Site icon Atlanta Daily World

Asa Hilliard Program, Panel Discussion to be Held at AUC Woodruff Library


On Feb. 28, 2019 at 5 p.m., the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library will host a program and panel discussion about the life and work of Dr. Asa G. Hilliard III, including a special viewing of his collection.
The theme of the event is “Sba: Reclaiming African Futures.” Confirmed panelists include Dr. Elletta L. Denson, School Governance Council chair and teacher at Asa G. Hilliard Elementary School, Dr. Daniel Black, African American Studies professor at Clark Atlanta University and Dr. Tanya Clark, English professor at Morehouse College.
The discussion will be moderated by Dr. Sam Livingston, director of the African American Studies program at Morehouse College.
The event will give participants an intimate look at Hilliard’s body of work and allow them to hear from experts in academia and African American studies. Hilliard’s family will also be in attendance.
A leading advocate of African history, Hilliard was a professor of Urban Education at Georgia State University for 27 years. Prior to that, he spent 18 years at San Francisco State University. He served as a consultant to the Peace Corps and superintendent of schools in Monrovia, Liberia. He also led frequent study groups to Egypt and Ghana to help educators create more African centered curricula.
“The Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library is honored to have been entrusted by the Hilliard family to be the official custodian of the Asa Hilliard collection,” said Loretta Parham, Library CEO and director. “This rich anthology has been used by scholars who were taught by Dr. Hilliard and those who never met him but were impacted by his work.”
“Asa is known as the ‘conductor’ of the modern African-centered educational movement, but he was so much more than that. He was a father, a friend and my husband for nearly 50 years,” said Patsy Jo Hilliard, wife of Asa Hilliard. “With holdings uniquely documenting the African experience, there is no better home for his collection than the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library. My hope is that his life’s work inspires the next generation of educators and activists.”
The Hilliard collection spans the years of 1933 to 2007 and consists of over 200 boxes of materials. It includes organizational files from groups of which Hilliard was a member, records from his work at both Georgia State University and San Francisco State University, files related to his speaking engagements, photographs and videos, and manuscripts of articles, books, speeches and reports.
Those interested in attending the event can RSVP by visiting hilliardprogram.eventbrite.com.
Researchers can access the collection by making an appointment to visit the AUC Woodruff Library’s Archives Research Center, located at 111 James P. Brawley Drive, Atlanta, GA, or through the Library’s website via online finding aids. The audio/visual collection is available online in the Library’s Digital Commons repository, which can be accessed at https://digitalcommons.auctr.edu/hilliard.

About Post Author