Advisory Board Member

Robert V. “Bobby” McDonald is an accomplished business leader, speaker, author, historian and military veteran. After his service in the U.S. Navy, he went on to accomplish many varied and significant undertakings. Currently serving as the President/Executive Director of the Black Chamber of Commerce of Orange County, he is a leading advocate for many minority business owners in multiple endeavors throughout California and nationally. Bobby partnered with Explorer Studios in two award-winning educational films, “Building the Dream” and “History of the Buffalo Soldiers.” He also serves on the PBS Southern California Board of Trustees and assisted in the historic African-American PBS presentations, “The March on Washington” and African Americans, Many Rivers to Cross.”
Bobby has devoted many years to noteworthy public service at the federal, state and local levels, to include service with the Under Secretary of the Veterans Administration on veterans’ health care, as an appointee to the California Community College Board of Governors, as a Veterans Administration appointee to the Council on Minority Veterans, as Chairman of the first-ever Department of California Veterans Affairs Black Veteran Summit, and as the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity National Committee Chair on Veterans Affairs, amongst many other appointments. He has received many honors to include the 2016 U.S. Small Business Administration “Veteran Business Champion” of the year, distinguished alumni awards from LA Harbor College and California State University Fullerton and Human Relations Leadership Award for