As we wrap up another school year, we're taking a moment to reflect on the conversations, challenges, and lessons that shaped Season 12.

This year, we explored what it means to build belonging, strengthen community, advocate for public education, and stay connected through uncertainty. Along the way, we learned from educators, organizers, authors, students, parents, and community members who reminded us that while the challenges facing our schools are real, none of us are facing them alone.

We also hear from listeners navigating school closures, parent organizing, and the everyday joys of integrated schools. Their stories remind us that community is built not only through big moments, but through the choices we make to show up for one another again and again.

In This EpisodeBelonging matters

One of the biggest themes we kept returning to this season was belonging. From conversations about disability justice to discussions about third spaces and community care, we explored what it looks like to create schools and communities where everyone feels seen, valued, and connected.

The power of conversation and community

This season reinforced something we deeply believe: meaningful change happens in relationship with one another. We reflected on lessons from guests like Dr. Loretta Ross, who reminded us that none of us are responsible for fixing everything alone. The work becomes sustainable when it's rooted in community.

Public education under pressure

Throughout the season, we examined some of the challenges facing public education today, including:

• School closures and spatial injustice
• The resurgence of "massive resistance" to educational equity
• Immigration enforcement's impact on students and families
• The ongoing struggle for educational justice across generations

Learning from history

Again and again, our guests reminded us that today's struggles are connected to longer histories of organizing, resistance, and collective action. From the Lemon Grove desegregation case to reflections on Thurgood Marshall's legacy, we explored how history can help guide us through the present moment.

Listener Reflections

We also heard from listeners who shared:

• The grief and organizing that can emerge when a neighborhood school closes
• The importance of family voice and participation in public schools
• Moments of joy that remind us why integrated schools matter

A Few Things We're Carrying Forward

• Belonging is foundational to healthy schools and communities.
• Public education is strongest when families, educators, and communities work together.
• History can offer both perspective and possibility.
• Community sustains us through uncertainty.
• There is real joy to be found in learning, growing, and building alongside people whose experiences differ from our own.

Looking Ahead

As we prepare for another season—and as our own families navigate major transitions—we're thinking about what comes next.

What conversations are you having in your community? What challenges are showing up in your schools? What stories should we be telling together?

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Thank you for listening, learning, and staying in community with us throughout Season 12. We're grateful to all of our guests, our listeners, and everyone committed to creating public schools that serve all of our children.

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.d

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

 

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On the 72nd anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, Andrew and Dr. Val sit down with Cecilia Marshall — granddaughter of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall and founder of the newly launched Thurgood Marshall Foundation. Together, they reflect on what it means to carry forward a legacy rooted not in individual heroism, but in collective courage, sacrifice, and community responsibility.

Ms. Marshall shares intimate stories of knowing Thurgood Marshall simply as “Grandpa,” and how, only later in life, she came to understand the magnitude of his work and the sacrifices made by the families behind Brown v. Board. The conversation explores the importance of telling these histories honestly — especially to children — and why public schools remain one of our most important democratic institutions.

From the bravery of the 200+ plaintiffs across the five Brown cases, to present-day debates around diversity, public education, and belonging, this episode asks what it means to build bridges in a deeply polarized moment — and what responsibilities we each carry in shaping a more just future for all children.

In honor of the 72nd anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, Integrated Schools is launching the 1954 Campaign.We are asking you to give:$19.54$195.40$1,954or any amount meaningful to youHalf of the proceeds will support the Thurgood Marshall Foundation and its work preserving and sharing this history with future generations.LINKS:

• The Thurgood Marshall Foundation
• Integrated Schools 1954 Campaign - Please donate today!
• Justice Marshall's Liberty Medal Acceptance Speech
• Recovering Untold Stories: An Enduring Legacy of the Brown v. Board of Education Decision
• Becoming Thurgood: America's Social Architect - PBS Documentary about Thurgood Marshall
• Brown v Board @ Sixty Five: The Stories We Tell Ourselves (our 5 part series on the Brown decision)
• Ep 18 – Rucker Johnson and the Grandchildren of Desegregation (BvB@65)
• Ep 19 – Segrenomics, Black Teachers, and Noliwe Rooks (BvB@65)
• Ep20 – Amanda Lewis on Desegregation Without Integration (BvB@65
• Ep 21 – Beyond Black and White with David Hinojosa (BvB@65)
• Ep 22 – I Hope They Hear It In Our Voices (BvB@65)
• S7E3 – Generational Work: Stefan Lallinger on Integration
• NAACP Legal Defense Fund

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.d

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

 

The Brown v Board Plaintiffs

The bundle of five cases commonly referred to as Brown v. Board actually contained more than 200 plaintiffs. Below are their names and their associated cases.

Belton v. Gebhart (Bulah v. Gebhart)

Delaware State Court, Wilmington, Delaware

Ethel Belton

Sarah Bulah

Joseph Crumpler

John W. Davis

Emma Fountain

Barbara Byrd Henry

Charles Hill

Lois May Johnson

Mary Johnson

Willie Robinson

John Short

Harlan Trotter

Bolling v. Sharpe

U.S. District Court, Washington, D.C.

Mrs. Sarah Bolling

Spottswood Thomas Bolling

Wanamaker Von Bolling

William Briscoe

Sarah Louise Briscoe

James C. Jennings

Adrienne Jennings

Barbara Jennings

Consolidated Parent Group, Inc.

Briggs et al v. Elliott et al.

U.S. District Court, Eastern Division, Charleston, South Carolina

James Bennett

Onetha Bennett

Harry Briggs

Robert Georgia

Annie Gibson

Gilbert H. Henry

Susan Lawson

Frederick Oliver

Mary Oliver

Mose Oliver

Bennie Parson

Edward Ragin

Hazel Ragin

William Ragin

Lee Richardson

Lucrisher Richardson

Rebecca Richburg

Henry Scott

William Stukes

Gabriel Tindal

Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County

U.S. District Court, Richmond, Virginia

Hal Edward Allen (father)

Hal Verner Allen (son)

Margaret G. Allen (grandmother)

James Henry C. Allen (grandson)

Margaret G. Allen (mother)

Herman Alexander Allen (son)

Florence Gertrude Allen (daughter)

Thomas H. Allen (father)

Herman Wesley Allen (son)

Thelma Leola Allen (daughter)

Ellen Banks (guardian)

John Banks, Jr. (guardee)

Frankie Louise Berkeley

Eddie Bigger (father)

Virginia Bigger (daughter)

Katie H. Bigger

Leonard R. Bland (father)

Floyd M. Bland (son)

Reginald W. Bland (son)

Clara S. Booker (mother)

Blanche A. Booker (daughter)

Ronald O.F. Booker (son)

Joseph E. Booker (father)

Loretta Booker (daughter)

Carrie Brown James Brown (father)

Phillip J. Brown (son)

Nelson Carey (father)

Mary Lizzie Carey (daughter)

Anna Bell Carey (daughter)

John Davis

Rosa Bell Davis

Isaiah Dennis (father)

Adline Dennis (daughter)

Charlie Dupuy (father)

Pauline Dupuy (daughter)

Susie Earley (mother)

Bertha E. Earley (daughter)

Helen Virginia Epps (mother)

Alma D. Epps (daughter)

Helen M. Epps (daughter)

Agnes Farrar (guardian)

Walker Camp Farrar (guardee)

Alice Fowlkes (guardian)

Alexander Fowlkes (guardee)

Leroy McCormick (guardee)

Amanda Goode

Frances Goode (mother)

Willie L. Goode (son)

Katherine Goode (daughter)

Dolly M. Goode (daughter)

Harry S. Hall

Thomas Hall (guardian)

Mary E. Couch (guardee)

Elsie Hargwood (mother)

Junita Hargwood (daughter)

Virginia Harris (mother)

Ethel D. Harris (daughter)

C.W. Hicks (father)

Deloris Hicks (daughter)

Marjorie Hicks (daughter)

Inez O. Hicks

Sarah Elizabeth Hicks (mother)

Leigh Edward Hicks (son)

Mosley Jefferson (father)

Dorothy Alice Jefferson (daughter)

Carrie Irene Jefferson (daughter)

Robert Johns (father)

Barbara Rose Johns (daughter)

Joan Marie Johns (daughter)

Kate Johnson (mother)

Burnell Johnson, Jr. (son)

Jasper W. Jones (father)

Peter Jasper Jones (son)

John Paul Jones (son)

Nannie Lee (mother)

George Lee (son)

Sopophonie Miller (mother)

Mattie Jean Miller (daughter)

Herman Monroe (father)

John Monroe (son)

Harry Monroe (son)

Richard Monroe (son)

Emma H. Morton

Mary Moton

Viola W. Neal (mother)

Catherine Neal (daughter)

Lee Emmett Neal (son)

Alma Randle (mother)

Rosetta E. Randle (daughter)

Ethel L. Randle (daughter)

Martin R. Randle (son)

Silas Redd (father)

Gladys E. Redd (daughter)

Charlie Redd (son)

Nellie J. Richardson (mother)

Jeanel E. Richardson (daughter)

Anita Louise Richardson (daughter)

Pinkie Rowlette (guardian)

Reginald Rowlette (guardee)

Alice Goins (guardee)

Rowland D. Saunders (father)

Vernethia C. Saunders (daughter)

Henry Scott (father)

Henry Scott, Jr. (son)

Otis Scott (father)

John Henry Scott (son)

Walter Wallace Scott (son)

Thomas H. Scott

P.H. Shepperson (father)

Lester Shepperson (son)

Florine Shepperson (daughter)

Willie Lee Shepperson (son)

Louise Sims (mother)

Helen L. Sims (daughter)

Rebecca A. Sims (daughter)

Sallie Spencer (mother)

Mary L. Spencer (daughter)

James Spencer (son)

Alice M. Stokes (mother)

John Arthur Stokes (son)

Carrie Stokes (daughter)

Jannie Streat (mother)

Mary E. Streat (daughter)

Pattie Taylor (mother)

Dorothy L. Taylor (daughter)

W. Howard Thompson (father)

Frances Thompson (daughter)

Rachel J. Thomson (daughter)

John Townsend (father)

Mildred Junita Townsend (daughter)

Arlene Shirley Townsend (daughter)

Mary Trent (mother)

Barbara Reese Trent (daughter)

Rose Marie Trent (daughter)

Mattie Vaughan (mother)

Calvin A. Vaughan (son)

Maude E. Walker (mother)

John Junius Walker (son)

Maude Estelle Walker (daughter)

Theophilus Walker (father)

Edward Leon Walker (son)

Mabel Gertrude Walker (daughter)

John L. Watkins (father)

Stella Watkins (daughter)

John Watson, Sr. (father)

John Watson, Jr. (son)

Eva Werkler (mother)

Rosa M. Werkler (daughter)

Myrtle V. West (mother)

Metteaner S. West (son)

W.C. West (father)

Barbara Jean West (daughter)

Olivia Wiley (mother)

Ettal L. Wiley (daughter)

Frank Williams (father)

Bessie Williams (daughter)

Mildred Williams (daughter)

Louise Willis Amelia Womack (mother)

Clarence W. Womack (son)

Aubrey D. Womack (son)

Bert S. Womack (father)

Elizabeth Womack (daughter)

Leslie Woolridge

Oliver L. Brown et al v. Board of Education of Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas

U.S. District Court, Topeka, Kansas

Oliver Leon Brown

Darlene Brown

Lena M. Carper

Sadie Emmanuel

Marguerite Emmerson*

Shirla Fleming

Mrs. Andrew (Zelma) Henderson

Shirley Hodison

Mrs. Richard (Maude) Lawton

Alma Lewis

Iona Richardson

Vivian Scales

Lucinda Todd

*Marguerite Emerson's name was misspelled on the original court documents

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We're revisiting our conversation with Dr. Loretta Ross because her book, Calling In: How to Start Making Change with Those You’d Rather Cancel, is the Integrated Schools book club pick for this month. You can register for one of our amazing, free book club sessions here.

We’re joined by MacArthur “Genius” and legendary activist Dr. Loretta Ross for a conversation that left us grounded, challenged, and deeply moved. From her early work in reproductive justice and anti-violence movements, to her current mission disrupting “call-out culture,” Dr. Ross offers us a path forward rooted in grace, accountability, and radical love.

We explore what it means to “call in” rather than call out—especially in an era where public shaming feels ever-present and social media rewards outrage. Dr. Ross shares her personal story of trauma, healing, and transformation, and helps us understand how real change happens not through perfection or purity, but through connection and curiosity.

Together we unpack the power of holding ourselves and others accountable without dehumanizing. We talk parenting, public schools, and what it means to stay in the struggle without breaking our link in the “chain of freedom.”

Whether you’re navigating tricky conversations in your school community or trying to show up better in the fight for justice, this episode is for you.

LINKS:

• Register for book club!
• Calling In: How to Start Making Change with Those You’d Rather Cancel – Dr. Ross’s new book
• What If Instead of Calling People Out, We Called Them In? – NY Times Article about Dr. Ross’s work
• What Is A Good Parent?  Blog post by NY Chapter member, Meredith Winfrey
• Mothers of Massive Resistance: White Women and the Politics of White Supremacy – Dr. Elizabeth McRae
• Ep 11 – White Women and the Politics of White Supremacy – Dr. McRae’s 1st time on our show
• S5E14 – White Supremacy and Black Educational Excellence – Dr. McRae’s 2nd time on our show

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.d

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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We’re going back to the archives today to revisit a conversation with Heather McGhee. In February of 2021, Heather McGhee’s book, The Sum of Us came out. With a focus on the ways in which racism harms everyone, and the potential good that can come from cross-racial coalitions, the book was exciting to us. When we realized that Integrated Schools was featured prominently in the chapter about education, we were blown away.

The book is based around three main concepts.  The first is the “zero-sum lie of racial hierarchy”, or the idea that progress for people of color necessarily has to come at White folks’ expense. The second is the idea of the “drained pool,” the disinvestment by White people in public goods simply because they have to share them with people of color. And finally, the “solidarity dividend,” the idea of gains that we can unlock, but only when we come together across lines of difference.

This last idea, the most hopeful, inspired Ms. McGhee to go back on the road and make a podcast documenting examples of the Solidarity Dividend in action. She joins us to discuss the podcast, what it means to be a good ally, the power of relationships in sustaining movements, and what role the Integrated Schools community should play in participating in the current, cross-racial movement for public education.

LINKS

• Ms. McGhee’s first appearance on our show
• The Sum of Us Podcast
• The Sum of Us Book
• James Haslem from HEAL Together
• Ms. McGhee and Victor Ray’s Op-Ed in the NYT
• California Calls – organizing in California
• Ms. McGhee’s mother – Dr. Gail Christopher
• Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation

ACTION STEPS

• Listen to The Sum of Us Podcast
• Read The Sum of Us Book
• Get involved locally – find organizations that align with your values, and just show up!
• Take opportunities to share space with folks – school pick up/ drop off is a great place to start
• Share stories off cross racial solidarity with others. Stories from The Sum of Us, from our podcast, or from your own life.

Use these links or start at our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – @integratedschls on twitter, IntegratedSchools on Facebook, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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We're joined by YA author, María Dolores Águila to uncover the largely untold story of the 1931 Lemon Grove Incident—the first successful school desegregation case in California, led by Mexican and Mexican American families.

Through her book A Sea of Lemon Trees, Maria invites us into the world of 12-year-old Roberto Alvarez, a child asked to carry the weight of his community’s fight for educational justice.

Together, we explore what it looks like when communities organize, when young people lead, and when stories become a form of power.

We can’t be what we don’t see.

Maria shares how her work is rooted in creating “social capital” for young readers—especially those who have not seen themselves reflected in books or history. When our kids see communities like theirs organizing and winning, it expands what feels possible.

The Lemon Grove case unfolded during a time of anti-Mexican sentiment and mass deportations. The parallels to today are hard to ignore. What we don’t know about our history can make the present feel confusing—but these stories remind us: we’ve been here before. While Roberto Alvarez was the named plaintiff, this was never a story about one hero. It was about a community—families organizing, neighbors supporting, people taking risks together. Every role mattered.

Resistance is real—and it costs something.

This wasn’t a clean or easy victory. Families faced threats, pressure, and even deportation. Telling the full story—including the hard parts—matters, especially for our kids. Through a 12-year-old’s perspective, the absurdity of segregation becomes clear. Kids often see injustice plainly—before we, as adults, complicate it.

We keep coming back to this:

All of our kids are watching.

They’re watching how we talk about history.

They’re watching how we respond to injustice.

They’re watching whether we stay—or walk away.

What might shift if we saw ourselves not as individuals navigating systems, but as part of a community shaping them—together?

LINKS:

• A Sea of Lemon Trees: The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez
• Barrio Rising: The Protest that Built Chicano Park
• Menudo Sunday: A Spanglish Counting Book
• The Lemon Grove Incident 
• Mexican Repatriation
• S11E10 – Micro Activism: Making a Difference One Step at a Time

 

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey. 

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What happens when we stop thinking about schools as buildings—and start seeing them as the ecosystems that hold our communities together?

In this episode, we sit with Dr. Mara Tieken to explore school closures not as isolated decisions, but as part of a broader pattern of spatial injustice—where resources, opportunities, and care are unevenly distributed based on where we live.

Together, we wrestle with a hard truth: school closures are often framed as inevitable… but what if they’re actually the result of choices—policies, priorities, and patterns of disinvestment—that we can question?

We grapple with several key ideas:

• Schools are more than buildings—they are social, cultural, and economic anchors in our communities
• Closures disproportionately impact Black, Brown, and low-income communities
• The most common justifications (cost savings, academic improvement, “efficiency”) often don’t hold up under scrutiny
• What gets labeled as a “failing school” is often a school that has been failed—by policy, funding, and systemic neglect
• School closures don’t just disrupt students—they create lasting grief, loss, and disconnection across generations

This conversation also reminds us that we are not powerless. Across the country, communities are:

• Organizing and building multiracial, cross-class coalitions
• Questioning the data and narratives used to justify closures
• Running for school board, advocating for policy change, and showing up for each other’s schools—not just our own

We are left wondering, what would it look like to treat every school as our school? Not just when it’s under threat—but all the time.

Because if public schools are foundational to our democracy, then caring for them can’t be an individual act. It has to be collective.

LINKS:

• Dr. Tieken's Hechinger Report Op-Ed - Shuttering public schools is a strategy that rarely saves much money and often leads to test score declines
• And from The Washington Monthly - Don't Fall for the School Closure Temptation
• Rural Schools Open - Dr. Tieken's guide to fighting school closures and doing it well, when needed.
• Dr. Eve L Ewing - Ghosts in the Schoolyard
• And Dr. Ewing on our show - S11E12: Schools and Race: Eve Ewing on the Construction of American Racism

 

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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In this episode, Andrew and Dr. Val are joined by Logan Tilton, a history student at North Carolina Central University and one of the Levine Museum of the New South’s fellowship students. Together, they reflect on what it means to learn history not as a list of dates and names, but as a living story shaped by community, struggle, resilience, and collective memory.

Drawing from a powerful fellowship trip to Montgomery and Selma, Logan shares how visiting the Equal Justice Initiative sites and hearing directly from a Selma foot soldier deepened her understanding of history, accountability, and the ongoing connections between past and present. This conversation explores the emotional weight of historical truth, the importance of learning from young people, and the role community plays in sustaining hope.

This episode reminds us that history is not over. The patterns of inequality, exclusion, and violence that shaped the past are still with us. But so are the patterns of resistance, courage, care, and collective action. Logan’s reflections offer a powerful reminder that when young people are trusted with truth, they can carry it forward with clarity, insight, and hope.

LINKS

• The Levine Museum of The New South
• The Levine Museum's Catalyst Fellowship Program
• The Equal Justice Initiative's Legacy Sites
• Foot Soldier Park - Selma, AL
• Bryan Stevenson
• Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption - by Bryan Stevenson
• S11E15 – Unearthing Joy: Gholdy Muhammad on Teaching with Love
• The Old South: A Psychohistory - by Earl E. Thorpe

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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When crisis comes for one of us, it comes for all of us.

In this powerful and deeply moving episode, Dr. Val and Andrew sit down with two parent leaders in Minneapolis—Carina (a White mom and longtime bridge-builder in dual language spaces) and Cisne (a Spanish-speaking immigrant mom and vice president of their dual language parent organization)—to talk about what it means to care for our community when ICE arrives at your doorstep.

What unfolds is a story about more than fear. It’s a story about relationships built long before crisis hit. About language justice. About sharing power. About mutual aid that moves in both directions. About what happens when Latino leadership is centered—not as an afterthought, but as the foundation.

We also hear from the professional interpreter who made this conversation possible in real time—offering a powerful reflection on interpretation as social justice work.

This conversation is heavy. And it is also filled with hope.

Because what we’re reminded of again and again is this: systems may fail us. Relationships keep us safe.

This episode reminds us that integration work is not theoretical. It is not performative. It is not about optics.

• It is about who gets to make decisions.
• Whose language is spoken first.
• Whose safety is prioritized.
• Whose children are protected.

It asks those of us—especially those of us who are White, documented, resourced—to reflect on how we are using proximity to power. Are we holding it tightly? Or are we sharing it?

It reminds us that bilingual education is not enrichment for some and marginalization for others—it is an opportunity to build bridges, leadership, and collective strength.

And it underscores something we’ve said for years: public schools are one of the few remaining places where we canbuild the kind of cross-racial, cross-class relationships that sustain us in crisis.

If we choose to.

The children missing from classrooms in Minneapolis are our children.

The parents afraid to leave their homes are part of our communities.

The mental health impacts will ripple far beyond one city.

Integration is not just about where our children sit in class.

It is about whether we are willing to stand together when it matters most.

Thank you for being part of this work. Thank you for staying in it—even when it’s heavy.

 

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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What does it mean to outlast backlash?

In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Danielle Wingfield—legal historian, law professor, and public education advocate—whose work sits at the intersection of history, civil rights, democracy, and family. Together, we trace the long arc of resistance to public education, from enslavement and segregation to today’s fights over curriculum, parental rights, and school privatization.

Dr. Wingfield helps us see that what feels overwhelming right now isn’t new—it’s cyclical. And that clarity matters. When we understand the playbook, we can respond with intention instead of panic.

We talk about:

• The history of massive resistance—and why today’s attacks on public education are part of a much longer project
• How curriculum control, “parental rights,” and privatization have been used before to maintain racial hierarchy
• Why public schools remain essential to democracy—and why they’re being targeted so aggressively
• What “home place” looks like: community care, shared responsibility, mutual aid, and kinship beyond bloodlines
• Why progress always brings backlash—and why staying power is how movements win

This conversation is both grounding and galvanizing. It reminds us that we don’t have to solve everything—but we dohave to hold our link in the chain.

Because when we know our history, we’re harder to divide.

And when we stay together long enough, we change what’s possible.

LINKS:

• The Resurgence of Massive Resistance - Washington and Lee Law Journal
• Teachers in the Movement - Oral history project
• First Class Project - documentary series
• Homeplace (A Site of Resistance) - bell hooks
• Henry L. Marsh III - First Black mayor of Richmond, VA & civil rights attorney
• Oliver W. Hill - Civil rights attorney
• Barbara Rose Johns

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Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

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Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

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 Join the conversation by registering for one of our upcoming Book Club sessions! 

The Integrated Schools Podcast returns with a great conversation with Emily Ladau, disability rights activist and author of Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to be an Ally.

Ladau describes herself as "passionate about having conversations about disability and really engaging people to talk about a topic that they might otherwise feel uncomfortable with and really making it approachable and accessible to them." In the spirit of Dr. Loretta Ross, she models what it means to call people in: to meet other people where they are and offer them a bridge to understanding the lived reality - or rather, realities - of the over a billion people around the world who have some type of disability.

Ladau takes an approach that is at once gracious and practical. "In order to be effective advocates for any kind of social justice, we first need the tools and the resources and the understanding, but often we are not socialized to think about disability at all... I don't want people to feel so worried about making a mistake that they don't get involved in the conversation in the first place; [nor] to get bogged down in specific rules, but… to have a working knowledge so that you feel like you belong in the broader work.”

This conversation brings up the parallels between combating White supremacy and combating ableism, and the interplay between the two. Ladau points out that we can't fight back against either racism or ableism by keeping these issues siloed -especially because disability is an identity that cuts across all other identity groups.

"It's also pretty much one of the only marginalized communities that anybody can join at any time. And I always say, you know, that's not a threat. We're cool, we're fun."

LINKS:

• Join Book Club!!
• Demystifying Disability: What to Know, What to Say, and How to be an Ally
• Emily's website - emilyladau.com
• Words I Wheel By - Emily's Substack
• The 504 Sit In
• S12E6 - Calling In with Loretta Ross
• Calling In - Dr. Loretta Ross's book

 

Send us a voice memo: speakpipe.com/integratedschools

Check out our Bookshop.org storefront to support local bookstores, and send a portion of the proceeds back to us.

Join our Patreon to support this work, and connect with us and other listeners to discuss these issues even further.

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video versions of our episodes.

Let us know what you think of this episode, suggest future topics, or share your story with us – IntegratedSchools on Facebook, @integratedschools on Instagram and TikTok, or email us [email protected].

The Integrated Schools Podcast was created by Courtney Mykytyn and Andrew Lefkowits.

This episode was produced by Andrew Lefkowits and Val Brown. It was edited, and mixed by Andrew Lefkowits.

Music by Kevin Casey.

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy