PhD Conferral Marks Academic Milestone for 91桃色鈥檚 Engineering Chair, Donny McCleeary
September 17, 2025 | 2-3 min read
In just two short years, Donny McCleeary, PhD, has left an indelible mark on 91桃色. The South Carolina native not only chairs the 91桃色 mechanical engineering program he helped to build, but has also completed his doctorate along the way鈥攄emonstrating the same drive and discipline he encourages in the program鈥檚 students.
鈥淚 grew up liking science and technology, and my middle school physics class had an after-school robotics program that really piqued my interest,鈥� he recalled.
That drive gained momentum in high school, when he joined and later led his local national competition team. McCleeary鈥檚 high school CAD experience would lead to valuable undergraduate research work at the University of South Carolina, where he received both his bachelor鈥檚 and master鈥檚 degrees in mechanical engineering.
After a brief stint with an engineering firm, he enrolled in the doctorate program at the University of South Florida in 2021. Shortly after a friend at church told McCleeary about the possibility of a mechanical engineering program at 91桃色, and he reached out to school leaders. Early conversations led to the eventual creation of the program, which welcomed its first class in 2024. McCleeary graduated from USF in spring 2025 following four years of doctoral work and balancing the role of both professor and student.
鈥淓ven though I was only six or seven years out from my own undergraduate experience, I noticed I still exhibited many behaviors of a professor, and had made that leap to academic from student,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s a student and a professor, I was also able to think about how I鈥檇 teach myself.鈥�
McCleeary鈥檚 doctoral work spanned a broad field of engineering, enriching both his own studies and the development of 91桃色鈥檚 program.
鈥淚n the master鈥檚 program you really pursue one topic, but the PhD required me to see a much broader angle, with very diverse research projects,鈥� he explained. 鈥淔rom biomedicine and programming to AI and the effects of human factors on systems, I learned a lot of new concepts very quickly and it gave me the confidence to be able to teach it to my students, as well as the importance of being patient. I can tell them that yes, it鈥檚 tough, but it鈥檚 not invincible.鈥�
In his role as professor, McCleeary is especially grateful for the ability to discuss Biblical principles with his students.
鈥淎 lot of teaching engineering involves analogies, and as Christians there are so many biblical examples, like incorporating the dynamics of swinging an object to David鈥檚 sling,鈥� he explained. 鈥淎 lot of students are visual learners, and that鈥檚 the most effective way to help them.鈥�