Northwestern Agriculture Chair Receives University of Arkansas Graduate of Distinction Award

April 29, 2026

Dr. Dean Scarbrough (right) receives the John Sheffield Teacher of the Year Award from NWOSU SGA President Braydon Stoner at the Alumni Spring Reunion Awards Ceremony.

ALVA, Okla. — Dr. Dean Scarbrough, professor of agriculture and chair of the Agriculture Department at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, was recently awarded the 2026 “Advanced Graduate of Distinction Award” from the University of Arkansas Animal Science Department.

The honor was presented during the University of Arkansas Animal Science Awards and Scholarship Ceremony at the Don Tyson Center for Agricultural Sciences, Waldrip Hall, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on April 21.

The Graduate of Distinction Award recognizes alumni from the University of Arkansas Animal Science Department who have made an impact in the field of animal science, contributed to their community and serve as role models for current and future animal science students.

Scarbrough was raised on a family cow-calf and hay-production operation near Heavener, Oklahoma. He first attended the University of Arkansas in 1998 after completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science at Oklahoma State University. He initially pursued a master’s degree in ruminant nutrition while working as a graduate assistant for Dr. Wayne Coblentz.

Scarbrough went on to earn a doctoral degree under the direction of Dr. Coblentz and Dr. Ken Coffey, engaging in research at the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Fayetteville, and at the Livestock and Forestry Research Station in Batesville, Arkansas.

After graduating in the fall of 2002, Scarbrough joined the faculty in the Agriculture Department at Northwestern in Alva. He was appointed department chair in 2010 and continues to teach and advise undergraduate students at Northwestern.

During his tenure at Northwestern, he has received the Northwestern Outstanding Faculty Award (2009), the Oklahoma Honorary State FFA Degree (2013) and the John Barton Award for Distinguished Teaching and Service (2021).

On April 25, Scarbrough received the John Sheffield Teacher of the Year Award from the Northwestern Student Government Association at an awards ceremony during the annual Northwestern Spring Alumni Reunion event. Honoring the memory and ideals of Sheffield, the recipient must show genuine enthusiasm for people, courage to give of self to others, and faith to trust in his or her honored profession.

Scarbrough reflects on his time at the University of Arkansas with profound gratitude, citing the instruction, mentorship and lifelong friendships formed within the Animal Science Department as a definitive highlight of his life.

He and his wife, Cassandra, a University of Arkansas alumna from the class of 2000, have three grown children and recently became grandparents to twin granddaughters.

For more information about the Northwestern Department of Agriculture, visit nwosu.edu/school-of-professional-studies/agriculture.

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Media Contact:
Sean J. Doherty, University Relations Specialist
Email: sjdoherty@nwosu.edu
Phone: (580) 327-8480