Mrs. Whitney McDonald

This is just my second year to live in Hallsville and be with Hallsville ISD. I have enjoyed getting to know everyone and all things Bobcats. It just so happens that purple is my favorite color. This year I am switching from my 20+ year social studies comfort zone back to my roots as an English Language Arts/Reading teacher. I will also continue to teach a gifted and talented advisory class.

Before moving here, I taught for 25 years at EJ Moss Intermediate in Lindale ISD. Over the years I taught language arts, science, social studies, and was the 4th-6th grade gifted and talented teacher for my last three years there.

I am a Baylor University 1996 graduate--Sic 'em Bears--and grew up in the tiny town of Eastland in central Texas where my graduating class had a whopping 52 kids in it!

My husband Chris and I just got married on July 22 and have four daughters, two grandchildren + one on the way. We are one big happy blended family. My oldest, Kelsey (25), lives in Fort Hood with the love of her life, Otis, and their children, Eli (7) and Christina (5). She's an emergency department nurse and he's in the military. My youngest, Makenna (22), lives with them to help as the kids' nanny and also is a server at Texas Roadhouse. My bonus girls are Margeaux, an 8th grader at HJH and Blaique, a 2nd grader at East Elementary.

I enjoy family dinners at home (that usually include multiple neighborhood kids) but also like eating at our favorite Longview restaurants, such as Don Benito's and Bubba's 33. Our patio is our favorite spot where we have a perfect view of the sunset every night. We also love going to concerts in all different places and have been to see Brooks & Dunn/Reba McEntire (Las Vegas), Luke Combs/Ashley McBryde (Vegas), Jason Aldean/Gabby Barrett (Tulsa, OK), Journey/Toto (NOLA), Jason Aldean/Chase Rice (Nashville), Shenandoah/Billy Dean (Shreveport) and Bryan Adams/Joan Jett (Fort Worth) in the past two years. In October we will be going on our honeymoon over fall break. This will be my first ever cruise; we are headed to Cozumel, Costa Maya, and Roatan. In addition to traveling, I like to read, especially historical nonfiction, as well as complete jigsaw and Sudoku puzzles and drink coffee on my patio. I love finding unique coffee mugs to add to my collection, as well as interesting stickers that fit my personality to add to my classroom desk.