Steven Mcdaniel
Professor Steven J. McDaniel is a member of Adjunct Faculty at Taft College, for English, Communications, and Speech.
McDaniel earned his Master’s Degree in English from National University and has been a public speaker for more than 20 years. He believes that writing and speaking are the keys to success in life. Whether working on a paper for a history class, delivering an address to Congress, or sharing ideas with friends and family, communication is the essential art that ties all of humanity together.
McDaniel was born in the central San Joaquin Valley in the city of Lindsay, California. After high school, he joined the military and served three years in the U.S. Army. He was stationed at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, and helped serve the people of Kauai during hurricane Iniki. This is also where he began his pursuit of higher education at a community college satellite campus on Schofield Barracks.
McDaniel has been involved in the field of communications most of his adult life, working in sales, teaching seminars, and writing and performing dramas. He has worked with a traveling drama troupe performing various plays across the United States. He knows how difficult and daunting it can be to stand before a crowd of thousands knowing that every eye and ear is focused on the performer. Instructor McDaniel challenges himself to make the classroom a sanctuary of learning, thought, and personal exploration.
McDaniel says a T. H. White quote reflects his philosophy of life and teaching, “I should pray to God to let me encounter all the evil in the world in my own person, so that if I conquered, there would be none left, and, if I were defeated, I would be the one to suffer for it.” In his view, the real enemy in our lives is the fear and uncertainty within us as individuals.
McDaniel is a husband, father, and friend to many. He invites potential students into his workshop of human communication to explore the gifts you may not know you have. Together, there can be an exploration of the self and soul that culminates in a life more fruitfully lived.