Our Authors Study Club, Inc
OASC at the Bilbrew - Featuring Donna J. Nicol, Author "Black Woman On Board"
Join us for an early afternoon "OASC At the Bilbrew" Library Event
Sat., August 10th Featuring an Author Talk by Dr. Donna J. Nicol " Woman On Board" with a moderated discussion by Dr. Anthony Samad, Executive Director, Mervyn Dymally Political Institute, California State Dominguez Hills, Co-sponsored by Council District 2, Supervisor Holly Mitchell
The Event begins promptly at 11am with a light brunch and an opportunity to purchase your book in advance for signing. The program starts at 11:30am and will continue with a reading from the author followed by a moderated discussion and a q and a. The event will conclude with a book signing.
About the Author
Dr. Donna J. Nicol is the Associate Dean of Personnel and Curriculum in the College of Liberal Arts and a professor of history at California State University Long Beach.
She is the immediate past department chair and professor of Africana Studies at CSU Dominguez Hills, a post she held from 2017-2023. She earned her doctorate degree in Educational Studies (with a specialization in History and Philosophy of Higher Education and a graduate minor in African American and African Studies) from The Ohio State University in 2007.
Dr. Nicol’s research focuses race, conservative philanthropy, and U.S. higher education, and the history of African American women’s educational activism. Her work has been published in Race, Ethnicity and Education, The Feminist Teacher (twice), History of Philanthropy, Palimpsest: A Journal of Women, Gender and the Black International, The Encyclopedia of American Women’s History, Encyclopedia of Multiracial America, and Habitus of the Hood. In February 2021, Dr. Nicol was a featured guest expert for the Al Jazeera English documentary, The Big Picture: A Race for America. Dr. Nicol has also published opinion columns on racism in philanthropy for Al Jazeera Digital and has appeared on the Insufferable Academics podcast, the Fresh Off the Vote podcast, and the Peace and Justice Radio Show.
Prior to becoming an academic, Dr. Nicol spent three years teaching secondary language arts and social studies for Los Angeles Unified School District and seven years in various academic administrative roles at Mt. St. Mary's College and The Ohio State University. She serves on the board of directors for the Historical Society of Southern California, co-principal investigator for the State of Black Los Angeles County Report (2023) and is active in a number of professional academic and social service organizations.
About the Moderator
Dr. Anthony Asadullah Samad became the Executive Director of the Mervyn Dymally African American Political and Economic Institute (MDAAPEI) on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills. An author, columnist, and scholar, Dr. Samad has written six books and numerous scholarly articles. He is one of the most widely read feature columnists in the African American press today. Over the past 25 years, Dr. Samad has contributed over 1,100 articles to newspapers and websites nationwide.
Come Early!
Join OASC for opportunities to explore the AC Bilbrew Library through various programs. Named in honor of AC Harris Bilbrew, a groundbreaking Renaissance artist and influential leader in early Los Angeles, this cultural center is a true gem within the LA County Library system. This year, all our events will align with the national ASALH theme: African Americans in the Arts. We are proud to have Danny Bakewell Jr. serving as our 2024 Black History Chair for the entire year, not just during Black History Month.
- Meet authors and librarians.
- Learn about the library's services and programs.
- Join OASC and its mission to promote Black History.
- View the painting and mask collection.
- Utilize the Black Resource Center for research.
- Book a meeting space.
- And so much more!
More About the Library
Los Angeles County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn was instrumental in the library obtaining funding through a Model Neighborhood Development Program to build a 21,000 square foot library with a capacity to house 100,000 books. Designed by Vincent Proby, an African American architect the A C Bilbrew Library houses the Black Resource Center founded by OASC member and librarian Joyce Sumbi, which supports research and study on social, historical, musical, and cultural aspects unique to the “Black Experience” such as Juneteenth and Kwanzaa. From 1980-2008, A C Bilbrew Library has hosted the County Library’s African American History Month Celebration. An interactive Living Legends digital display is featured in the main lobby. The library is located in an unincorporated area west of the City of Compton.
About A.C. Bilbrew
A. C. Harris Bilbrew (March 12, 1891–June 4, 1972) was an American poet, musician, composer, playwright, clubwoman, and radio personality known as Madame A. C. Bilbrew who lived in South Los Angeles. In 1923, she became the first black soloist to sing on a Los Angeles radio program. She also hosted the city's first African American radio music program, The Gold Hour, in the early 1940s. The A. C. Bilbrew branch of the LA County Library in Willowbrook was named in her honor. The daughter of Rev. H. S. Harris, 1st CME, her initials were her given name; she was named for two nuns whom her mother had liked. She attended Texas College in Tyler,] and studied music at the University of Southern California. Bilbrew was active in many ways with performing arts in the African American community of South Los Angeles. She played church organ, produced pageants and plays, gave dramatic readings, accompanied a jubilee quartet, and directed choirs. In 1923 she became the first black soloist to sing on a Los Angeles radio program. In the 1930s she performed "pianologues" and led a musical sextet. She was the host of the city's first African American radio music program, The Gold Hour, broadcast on KGFJ from 1940 to 1942, and was also the announcer on The Bronze Hour, which she produced with Gilbert W. Lindsay. Her on-air guests included California governor Culbert Olson in 1942. She also performed on a tour of the eastern United States in the 1940s.She was a popular speaker in church and women's groups into the late 1960s and was known as "Madame Bilbrew" in the community.