Kerr Center in 2005:
Celebrating 40 Years of Good Ideas

The late Senator Robert S. Kerr

This year marks a milestone for the Kerr Center: forty years of service to the state’s farmers and ranchers.

Oklahoma’s visionary senator Robert S. Kerr (born 1896) worked for a prosperous future for rural Oklahoma. After he died suddenly in 1963, his family established a private, non-profit foundation in his name to engage in scientific, educational and charitable activities.

The agricultural division of the Kerr Foundation was established in 1965 to provide farmers and ranchers in southeastern Oklahoma with free technical assistance and information. Wise land stewardship was emphasized.

The “ag division” was headquartered on Senator Kerr’s ranch near Poteau and its focus was on beef cattle. Before long, the foundation gained a reputation as a source of honest, reliable, science-based information.

The organization led a hard-fought local, later national educational campaign against brucellosis, a serious cattle disease. (When Oklahoma was certified free from brucellosis in 2001, the Kerr Center was honored for its part in this achievement.)
In the mid-80s, foundation trustees, led by the senator’s daughter, Kay Adair, recognized that Oklahoma agriculture was in crisis. Environmental and financial problems on the farm needed to be addressed with fresh ideas that emphasized long-term solutions.

So in the best Oklahoma pioneering tradition, the organization made a fresh start, reorganizing as the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture in 1985.

The principles of the sustainable agriculture movement— opportunities for small and medium-sized independent family farms, protection of natural resources, fair and open markets, and healthy, socially supportive rural communities—were a natural fit for the Kerr Center.

Under the dynamic leadership of Dr. James E. Horne, president and CEO, the Kerr Center has become an award-winning, innovative institution— a local and national leader in finding creative solutions to the agricultural, environmental, and social challenges facing Oklahoma and the nation.

Today the Kerr Center continues its forty-year history of supporting research and educational activities for Oklahomans and people in the region. Many educational events are planned for this year—see calendar of events for details.

The center also supports innovative policy initiatives and provides policy guidance to public servants on the state, regional, and national levels. A new community foods initiative is outlined, beginning on page 3.

With the help of partners and friends, the Kerr Center will be planting seeds of positive change for years to come.