50 Years of Excellence: MS Marketing Program Shapes Industry Leaders Through Lasting Connections

Dr. Stephen McDaniel | Photo by Abbey Santoro/Texas A&M Division of Marketing & Communications

“When you look outside the window of my office, you’ll see a tree and a beautiful marble bench the MS Marketing students arranged in honor of my wife who passed away from ovarian cancer. It was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for my wife and me,” says Dr. Stephen W. McDaniel ’71, ’72, affectionately known to students as “Dr. Mac.” 

A fixture in the Master of Science in Marketing program, which celebrates 50 years in 2025, McDaniel is a marketing graduate of Mays himself, with both a BBA and MBA in marketing. A few years after he graduated, the MS Marketing program was founded, and he returned in 1980 to join the Department of Marketing faculty. 

Beginning in 1981 and continuing today, McDaniel has traveled with marketing students to Europe as part of a summer study abroad program. For years, McDaniel’s wife, Nancy, joined him. Equally passionate about mentoring students, Nancy became known as “Mama Mac.” After she died on Jan. 18, 2017, the MS Marketing class of 2017, including the students who had traveled with the couple and others who had come to know her, looked for a way to honor Mama Mac. To help with the funding of her memorial, the students turned to the MS Marketing Advisory Board with their idea, and within five minutes, its members had happily agreed to donate the remaining money needed. 

The Class of 2017 MS Marketing students next to the tree they planted in honor of Mama Mac. | Photo courtesy Stephen McDaniel

For Dr. Mac, the tree is a sweet daily reminder of both his wife and the strong relationships formed between students and faculty at Mays. In his four decades teaching here, Dr. Mac has seen a lot of change. As the marketing landscape evolved, so did the MS Marketing program. It received an infusion of attention when Dr. Mac became the first program director in 1998 (a position he held until 2019). He revamped the curriculum to prepare students for the future of business, emphasizing e-commerce to reflect the impact of technology advancement over time. Today, the curriculum has shifted to be quantitatively driven, integrating courses on digital marketing, social media analytics, analyzing consumer behavior, and data-driven strategy. 

The MS Marketing Advisory Board launched in 1999 with marketing professionals from six top-tier companies who began informing the curriculum structure by offering industry perspectives. The advisory board’s feedback continuously shapes the MS Marketing program, ensuring its relevance to the business world. Advisory board members and other company representatives also play an active part in the classroom with frequent visits to campus as guest speakers and to create connections with students, giving them guidance on how to prosper as a future marketing leader. 

The advisory board that began for program guidance expanded to a corporate mentorship program where incoming students are paired with a board member who guides them throughout the program, offering support on securing internships and full-time jobs. The impact of these lasting connections mark the Aggie difference in our MS Marketing program. Many former students still meet with their mentors, years after graduating. 

This spirit of connection also inspired Dr. Mac to create the Marketing Consulting course (MKTG 660) in the early 2000s. In the hands-on class, students work on real world projects for major companies including Apple, Coca-Cola, Dell, FedEx, HP, Southwest Airlines, and Walmart. Students often go on to work with the corporate partners in internships and full-time roles. 

Dr. Mac with marketing students at Kellogg corporate headquarters | Photo courtesy Stephen McDaniel

Beyond its innovative and practical curriculum, the program’s success lies in this culture of connections that the MS Marketing program has cultivated over the last 50 years. Small cohort sizes and dedicated faculty have fostered lifelong connections that continue to thrive even after graduation and have changed the trajectory of students’ careers. 

Dr. Mac handed over the reigns of the program director role a few years ago to Lisa Burton ’10, a 2010 MS-Marketing graduate, who led from 2019 until 2024, when Kourtney Gruner ’03 ’10, became the director. Today, he is still a mentor for students and graduates, communicating daily with MS-Marketing graduates, teaching the required Freshman Business Initiative course (BUSN 101), and continuing to lead 80 students on the summer study abroad trip. Reflecting on the legacy of the MS Marketing program, Dr. Mac shares a quote that shapes his relationships with students and colleagues: “When you are tired of interruptions, try to remember that the very frequency of your interruptions may indicate the valuableness of your life.”

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Mays Business School offers both in-person and online MS Marketing programs today. Learn more and apply today.