A fourth-generation agriculturalist, Joe Caughlin graduated from OSU in 1992 with a bachelor’s degree in plant and soil sciences.

After graduation, Caughlin became an associate director of his local conservation district board, and in 1998, he was appointed to the Kay County Conservation District as a director, a role he still has today. Additionally, he serves on the board of the Oklahoma Association of Conservation Districts, having served four years as vice president and two years as president.

He and his family currently manage River Road Farms Inc., a commercial Angus cow-calf and no-till farming operation featuring no-till crops. Their operation has 2,500 acres of cropland and 1,500 acres of native and improved grassland. Caughlin started Caughlin Seed in 2000 as a certified wheat seed business and added a row-crop seed sector to better serve his customers.

Caughlin has served on numerous seed and commodity organizations and boards, including the Oklahoma Crop Improvement Association Board, the Oklahoma Genetics Inc. Board, where he is currently serving as chair; the Oklahoma Wheat Growers Association Board of Directors, where he is currently serving as vice president; and the Oklahoma Wheat Research Foundation Board, where he serves as chair.

Caughlin is married to Robyn, and they have three daughters, one son and a granddaughter. Caughlin and his family are active in the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Tonkawa.