Benz School Director

Benz School Director

Mr. William J. McKinley was named the endowed chair of the Benz School in the summer of 2011, following Mr. James L. Johnson, who held the chair from its inception in 1980 to 2011.  Mr. McKinley is a graduate of the University of Missouri at Columbia and Texas A&M University. He is the Instructional Associate Professor for floral design at Texas A&M University and serves as the advisor for the Forsythe student chapter of the American Institute of Floral Designers.

Bill is a national board member of the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD) and was honored with the organization’s Award of Distinguished Service to the Floral Industry in 2010.  He is a monthly columnist for Flowers& magazine, which is published by Teleflora.  Mr. McKinley co-authored the revisions of M. Buddy Benz’s book, Flowers: Creative Design, which is in its 7^th edition and 11^th printing.  He has participated in many design seminars across the country, written short courses for the industry, and  taught floral design at Kishwaukee College in Illinois, where he served as the advisor for the Forbes student chapter of AIFD. He has extensive floral retail, wholesale and industry experience, which he brings to the classroom.