Dale McDonald Named 2014 Hardin Professor

Dale McDonald Named 2014 Hardin Professor

Dr. Dale B. McDonald, Associate Professor of Engineering, was named Hardin Professor for 2014 during the MSU commencement ceremony May 10. Hardin Professor is the highest honor bestowed upon a faculty member at the university each year.

The Hardin Foundation for Wichita County established the annual award in 1962 for a member of the MSU faculty whose teaching and research of the preceding 12 months has brought distinction to the faculty member and the institution. The award carries with it a stipend of $3,500.

McDonald earned his bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering from Washington State University, Pullman.

In addition to his teaching responsibilities, McDonald has refereed numerous conferences and peer-reviewed journals in his field and has been active in professional organizations including American Society of Mechanical Engineers, International Conference on the Analysis and Mathematical Applications in Engineering and Science, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. He also has made a number of scholarly presentations at national science and mathematics conferences.

During his tenure at the university, McDonald has served on a number of departmental and campus committees, including the EURECA Undergraduate Research and Advisory Committee, Student Engagement Task Force, Quality Enhancement Plan Proposal Committee, and the Faculty Senate.

His research includes collaborations with professionals in the field of mechanical engineering as well as in the medical field. He has also presented abstracts during the annual meetings of the Texas Academy of Science and before fellows of the American College of Gastroenterology. His involvement with these abstracts is the result of his collaboration with Dr. Louis J. Wilson, a local gastroenterologist, and Dr. James Johnston, Dean of the Gunn College of Health Sciences and Human Services, on the administration of the drug propofol. As a result, the three have applied for a patent under the name "Modeling and Predicting Propofol Dosage."

McDonald has been active with the university's research initiative for undergraduates and has collaborated with colleagues in the biology and art departments. Those projects included a study of predator-prey interaction between the wolf spider and the cricket, and a kiln feasibility project. After his first year of teaching at MSU, McDonald was recognized as the Professor of the Year by the McCoy School of Engineering.