Gerald R. McKay was born on October 23, 1908 in Crooks, South Dakota. He earned an A.A. degree from St. Cloud State Teachers College in 1933, a B.S. in 1939 and M.S. in 1949 from the University of Minnesota. He also completed course work in audio-visual education at Cornell University and Michigan State University (1949 and 1961). Beginning in 1945, McKay was professor of agricultural extension and audio-visual specialist in the Institute of Agriculture at the University of Minnesota. He took a leave from 1953 to 1954 to serve as a consultant in visual education for the Mutual Security Agency and Foreign Operations Administration in Europe. He retired from the University in 1974 as Professor Emeritus. Even after his retirement, Professor McKay did not slow down. For six months between 1976 and 1979, he served as a communication consultant for Barani project for AID. He planned and developed educational materials to be used by an agricultural advisory personnel in Pakistan. Professor McKay was also awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed on an alumnus of the University of Minnesota (2001).
From the guide to the Gerald R. McKay papers, 1945-1979, (University of Minnesota Libraries. University Archives [uarc])
