After 18 years as a secondary campus principal, and a total of 31 years within the Houston ISD, I am retiring.  My journey to this point was not linear and I am proud of the personal learning I have gained in the areas of leadership, organizational culture, leadership coaching, and overall professional development.

After graduating from the University of Houston (UH) with a Philosophy degree, I entered the Alternative Certification Program within the HISD in order to gain teacher certification in Mathematics.  After teaching for 8 years at both the middle school and high school levels, I earned my Masters in Education Leadership & Cultural Studies from the UH & gained my Principal certification.  4 years as an assistant principal at Bellaire HS prepared me to serve for nearly 6 years as the campus Principal at Pin Oak MS.  While leading that campus, we earned the National Blue Ribbon Award, and we were selected as a National Model Middle School.  Soon after that, I became the lead MS Principal for the West Region of HISD.  And then after leading Westside HS for 2.5 years, I returned to Bellaire HS as Principal in August 2012.

I enjoy working with new principals and riffing on big ideas that can make secondary schools work better for kids.

My wife is a school registrar and our two children are so different (A Senior in the Sargent Conservatory for the Arts at Webster University & a Junior at the University of Houston).  They both keep me on my toes.  I also enjoy running, movies, my 2X World Series Champion Astros, and any time my family will offer.

Twitter:  @mcdonoughEDU

Instagram:  @msquaredbhs