Amir Clayton Powell

Amir Clayton "A C" Powell loves God, family and politics. He connects with people across cultural, generational, political and socio-economic barriers. In fact, A C became a dynamic organizational development guru by heeding his mother’s advice to always listen more and talk less. Infusing this philosophy into his leadership style guided A C’s success in various senior management roles in nonprofit organizations as well as in his entrepreneurial endeavors. He has provided business management consulting and diversity training to nonprofit organizations and small business owners for more than a decade. A C speaks with passion, depth and a bit of humor about issues concerning African American males, small business development and the pivotal position of the Hip Hop Generation in the American socio-political landscape.At age eight, A C Powell decided he would be a lawyer. He started his professional journey as a satellite TV salesman but, with the help of a fraternity brother, quickly transitioned into the insurance industry. Settling property and casualty claims helped A C become a skilled negotiator, a skill that certainly paid dividends as he transitioned from insurance into a role as the lead public policy advocate for one of Central Ohio’s oldest and most venerable civil rights organizations. Following this experience, A C completed his legal studies at Capital University Law School in Columbus, Ohio, earning membership in both the Order of the Curia and the Order of the Barristers. Moving to the Greater Washington area after graduation, A C accepted a leadership position at the DC Chamber of Commerce Foundation assisting entrepreneurs organize their businesses and obtain financing. He and his team engineered an outstanding turn-around of the DC Chamber of Commerce Business Resource Center. A C would later reorganize his former holding company, The Amir Clayton Powell Organization, into A C Powell & Co. LLC (ACPO), a management consulting firm specializing in technical assistance services to nonprofit organizations. ACPO operates as the consulting arm of the Old Skool Media Group LLC (OSMG). In addition to serving as the chairman of OSMG, A C also serves as the publisher of OSMG’s branded blogs: Big Momma Says™; Hip Hop Ideology™; Race, Law & Politics™ and The Old School Journal™. In 2014, A C joined the faculty at Westwood College in Annandale, Virginia, as an adjunct. Around the same time he decided on becoming a lawyer, A C Powell also developed a keen interest in writing. As kids, A C, his brother, Fred Jr., and best buddy, Jerry, used to write and illustrate comic books based on characters they created. A C later participated in all the usual activities throughout middle school and high school that generally prepare a person for a career in writing, but ultimately decided to follow his childhood aspiration of becoming an attorney. Fortunately, he never lost his passion for writing, contributing regularly to various student publications on the campus of Denison University. A C picked up the "writing bug", again, after graduating from both college and law school and has finally realized that writing is just something he has to do. In addition to creating The World According to Nailah Manalani DuBois™ children’s series, A C is also the author of We Struggle Not Against Flesh & Blood, Song of the Mantis plus the upcoming novels: The Basement, Worthless, Racism on Trial, I Love You to Death and The Seven Sons of Chaos. In addition to his other professional endeavors, A C serves as a basketball coach and substitute teacher in the local school district. He also teaches group exercise classes.