But as life unfolded, a desire to be closer to his family’s farm drew him back to Calhoun County, where his FFA journey started.

“It was a natural progression to be in FFA,” said Hildreth, 35, CEO of the Calhoun County Electric Cooperative Association (ECA). “I’d shown livestock when I was a member of the Union Leaders 4-H Club, and there was never any question that I’d join FFA when I was in high school.”

Hildreth earned the FFA Star Greenhand Award his freshman year. He participated in conduct-of-meetings competitions, as well as parliamentary procedure contests.

Hands-on lessons in production agriculture also appealed to him. He took advantage of unique opportunities available at Southern Cal High School (now South Central Calhoun), thanks to the FFA chapter’s farm southeast of Lake City. Hildreth and his fellow FFA members raised seed popcorn and earned a premium for their efforts.

-Messenger photo by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
From left, Keaton Hildreth, CEO of the Calhoun County Electric Cooperative Association in Rockwell City, works closely with members of the co-op's board of directors, including Steve Boedecker of Twin Lakes and Jim Miller of Fonda.

“That was my first experience with something other than traditional corn and soybean production,” said Hildreth, who became the chapter farm manager, as well as the chapter vice president, his senior year.

In addition, FFA connected Hildreth and his classmates with the community around them through service projects like Project Pals, where FFA members teamed up with local second-grade students. The high schoolers would meet with the grade-school kids periodically to create ag-related crafts, plant a flower for Mother’s Day, enjoy a picnic in the park and help the kids learn more about agriculture.

“Project Pals was a good way to teach younger kids about the importance of agriculture, regardless of whether they grew up on the farm or in town,” Hildreth said.

This experience also planted a seed that would take root when Hildreth was in college.

While he majored in ag studies at Iowa State University, he became more interested in ag education the more he talked with some of his buddies at ISU.

“Matt Carlson, my high school ag ed teacher and FFA advisor, was also extremely supportive of my decision to focus on ag education,” Hildreth said.

After switching majors, Hildreth returned to his FFA roots when he spent one Christmas break job shadowing at the high school in Lake City. He later student-taught at East Sac High School.

“I was blessed to work with Scott Johnson, who was an East Sac ag teacher and FFA advisor at the time,” said Hildreth, adding that Johnson went on to become the executive director of the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny.

“He was an awesome mentor who taught me how to stay organized, prepare kids for FFA contests and so much more.”

Former student appreciates Hildreth’s leadership

By the time Hildreth graduated from ISU in 2011, he had a biology endorsement and a job lined up at Spencer High School. Since an ag teacher’s job is a 12-month commitment, he began working with local ag students that summer before the fall semester began.

“From the start, I tried to create an atmosphere of mutual respect and hands-on, activity-based, experiential learning,” Hildreth said.

That included a 12-acre test plot behind the middle school, as well as a 55-acre, corn/soybean farm that the Spencer FFA rented from Dave Hultgren, who owned Hultgren Implement.

“I had a great support system through the Spencer community,” Hildreth said. “The Spencer Chamber of Commerce has an ag committee, and they helped raise money so we could build a small greenhouse for the school’s ag program.”

In addition, Hildreth’s ag students operated the 55-acre farm using modern, John Deere equipment from Hultgren Implement in Spencer. Students in Hildreth’s agronomy classes ordered the seed and crop inputs, while ag business students kept the financial records for the farm.

“I loved seeing how these experiences sparked more interest in ag from a wide range of kids, including ones who grew up in town,” Hildreth said. “Some of my students who didn’t see themselves pursuing a career in ag decided to study ag at Iowa Lakes Community College, ISU and other schools.”

Patrick White was one of Hildreth’s ag students in Spencer. White founded AA Commodities & Investments in Spencer after earning his ag business degree from ISU and continues to play an active role in his family’s grain farm.

“I liked having Keaton as an advisor, because he gave us the opportunity to try new things and always went out of his way to make sure every kid succeeded,” said White, who won the state FFA soil judging contest and competed at nationals during high school. “He looked for any opportunity he could to help students broaden their horizons and learn about farming and future opportunities in agriculture.”

As a commodities broker and farmer, White uses the skills he learned in FFA to communicate more effectively with his clients and convey his ideas in a clear, concise way.

“FFA helps many people become more effective communicators, leaders and professionals that this world desperately needs,” Hildreth said.

Hildreth embraces lifelong learning, serving others

Like many successful professionals, Hildreth has prioritized continuing education and giving back. During the summer of 2013, he did both (and married his wife, Emily) in a whirlwind span of three weeks.

He started off at the Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE) Institute at the FFA Enrichment Center in Ankeny. Then he chaperoned one of his FFA students, along with other students from Sioux Central High School and Audubon High School, to Haiti for two weeks with Global Compassion Network.

The volunteers built Iowa-made Sukup Safe T Homes — durable, metal houses designed to withstand hurricanes. The volunteers also helped paint an orphanage for girls in Haiti and built fencing to contain the orphanage’s livestock.

“When you have opportunities like this, say yes,” Hildreth said. “Also, when you meet people who only make $1 a day, live in shacks with dirt floors and cook over open fires, it gives you a whole new perspective on life.”

While Hildreth loved teaching in Spencer, he began looking for opportunities to work closer to his family’s farm near the Rockwell City/Lohrville area, especially as he and Emily started a family. He left Spencer in 2014 when he became the manager of member services at the Calhoun County ECA. In 2018, Hildreth was promoted to CEO of the Calhoun County ECA.

Today, he also serves as president of the Calhoun County Economic Development Corporation and is a member of the South Central Calhoun school board. In addition, he serves as the school board’s representative to the school’s FFA Chapter Farm and Fruit Board.

Hildreth still uses the skills he learned through FFA, from parliamentary procedure at board meetings to the organization, time management and communic ation skills he relied on as an FFA advisor and ag teacher.

“I try to give 100% to everything I do,” he said. “While I’m no longer teaching, I still have a goal to create more opportunities for the people I serve.”