Welcome, Kathy McDonald!

Kathy McDonald, PEL's new Director of Admission and Recruitment

by Craig Anderson

In November, the PEL Program welcomed its new Director of Admission and Recruitment, Kathy McDonald. Kathy moved to the Tampa Bay area from Chicago eleven years ago with her husband, John, and children, Samantha and Liam. 

The family arrived in the Sunshine State in 2004, a year also marked by multiple hurricanes. “I wondered if the hurricanes were some sort of sign,” Kathy admits, “but we persevered.”

Prior to coming to Eckerd, Kathy served as the Associate Vice President of Marketing for Bisk Education, a role that helped prepare her for the PEL program. 

 “I have always wanted to work for an institution of higher learning,” Kathy says. “At Bisk, I came to appreciate adult learners and the unique needs that they have.” 

This appreciation for experienced learners made the PEL program seem like a perfect fit. 

“When I am out in the community and meet PEL alumni, there is always a tremendous amount of pride in the program,” Kathy says. She also recognizes that “a lot of people still don’t know that we are here, and that is an exciting opportunity.” 

Kathy points to the opportunities to learn and to grow as the element that keeps works fun. She also views her new position as the chance to help develop the next generation of leaders. 

One of the aspects of working in the PEL program that is exciting for her is the chance to help adult learners revisit their life goals, something she understands personally.

"In 2000, I fulfilled a dream I had had since I was in second grade when I co-authored a book, Creating Your Life Collage: Strategies for Solving the Work/Life Dilemma," Kathy said. The book was published by Three Rivers Press, a division of Random House. 

“For many [adults], there is a goal or a dream that may have been put on hold,” she says, “and now they have the opportunity to achieve it. Their dream may have been delayed, but they didn’t give up.”