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| Distinguished Alumni |
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Kenneth B. Rulon
Kenneth Rulon has drawn from several sources to shape his successful career. One is his heritage as the great, great grandson of a man who homesteaded 80 acres in Hamilton County, Indiana, in the 1800s and whose property is today part of the 5,000-acre Rulon Enterprises family business.
Another is his Purdue education and 1982 Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics, through which he learned that marketing and risk management played roles at least equal to production and yield.
Yet another is the decade he spent as an employee in the plastics industry, where he sharpened his business skills before joining the family business in Cicero in 1991.
There, he oversees financial planting, accounting, risk management, and marketing, as well as corn planting and harvesting. A no-till operation, Rulon Enterprises prides itself on being an early adopter of new technology. Since 1963, the business has doubled its revenues about every seven years.
Over the years, Rulon has used statistically driven tactics to improve the business’ success. In 1993, Top Producer magazine named him Top Marketer of the Year. In 1998, Rulon Enterprises expanded by acquiring a 600-sow, farrow-to-finish hog operation that now represents a greater share of its business than grain.
Ken Rulon also co-founded a peer review group of 11 large Indiana farmers representing a combined 57,000 acres, who meet to share data on costs, yields, input pricing, and risk management strategies. And he’s been a speaker at Purdue Extension education programs and Top Crop Farmer Workshops.
For his outstanding contribution to the food, agriculture, and natural
resources system, the Purdue College of Agriculture is proud to present
the Distinguished Agricultural Alumnus Award to Kenneth Rulon.
| Anchors Aweigh for Family Unity
At 19 feet, boldly dressed in deep sky blue and white, Lady Jane presents a striking image. She’s great fun, too, on Indiana’s lakes. But floating and water skiing are this boat’s secondary purposes. Her most important task is providing opportunities for the Rulon family to enjoy time together. “Our value structure is faith, family, and farm, in that order,” says Kenneth Rulon, parent with his wife Jane of two teenage daughters, Jennifer and Kathryn. The idea for the boat came during a “family pow wow” a couple of years ago, when everyone listed the top 10 things they’d like to see and do in North America. “Everyone did their list independently, and when we came back together, a boat was number one for Jane and the girls and number two for me.” Lady Jane joined the family last June. “We all went shopping to buy it after listing all the features and benefits we wanted. We include everyone in these things,” Rulon says. Sixteen times that first summer, they were on the water together. “We can be skiing within 21 minutes of home,” he says. It’s a new sport for them, and “all four of us are in various stages of learning,” Rulon says. “For me, it’s easier to fall than it used to be, and it seems to hurt a little longer.” Besides being a vessel for family togetherness, the Lady Jane provides a break for these high-achievers in school and work. “Once you get into the boat, you leave the world at the dock,” Rulon says. “You don’t have peer pressure. You can turn off the cell phones. And it’s a good family getaway.” |
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