Danielle McDonald

For Higher Education institutions, ensuring the success of every student is the main goal. However, for larger institutions, this mission requires broad, impactful policies, and a consistent push for student engagement. For Danielle McDonald, Associate VP and Dean of Students at the University of South Florida (USF), an institution’s culture must be based on driving student success.

Danielle took the time to speak with Luke James, Co-Host of The Interview, to discuss why it’s vital that her teams place student success at the heart of what they do, and how USF’s culture of support pushes students to achieve their dreams.  

Danielle's Journey

Luke: Let’s start with a brief introduction to yourself and your institution…

I’m Dr. Danielle McDonald, the Associate VP and Dean of Students at USF. We’re a public R1 Research University with 50,000 students over three campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Sarasota-Manatee. In the last few years, we’ve increased our retention and graduation rates, and eliminated achievement gaps for race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status becoming one of the top 50 public universities in the country. As a result of that hard work, we’re very proud to be a new member of the Association of American Universities. 

Luke: How do you go about supporting student success at USF?

We have a philosophy among our faculty and staff that every student will be successful, as long as they’re given the right support at the right time. Most students come to us to better their future prospects, so we want to make sure that the support we offer is based on where they're coming from, addresses what’s currently happening in their lives, and is tailored to their individual goals. We also create a culture that normalizes asking for support, especially because high-achieving students often believe they shouldn’t require help. To combat that belief, we make it known that the reason successful students do so well is that they utilize our resources. With the great lengths we go to to achieve that philosophy, our students feel valued, and know that they’re always going to get the support they need. 

‍Luke: How do you engage students with important resources and initiatives?

In the state of Florida, we’re required to provide orientation for new students and they are required to attend. So, in the 25 orientation sessions hosted every summer, we share important messages about behavioral expectations, as well as resources, initiatives, and support. When I speak at those events, I always make it clear that I want to see everybody present cross the stage at graduation and be successful in their future careers, but that they can only do that through engagement with our events and offerings. I also stress how important it is to get involved with student organizations, internships, and other employment opportunities because, if students want to achieve the career of their dreams, a degree makes them hireable but their experiences makes them promotable. Reminding students of the link between skill-building opportunities and future success really drives engagement. 

Luke: How do you create a positive and safe campus climate?

As hard as we may try, we can’t protect all 50,000 of our students. Instead, we empower and educate them to keep themselves safe and about the many safety resources on campus, and that’s done mostly through our 800 student organizations. We work to develop strong relationships with student leaders in clubs and societies, discussing the positive and safe campuses we want to create at USF, and the part they play in developing and sharing our values with new students. When upperclassmen are willing to display the expected behavior and refer students to support resources, it normalizes seeking help and keeps our students safe. We also focus on mental wellbeing through belonging and inclusion, making sure that our students see and feel representation on our campuses. With such a large student body, our student organizations also play a role in this area as they allow students to form connections through smaller communities.

Luke: How do you keep messaging consistent across 800 student organizations? 

Consistency is especially important to this because we’re a public campus, meaning anybody can come here and spread messages that don’t necessarily align with our values. If we keep our messaging consistent, students will recognize these inconsistencies as exceptions to our beliefs. We also make ourselves available to students by attending events and programs where we can form connections, and deliver accurate messaging directly to them. For example, this week I attended the dance marathon, two student focus groups, and a student debate, and many of the students I spoke to at those events will host their own gatherings, be present at training sessions, and communicate our messages to other students. We also rely on faculty and staff to do the same, and that keeps messaging consistent because our culture of supporting success is embedded across the institution. 

Luke: With it being an election year in America, how do you facilitate constructive conversation among students? 

USF values free speech and active citizenship very highly, and we’re recognized as one of the most voter-friendly colleges in the country and free speech organizations have rated us highly. We spend a lot of time educating our students about their role as citizens, and we’re often impressed by how eager they are to demonstrate what they’ve learned. For example, the members of our College Democrats and College Republicans organizations collaborated with our First Amendment Forum student organization to host a debate on the use of public funds for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. It was clear that the students’ intentions were not to win the debate, but to engage in a civil conversation about an emotional topic, listen to opposing viewpoints, and do it all with an excitement to learn. We’re very proud of how passionate our students are and how appropriately they display their activism, and I hope that such events get other students thinking about why tough conversations can be so rewarding.

Luke: How do you best keep teams at USF open to change?

We have to remain mission-centric, constantly thinking about our students, their success, and how we can best support it. When we need to make changes or find new approaches, we will always incorporate them in a way that ensures they’re driving the end goal of student success. To maintain that holistic approach, no matter how we may feel about change, we will always strive to support students in their viewpoints, activities, and engagement. Another reason I attend so many student events is because I want to hear how our students’ views and needs are changing, and figure out how we can change our approaches and improve our offerings to match.

Luke: What’s the best advice you’ve received during your career?

Be curious, ask questions, and remember that you don’t need to have all the answers. In my position, so many people report to me and ask questions of me, but I’ve found that I benefit from asking what they think, or how they’d go about solving an issue. Those questions provide me with different opinions to factor into my answers, and give my team members  the confidence to trust in their own viewpoints.