Donna McKereghan Makes a Difference

Fish in the Bowl, A glance of the lives of those who have affected the Spoaken Community.
The Gonzaga Bulletin, October 1, 2004

Donna McKereghan
by Steven Lowry, Staff Writer

Career: She is a doctoral student at Gonzaga, a retired professor from Eastern Washington University and president of the Logan Neighborhood Organization.

Personal: McKereghan is working toward her Ph.D. in leadership studies at Gonzaga. She holds a 3.98 GPA, and is near the end of a long journey of academics.

McKereghan applied for admission at Eastern Washington University in the fall of 1988, but her application was denied on the basis of her epilepsy. She decided to work toward changing the law in order to protect her right to attend a state university. She contacted the Spokane Epilepsy Foundation and it informed her that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 already did just that. McKereghan enrolled at EWU that fall. In 1992, she graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of arts in philosophy and humanities. At commencement McKereghan was awarded the EWU President's Commendation.

From the fall 1999 to summer 2004, McKereghan taught philosophy at EWU. She was the only full-time female faculty member in the philosophy department.

In 1993 McKereghan began working on her master's degree in philosophy at Gonzaga. That year she joined the Gonzaga Student Body Association Judicial Board and received the GSBA Justice of the Year award. McKereghan received her master of arts in philosophy in 1998. She graduated with a 3.96 GPA.

Community Impact: McKereghan's status in the University as both a student and a permanent resident of the neighborhood gives her a unique perspective on the relationship between the school and the community.

"She's real concerned with the community," said Sue Weitz, vice president of student life.

As president of the neighborhood association, McKereghan is impressed with the improvement in communication between the student body and its surrounding community.

"The community's relationship with the students is getting better. We've seen progress in the last four years, huge progress in the last two. So much so that now the challenge is for the neighborhood to step up," said McKereghan.

This progress is predominantly a result of the Adopt-A-Block program which pushes school-sponsored clubs and organizations to become active with the residents of one block in the Logan Neighborhood.

"I'd love to see Adopt-A-Block move toward stronger community relationships," said GSBA Vice President Dan Rott.