Richard Wahlstrom graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1948 with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Husbandry. Wahlstrom then attended the University of Illinois where he earned a Master’s degree in animal nutrition followed two years later by a Ph.D. in animal nutrition. While at the University of Illinois, Wahlstrom served as a graduate assistant mainly in research. From 1951 to 1952, he pursued research with the Merck Institute of Therapeutic Research. After Merck, Wahlstrom came to South Dakota State College, hired on for researching and teaching Animal husbandry from 1952 to 1959. Wahlstrom became the Head Professor of Animal husbandry in 1959, followed by becoming Head of the Department in 1960 to 1967. Wahlstrom returned once more as the head of the department for the academic year of 1987. / Wahlstrom served in many organizations including Rotary International, First United Methodist Church, and an American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) Fellow. / Wahlstrom has received many awards over the years, including being named Teacher of the Year, three times. Other awards and honors include the ASAS Animal Management Award (1976), the SDSU Gamma Signa Delta Award for Research (1980), the F.O. Butler Award for Outstanding Research (1986), the ASAS Animal Industry Service Award (1989), and the title of Distinguished Professor Emeritus from SDSU (1988).