{"id":5854,"date":"2024-12-16T13:14:38","date_gmt":"2024-12-16T18:14:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/?p=5854"},"modified":"2025-01-03T09:52:50","modified_gmt":"2025-01-03T14:52:50","slug":"ernest-mcdonald","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/2024\/12\/16\/ernest-mcdonald\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr. Ernest McDonald: From Dropout to Doctor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-paragraph\">In this inspiring episode of &#8220;Standing In The Gap,&#8221; Dr. Tonjua Williams sits down with SPC alum Dr. Ernest McDonald to explore the themes of leadership, decision-making, and overcoming fear and inadequacy. Dr. McDonald shares his remarkable journey from dropping out of school in sixth grade to earning a doctorate in pharmacy and becoming a Clinical Pharmacist at Largo Medical Center. Through honest reflections, he discusses his challenges, including financial struggles, academic setbacks, and feelings of inadequacy, and how he found the courage to persevere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-paragraph\">With the support of programs like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spcollege.edu\/current-students\/student-affairs\/student-support-resources\/retention-services\/brother-to-brother\">Brother to Brother<\/a> and mentors who believed in him, Dr. McDonald emphasizes the transformative power of community, mentorship, and asking for help. He highlights the importance of continuous learning, leveraging technology for growth, and building a strong support network. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-paragraph\">Brother to Brother\u00a0is a program at\u00a0SPC\u00a0that aims to increase African American male college students&#8217; retention, progression, and graduation rates by providing academic, social, career, and co-curricular resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio wp-block-paragraph\">His story is a testament to resilience and the power of education, offering hope and inspiration for anyone striving to overcome obstacles and achieve their dreams. Don\u2019t miss this heartfelt conversation about breaking barriers and making an impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Standing In The Gap, EP20: Dr. Ernest McDonald\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jDxROecvjc0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Be sure to <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/podcast\/\">subscribe to Standing In The Gap<\/a><\/strong> from your favorite podcast platform!<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/standing-in-the-gap\/id1736752420\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5552\" style=\"width:50px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Apple-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/1m1KqLpJQJIlP52jj1awpZ \" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5555\" style=\"width:50px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Spotify-1-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.iheart.com\/podcast\/269-standing-in-the-gap-160064209\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5554\" style=\"width:50px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_iHeart-1-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.audible.com\/podcast\/Standing-In-The-Gap\/B0CY92SRH3?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&amp;share_location=pdp \" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5553\" style=\"width:50px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_Audible-1-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/playlist?list=PLhuGwmtXb0PA0m8_qweLv8fCd21aYtIEG\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-1024x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-5556\" style=\"width:50px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-1024x1024.png 1024w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-768x768.png 768w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-1536x1536.png 1536w, https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/45\/2024\/03\/Podcast-Icons_YouTube-1-2048x2048.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this inspiring episode of &#8220;Standing In The Gap,&#8221; Dr. Tonjua Williams sits down with SPC alum Dr. Ernest McDonald to explore the themes of leadership, decision-making, and overcoming fear and inadequacy. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1856,"featured_media":5855,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1856"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5854"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5854\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5871,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5854\/revisions\/5871"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}