The Exit Interview: A Podcast for Black Educators

What happens when you're doing everything—leading a school, serving your community, answering the phones, teaching math—and still feel like you're drowning? In this Exit Interview live show, Dr. Asia Lyons sits down with Joy Delizo-Osborne, who shares the real reason she left her role as a founding principal: her doctor said quit, and her wife offered her a puppy if she finally did.

This conversation is not a highlight reel. It's a deeply human exploration of what it costs to stay in systems that praise your sacrifice but ignore your spirit. Joy reflects on burnout, Black women’s addiction to care, and how hard it is to believe the job isn't your identity. She also offers a glimpse into her now–as CEO of Student Achievement Partners—where she’s rewriting the rules of leadership, bringing equity and literacy into the same sentence, and finally choosing joy (and dogs).

If you’ve ever felt pulled between purpose and survival, this episode is your mirror and your permission slip.