A Black teacher has taken the time to call out how engaging with her students turned into being fired.

The TikTok That Got Jania Ashay Fired

The Independent reports that Jania Ashay opened up on TikTok, explaining why she was let go last year.

The former sixth-grade ESL student teacher claims that she was fired over a TikTok video. The video included a dance to an edited version of Nicki Minaj’s “Beez in the Trap” with a few of her students during lunch, which one of them went on to upload. 

“I’m a cool teacher, so of course I’m going to say yes,” Ashay said on TikTok. “And while they’re in there, they ask if we can do a little TikTok.”

@heyniaa_ #stitch with @itslexilarson dont worry sis theyll regret it real soon!! #firedfromtiktok ♬ original sound – Jania Ashay

How Losing Her Job Went Down

Ashay explained that although the school’s policy restricts phone usage during lunch, she still obliged.

Her compliance with their request resulted in the two students being called to speak with the principal, who asked them not to relay the conversation back to Ashay. However, the students shared the information with her anyway. 

Then, per the TikTok, Ashay recalled being spoken to like a child by the principal. Ultimately, she learned the video was reported by a parent, and making the TikTok was seen as “unprofessional.”

“We’re going back and forth, she takes me to HR that day, of course, they have her back, and that’s it. I was fired,” she shared.

Issues With The School District

Even before losing her job, Ashay claims that she had multiple negative encounters with the school district, one of them being microaggressions.

Since creating TikToks has become highly common for educators, it raises questions of if there was another reason why she was fired.

Nonetheless, Ashay hasn’t let the experience keep her down and she’s continuing to pursue her degree and license.

Now, she is a student teacher “at a school where the kids look like me, they talk like me, they appreciate me.” Plus, she says she’s treated with respect by the principal and staff.

@heyniaa_ Replying to @thizbp ♬ original sound – Jania Ashay

Additionally, Ashay shared that the principal no longer works at her former school.

Won’t He do it!