Biography
Kendall McDonald is the Operational Manager of the Newcomb Art Department. She is dedicated to ensuring the department’s resources, facilities, and financial processes fully support its students and academic mission. She has spent her career in higher education sustainability and municipal government, managing financial operations and programs.
Prior to joining Tulane in 2025, Kendall served as Associate Director of Sustainability at the University of Mississippi, where she oversaw a wide scope of administrative duties, including managing departmental budgets, supervision of cross-functional teams of staff and graduate assistants, and coordinating academic and community collaborations. In this role, she worked to incorporate donor cultivation to departmental efforts in order to expand academic offerings in sustainability. More recently, as a Development Manager for Memphis Parks, Kendall gained specialized experience in sponsorships and grant development, as well as large-scale, city-wide accreditation management.
Kendall has nurtured a deep personal connection to the arts throughout her life, beginning when she learned to paint from her grandmother as a child. Though her undergraduate studies and professional life took place largely outside of the arts, she has achieved 24 postgraduate credit hours with a specialization in ceramics. She has remained actively involved in the creative community, volunteering with organizations like the Memphis Urban Arts Commission to support local public art initiatives.
Outside of work, Kendall enjoys being outside, whether hiking, taking long bike rides, or exploring the natural world as a novice naturalist