Dr. Ken Hellevang
Dr. Kenneth (Ken) Hellevang is recognized as one of the nation’s leading experts on grain storage and grain drying. Dr. Hellevang was Extension Agricultural Engineer at North Dakota State University (NDSU) from 1980 to 2024, a time of great expansion in on-farm and commercial grain storage; and an accompanying expansion of grain storage issues. He developed the recommended guidelines for designing and operating a natural air and low temperature drying system for North Dakota crops that has become the standard in this region and nationally.
Dr. Hellevang served in leadership positions of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and eHereceived the Sukup Global Food Security Award in recognition of his outstanding application of engineering in the storage and handling of grains. He received the American Society of Agricultural Engineers’ International Engineering Achievement Award and the society’s Professional Engineer of the Year awards. In 2011, he was given the NDSU AGSCO Excellence in Extension Award.
Dr. Hellevang has authored or made significant contributions to more than 230 publications and videos, with more than 250,000 copies having been distributed internationally. He was a major author of a Midwest Plan Service handbook that is used as a university textbook and planning resource by the grain industry.
Now retired, Dr. Hellevang is Professor Emeritus at NDSU.
Year Inducted: 2026