Ericka J. Cromartie, is the head Girls’ Basketball Coach at Florida A&M University 
Developmental Research School, where she ensures each team member masters the skills 
of playing basketball through exposure to the game.  
Coach Cromartie is the daughter of Jerome and Claudette Cromartie and a current 
resident of Midway, Florida. Her mom played a strong leadership role in her community 
which inspired her to get involved and give back to her community. The city of Midway 
maybe a small city, but its traditions, atmosphere, and community support makes it much 
bigger at heart.  
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Following Ericka’s graduation in 2001 from FAMU DRS, she attended Miles College in 
Birmingham, Alabama on a four-year basketball scholarship.  Upon graduating from Miles 
College, Ericka returned to the state of Florida to attend The Florida State University, 
where she earned a Master’s Degree in Physical Education. Ericka began her teaching and 
coaching career in 2008 at Crossroad Academy Charter School in Quincy, Florida. In 
2012-13, Ericka was given the opportunity to teach at her alma mater (FAMU DRS) and 
earned her second Masters Degree in Sport Management from Florida Agriculture and 
Mechanical University (Fall 2013). 

During the 2014-15 seasons, she began coaching girls’ basketball at FAMU DRS, in which her 
team won the 2A State Championship and she was voted the “2A Coach of the Year.” The 
following season (2015-16) season, her team won back to back State Championships, and she 
again was voted “2A Coach of the Year”. At the end of the 2016-17 seasons, Ericka Cromartie 
led her team to the state championship for the third time, becoming the first team of any sport 
in Tallahassee, FL to win three championships in a row. In 2017, Coach Cromartie was named 
the Florida 3A Girls Basketball Coach of the Year (third coach of the year award) and was 
named the “2017 Florida Girls Basketball Coach of the Year!” In 2018, Coach Cromartie lead a 
young, but talented team to the 2018 3A State Final Four! This made a total of 4 State 
Appearances in 4 Years! Coach Cromartie thanks GOD for giving her the opportunity to mentor 
and coach student athletes to become the best they can be. Finally, in 2019, 2020, & 2021, 
Coach Cromartie lead her team to another Final Four Appearance making it 7 Final Four 
 
 Appearance in 7 Years. Coach Cromartie was also named the 2021 All Big Bend Coach of the 
Year!  Since Coach Cromartie has been to FAMU DRS, at least one of her players has signed a 
Basketball Scholarship every year under leadership. Her motto is, “Its bigger than basketball!’ 

This week on the Freedom Train Podcast Series, Joseph interviews Ms. Tifany Hill. Joseph and Ms. Hill discussed the coming "revitalization" plans for one of Tallahassee's predominantly black low-income communities the Orange Avenue Apartments, more affectionately known as South City.  We discuss how the plans are being executed and how it will affect the current residents of South City. 

https://purposebuiltcommunities.org/how-we-work/

https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/27116/412292-Effects-from-Living-in-Mixed-Income-Communities-for-Low-Income-Families.PDF 

This week on the Freedom Train Podcast Series, Joseph and Patrick have a much needed and impactful conversation with Mrs. Kristin Jackson. Mrs. Jackson is the founder of Homeschooling Footprints, a black owned homeschooling organization dedicated to the proper education of our black youth. The three go into a conversation about why the black community need to educate our own children so we can make sure they are learning what they need to know to be successful and survive in a racist world. They discussed the process it takes to create and maintain and successful homeschooling operation. Tune in!!

​0:00 Intro
0:38 Joke 1
1:08 Introductions
7:45 Joke 2
9:13 Why Homeschool?
11:45 Schools and Our Community
31:36 How Do You Teach in Homeschool
37:22 Critical Thinking
43:18 Critical Race Theory
1:00:25 SEL
1:05:30 Closing

In this week's episode of the Freedom Train Podcast Series, Joseph and Patrick covered three topics that are trending and relevant to our everyday lives. First, they covered the recent COVID-19 outbreak in India. The second most populated country in the world has seen a rise in the number of new COVID-19 cases. Some infectious disease specialists think the outbreak is due to large gatherings and not following safety protocols. They then transitioned to talking about the Pfizer vaccine now being approved for ages 12-15 by the FDA. Is it a good thing to have the teens vaccinated? Is focusing on treating symptoms a better idea than focusing on stopping transmission? The second topic covered is the current gas shortage due to a ransomware attack by an organization known as DarkSide, which affected the Colonial Pipeline. The last subject they covered was the shooting of Andrew Brown, Jr. Andrew Brown, Jr was shot and killed by police officers in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Officers say Brown was using his car as a weapon', witnesses say Brown was no threat o the officers and the shooting was unjustified. Tune in to hear what Joe and Pat have to say about the topics. 

0:00 - Intro & Show Topics
6:30 - India Covid Outbreak
14:55 - Middle School Kids Approved for Covid
32:18 - Gas Shortage
48:05 - April 21st Shooting by Police
1:02:00 - Black Woman Celebration and Closing​

 ​It is the month of May, which means this is our 2021 Black Women's Celebration Month. This week on the Freedom Train Podcast Series, Joe and Pat get their black women's celebration month kicked off by taking a look back on the black women they had the privilege to celebrate, they also gave an update on some of the women they celebrated. The gentlemen also explained why they celebrate black women, the importance of black women, and also how we can repair the rift between black women and black men. Tune in!!!