DCARSPA celebrates our successes with PHS grad Kautzky

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The Dallas County Area Retired School Personnel Association (DCARSPA) continued their 2018 theme of Celebrating Our Successes Thursday, with a program featuring 2000 Perry High School graduate Keegan Kautzky, who delivered a presentation at the Spring Valley campus of the Perry Lutheran Homes.

After completing his PHS studies, Kautzky earned a bacheloer’s degree in political science from Iowa State University and a master’s degree in international development studies and a master’s degree in public health, both from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Kautzky is now the director of global programs and partnerships for the World Food Prize, a position he recently attained after serving since 2008 as the director of national education programs for the World Food Prize, the food-supply equivalent of the Nobel Peace Prize. He works in Washington, D.C.

The Perry graduate told the story of how he was taken under the wing of Norman Borlaug, himself a Nobel Peace Prize winner, father of the Green Revolution and founder of the World Food Prize. Kautzky said he met Borlaug when he was a freshman at ISU, and he described for the 50 DCARSPA members how Borlaug mentored him and changed his life’s direction.

“Caring isn’t enough,” Borlaug told Kautzky, directing him to look for gaps in the education system and devise ways to bring “transformative, life-changing experiences” to the next generation of technocrats.

“It is a joy every day to get up and get to go to work to fulfill Norm’s last wish,” Kautzky said, “to inspire the next generation of scientists and leaders, who will solve the greatest challenges we face and who will find a way to feed 9 billion people on this planet sustainably.”

Kautzky illustrated his work in global education with the program planned for the 2019 Iowa Youth Institute, called Global Challenge. He said his 30-year goal as the director of global programs and partnerships is to reach 100 million young with the global-problem-creative-solution programs.

Kautzky also spoke warmly about his youth in Perry and his experiences in the Perry public schools. He thanked all the retired teachers and staff members in attendance, and joked with DCARSPA Co-Chairperson Linda Andorf.

A luncheon followed the presentation.