McDonald, Alonzo Lowry, 1928-

Alonzo Lowry McDonald was born on August 5, 1928 in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1948 he graduated from Emory University, and worked as a reporter from 1948-1950 for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps, 1950-1952, and worked in TV promotion and advertising, 1952-1954. In 1956 he graduated from Harvard University with a Master of Business Administration. He worked for the Air Conditioning Division of Westinghouse Electric Corporation, 1956-1960; and 1960-1977 he was a member of the law firm McKinsey and Company, Inc., holding various positions including Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer for world-wide activities. In July 1977, McDonald was appointed Deputy Special Trade Representative with rank of Ambassador, heading the US Delegation to the Tokyo Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations in Geneva, Switzerland. At the end of the Tokyo Round in April 1979, he returned to Washington and serve as project manager under Ambassador Robert Strauss for Congressional/Public liaison on trade negotiations legislation. On August 9, 1979, he was then appointed Acting Special Trade Representative after the resignation of Robert Strauss. One day later on August 10, 1979, McDonald was also appointed Assistant to the President and White House Staff Director serving immediately under the White House Chief of Staff. However, on September 6, 1979, he resigned his position as Special Trade Representative, in order to devote his full attention to his White House duties. In his position as White House Staff Director, October 1979 - 1981, he served directly under the White House Chief of Staff. His responsibilities included the overall coordination of White House operations, to assure effective policy formulation and implementation of the President's programs in concert with the Chief of Staff. At the end of the Carter administration in 1981, McDonald became a Harvard University Faculty Member as a Senior Lecturer in the Graduate School of Business Administration.