GF’s Kilbourn awarded honorary FFA degree

At the 96th Arkansas State FFA Convention, the Arkansas FFA Association awarded an Honorary State FFA Degree to Keith Kilbourn, dean of students and former agricultural education instructor/FFA adviser at Green Forest Schools. The Honorary State FFA Degree is the highest honorary degree that can be awarded on the state level.

Individuals who have provided exceptional service on the state level to agriculture, agricultural education, or FFA are eligible for the Honorary State FFA Degree. Additionally, teachers who have created high-quality agricultural education programs that inspire and motivate their students to strive for success are eligible.

Kilbourn, who taught agriculture education for 33 years, began his career at St. Joe in 1989. In 1991, he moved to Marshall where he spent six years as the FFA adviser. In 1997, he had the opportunity to return home after his former agricultural teacher, Arlus Trice, retired. Kilbourn remained as the agricultural science teacher/FFA adviser at Green Forest for the next 25 years.

During his time as an agricultural teacher, Kilbourn impacted thousands of students’ lives and taught them the importance of agriculture to America. Many former students choose careers in the agriculture field because of the influence that Kilbourn had on their lives.

Also during his career, Kilbourn trained/ coached six state champion teams and numerous district-winning teams. In 2013, the Green Forest poultry evaluation team placed third in the national competition with several of the FFA members on the team receiving national recognition.

During his 33-year career as an agricultural instructor, Kilbourn served as the Arkansas Agriculture Teachers Association district vice president for 12 years and was also a member of both the state and national agriculture teachers association board of directors for several years.