Family Traditio

“I’ve always been hooked,” said Ken Isley when asked about the Fraternity. His involvement comes as no surprise to anyone who knows Ken or his family. Isley grew up in central Iowa and, following in his brother’s footsteps, joined the Eta Chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho at Iowa State University in 1980. Ken went on to serve as Noble Ruler. After graduating now known as an Educational Leadership Consultant. In 2017, he served Educational Foundation of Alpha Gamma Rho Board of Directors.

LLP in Indianapolis. He previously served as the head of Corporate and Financial Law; head of Litigation, Regulatory and Operations; head of Latin America Legal; and vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of Dow’s agricultural subsidiary, Dow AgroSciences. He has also served as administrator of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agriculture Service and chairman of the USDA’s Intra-Departmental Coordination on from Iowa State University, a juris doctorate from the University of Iowa,

What drew you to Alpha Gamma Rho?

I joined in the summer of 1980 after I graduated from high school. And moved into the chapter house in the fall of 1980. Back in that time period, the brotherhood program was a much longer process. I came in with a class of about 28 or so. That was tied to my brother who was two years ahead of me in high school. He joined Alpha Gamma Rho so I was kind of a natural progression there. I was a legacy member.

What was it like having your biological brother as a brother?

It was very interesting; Michael was very involved on campus. Particularly on the livestock judging team and some other similar opportunities on campus. I had a lot of respect for him and still do. It was a great experience, but I tell you the thing you realize when you join, of those you were initiated with become almost family-like. I mean we can be very close and continue to be close to this day.

A great experience while I was on staff was going to the National Convention in Big Sky, Montana. I rode out with some of the other staff and it happened to be the same time as the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Wow! We arrived late at night looking for a hotel. And of course, there were no hotel rooms available. A staff member had a tent with him because he was going to stay after the Convention and go camping. We pitched the tent alongside the interstate and it didn’t last too long because all you could hear all night was the sound of motorcycles.

There’s a lot of changes in the culture of the country and the issues. They are very prevalent in weren’t so much back then, you know 30 years ago or more so how the fraternity has continued to adapt, stay modern, stay relevant. One of the big ones obviously is the change in the Brotherhood Program chapters now utilize, as opposed to 30-40 years ago. Those were positive steps forward for the training and the ability for AGR to be able to navigate the current landscape on college campuses and in the broader culture.

It’s to continue that modernization process and to be able to really identify what’s the value of the Fraternity. How are we going to measure that and how are we going to continue to enhance value proposition for young men who are considering joining AGR, the undergraduate members in terms of skills t successful beyond college. Whether that place is in agribusiness, whether that’s going back to a farming operation or something else. It is a lifelong network. How do we as a National Fraternity enable and enhance all those opportunitiesby providing you, our undergraduate members, with the resources, programs, and particularly that leadership development element?

What’s kept you engaged?

I’m a believer in the power of AGR, the impact that AGR has on a lot of young men’s lives, and the network it establishes for the entirety of a person’s life. I’ve been looking at it more broadly and thinking about all the issues facing the agricultural industry — there is no better group of people to help address those issues than AGR’s.

Throughout Ken's interview, his passion for Alpha Gamma Rho shown bright. He believes all brothers, from collegiate to alumni should be working together for the betterment of their chapter and our Fraternity.