Rafael MCDONNELL

Rafael McDonnell is the Senior Advocacy, Policy, and Communications Manager for Resource Center, one of the largest LGBTQIA community centers in the United States. At the Center, he leads a three-person team who works on education, advocacy and policy issues involving the LGBTQIA community on behalf of the Center and assists on external communications.

Since June 2010, he has successfully participated in or led community advocacy for new or expanded LGBTQIA employment protections for over 65,000 public sector employees in North Texas, as well as partner benefits at both Dallas County and Dallas Area Rapid Transit.  McDonnell has also worked on and advocated for anti-bullying and non-discrimination policies covering more than a quarter-million students at Dallas ISD, Dallas County Community Colleges, and Uplift Education, and transgender healthcare at Dallas County.

He was chosen to be the one of the grand marshals for the 2014 Alan Ross Texas Freedom Parade, better known as the Dallas Pride Parade. In March 2015, he was named “Best LGBT Community Leader” by the readers of the Dallas Voice. In May 2016, McDonnell was designated as a “Living Saint” by the DFW Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for his work on behalf of the LGBTQIA community. In June 2016, he was among six people recognized by the City of Dallas’ LGBTQIA Task Force with the Spirit of Equality Leadership Award as part of their work with “Take Back Oak Lawn,” a grassroots effort to improve safety and security in the Oak Lawn/Cedar Springs area following a wave of attacks in late 2015.

In 2017, the North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce honored him with the Extra Mile Community Service Award and the Dallas Tavern Guild recognized him with their annual Humanitarian Award. The Texas Diversity Council honored McDonnell with their Greater Dallas LGBT-Allies Leadership Award in 2018. That same year, the University of North Texas’ Mayborn College of Journalism honored him with a Career Service Recognition award.

McDonnell has conducted presentations on non-discrimination, antibullying and other LGBTQIA issues at the Texas Transgender Non-Discrimination Summit, the Texas Gay-Straight Alliance, the Equality Texas’ State of the State Public Policy Conference, the Stonewall Democrats of Texas annual meeting, and three times at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s annual Creating Change conference among others.

McDonnell’s 35+-year career as a professional communicator includes working at radio and television stations in Dallas, Houston, and Oklahoma City, where his work was honored by the Texas AP Broadcasters, the Dallas Press Club, and the Texas Public Health Association. Prior to joining the Center in 2008, he was a member of the news office at the University of North Texas and participated in UNT’s Allies program. McDonnell is a former president of Lambda Pride Toastmasters and vice president of Dignity/Dallas, a group for LGBTQ Roman Catholics. He is a former board member of the Trinity Valley School alumni association and the North Texas Fair Housing Center, a former member of the City of Fort Worth Historic and Cultural Landmarks Commission, the City of Fort Worth Urban Design Commission, and has volunteered for the Tanqueray AIDS Rides & the Lone Star Ride Fighting AIDS.

In addition to his work at the Center, McDonnell is currently the chair of the City of Fort Worth Zoning Commission and serves on the advisory council for Community Healthcare of North Texas. McDonnell earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas Christian University and a master’s degree from the University of North Texas.