economy involved people, LGBTQ+ community, youth, immigrants, people with disabilities and senior citizens. Melanie has a long track record of building and running successful high-impact programing, training and developing individuals and leading teams, as well as designing effective and values responsive infrastructure that drive high levels of performance and impact across the organization. 

Since 2018, Melanie has lectured at CUNY’s School of Professional Studies, in the Masters of Applied Theater program. They earned their B.A. in Politics, Peace and Justice Studies and Philosophy from the University of San Francisco, and their M.A. from The City University of New York’s School of Professional Studies in Applied Theater, where they lecture as an adjunct.

From 2016-2019 Melanie served as board chair of The Audre Lorde Project, the oldest center for community organizing for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Two Spirit, Trans and Gender Non-Conforming People of Color, in the New York City area. Melanie’s work on the ALP Board was rooted in the belief that as long as there are organizations connected to our freedom movements – those organizations must be internally safe, healthy and vibrant spaces, on which movements can rely if they so choose.

On the 3rd episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his friend Elisa Hoffman. Listen as they engage in a conversation about what we can teach our children and what our children can teach us.
The episode kicks off with "Happiness" a poem by Lily Hope, a student Tim'm has been fortunate enough to teach (alongside her twin brother Abbot) and also daughter of our featured guest.  After the dialogue with Elisa,  the episode concludes with the song " Prodigal Son"  from the album " Prodigal Son The Anthology".
Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
About our featured guest:
Elisa Hoffman is the founder and Executive Director of School Board School, an organization that equips education advocates and aspiring school board members with the knowledge and network to drive systemic change. Elisa is a parent, former teacher, and education advocate who has worked for almost twenty-five years on issues of educational equity, including serving a four-year term on the Cincinnati Public Schools Board of Education. When she’s not working at School Board School, Elisa enjoys reading (just about anything), writing (mostly fiction), and hanging out with her husband and their twin 11-year olds.

THE BRAVE EDUCATOR PODCAST
Breaking Cycles
March 1, 2021 SEASON 2 EPISODE 2
On the 2nd episode of Season 2, Tim'm features his friend Cory George. Listen as they engage in a conversation and get at the deeper issues of self-healing, relationships, love, and the long-standing impact of sexual abuse.

The episode kicks off with "Magnetix", a poem from my authorial debut "Red Dirt Revival: a poetic memoir in 6 Breaths" and also published in "Freedom In This Village: Twenty-Five Years of Black Gay Men's Writing" which as edited by his late brotha and Arkansan, E. Lynn Harris. After the dialogue with Cory the episode concludes with an excerpt from "Full Moon" from the album "In Security: The Golden Error".

Tim'm would like to offer special thanks to Rayna Moore for her voice as Intro to the podcast, Frank Richardson III for his support as co-producer, and Ray Brown for his support as an editor.
 
About our featured guest

Cory George, MS Appearances on media outlets such as Huffington Post Live, Season 7 of OWN Network’s Iyanla, Fix My Life and local radio & television outlets affords George the platform to inspire conversation on topics that he feels deserves more attention. All of George’s work can be traced back to at two of his areas of personal advocacies: mental health awareness the black community and childhood victims of sexual assault. He has attained certifications in Anger Management, Domestic Violence, and Clinical Trauma for Families and Individuals while completing his studies for his Master of Arts in Human Services Counseling; Crisis Response and Trauma. His desire is to continue to stand in the gap for those that are in crisis as well as those who are working hard to recover from traumatic experiences. In 2014, George created, hosted, and executive-produced Whispers in the Night, an acclaimed documentary that documents the full lifecycle of childhood sexual assault as experienced by three African American adult male survivors. Cory moderates a timely and painfully detailed conversation that speaks at the heart of men who still suffer the resounding effects of sexual assault and offers victims a portrayal of what victory and healing can look like for them. The documentary has amassed over 10,000 views online. In 2019 Cory George created and is the host and executive producer of the award-winning local Washington, DC talk show 1 on 1 with Cory George. The show focuses on the tough conversations that he hopes will benefit families and communities within the African American population. The show currently airs in Washington, DC on DCTV (DC’s Public Access channel). George’s manual for perseverance, strength, forgiveness, and self-love can be found in his 2015 release: SIT or STAND 2.0: Living Successfully Beyond Your Shadows. SIT or STAND has been described as an insightful and thought-provoking literary contribution inspired by the trials and triumphs of George.
A native of Houston, Texas and Ville Platte, Louisiana, he and his family has resided in the metro Washington, D.C. for some time.
 
 For more information about Cory George go to: www.CoryGeorge.com