Richard M. MacDonald, former long-time Associate Dean for Student Affairs in the USU School of Medicine, passed away October 25 after a brief illness.
Dr. MacDonald came to USU in 1983 as a senior Army psychiatrist. He established the mission of the Office for Student Affairs, serving as the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, and later Associate Dean, developing its original long-term vision and guiding principles. In 1989, he retired from active duty but continued his service as a DoD civilian. He remained in the position until 2013, when he moved over to the Office of the Dean to assist with a number of key strategic projects.
During his tenure at USU, Dr. MacDonald oversaw the personal, professional, and academic development of more than 4,700 medical students. Over the years he repeatedly took the lead of several key School of Medicine committees, to include the Committee on Admissions, the Student Advisory Council and the Student Awards Committee. He was a significant contributor to the development and successful implementation of the revised medical school curriculum.
Richard Malcolm MacDonald was a native of Walpole, Massachusetts. He completed his undergraduate degree at The Citadel, followed by his medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina, both in Charleston. Dr. MacDonald completed an internship in internal medicine at Northwestern University Medical Center, and his residency training at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, DC. In 1971-1972, he did an adolescent psychiatry fellowship at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center and Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Following completion of the fellowship, he was selected to serve as the administrator of the Adolescent Psychiatry Service at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He was board certified in both Psychiatry and Neurology and served as the Assistant Chief for the Psychiatry and Neurology Consultant Branch at the Office of the Army Surgeon General, and later as chief of Inpatient Psychiatry at Letterman Army Medical Center in San Francisco, Chief Consultant in Psychiatry and Neurology at the 1st Medical Command in Europe, and Assistant Chief of Psychiatry at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. His last assignment prior to coming to USU was as Consultant to the Army Surgeon General for Drug and Alcohol Abuse.
Dr. MacDonald held a faculty appointment in USU’s Department of Psychiatry from 1982 until his retirement in 2013, when he was bestowed Professor Emeritus status by the department.
Dr. MacDonald earned a number of awards throughout the course of his career, including the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal (5 times), the Nancy Roeske Award for Excellence in Psychiatric Education, the USU School of Medicine Outstanding Educator Award, the Outstanding Achievement and Service Award from the University of California at San Francisco, and the USU University Medal.