Who I Am

Cathleen Antoine-Abiala
Founder | Educator | Consultant

I design learning experiences, curricula, and cultural projects that reclaim education as a space for healing, memory, and transformation. Through Sajès Ed, I support educators, institutions, and communities in building equity-centered, culturally responsive systems that honor identity and legacy while inspiring meaningful change.

My Roots

I am the daughter of Haitian immigrants. Stories of resilience, migration, and cultural brilliance shaped my upbringing. These stories taught me that education is more than the transmission of knowledge. Education is cultural work. It illuminates, preserves, and opens new possibilities.

When I taught in classrooms, I held a vision that extended beyond usual instruction. I collaborated with cultural institutions, explored shared Black histories, and created spaces for young people to engage creatively with their heritage.

Through Sajès Ed, I continue this work. I grow as an educator, storyteller, and creative producer while crafting offerings that celebrate the depth of the Black diasporic experience.

Our Philosophy

At Sajès Ed, education is understood as both a personal journey and a collective responsibility.
Rooted in the Haitian Kreyol word sajès, meaning wisdom, our work is grounded in the belief that true learning transforms both the mind and the spirit. Wisdom is not only the goal of education but the process by which we cultivate understanding, empathy, and action.

We believe that education must serve the development of the whole person, not only through curriculum, but through the ways we listen, connect, and co-create with others. Classrooms, schools, and community spaces are extensions of our shared humanity, and teaching is most powerful when it honors that truth.

Every learner carries stories, memories, and possibilities that deserve recognition. The role of an educator, therefore, is to truly see, to understand who students are, where they come from, and what they bring. This act of seeing serves as the foundation of culturally responsive teaching and requires humility, curiosity, and care.

The principles of authenticity, wisdom, joy, creativity, and community guide our philosophy.
We partner with educators, leaders, and institutions to create spaces where learning is culturally sustaining and justice-oriented, where both educators and students can thrive, reflect, and contribute to the collective wisdom of their communities.