Celebrating a True Visionary: Edwin L. Cox, Sr.
On October 15, 2020, as part of celebrating 100 years of business education at SMU, the SMU Cox School of Business honored Edwin L. Cox, Sr. ’42 with the inaugural Cox Visionary Award for his extraordinary leadership and contributions to the business community. Mr. Cox, for whom SMU’s business school was named in 1978, exemplifies the vision, civic engagement and can-do spirit that inspire the best in all of us today and shape the business world changers of tomorrow.
In 1978, the SMU School of Business Administration was renamed the
Edwin L. Cox School of Business in honor of Edwin Lochridge Cox –
business leader, entrepreneur, public servant, educational pioneer and
faithful supporter of SMU.
As a native of Mena, Arkansas, Mr. Cox completed his first two years of
undergraduate study at SMU in the late 1930s. He went on to earn IA and
MBA degrees from Harvard Business School, though his graduate studies
were interrupted by his service in the U.S. Navy, where he achieved the
rank of lieutenant.
Following his graduate studies, Mr. Cox pursued a career in oil and gas
exploration and production before founding his own company. Today,
he is chairman and CEO of the Edwin L. Cox Company, engaged in the
investment business.
For more than 40 years, Mr. Cox has played a significant role in helping the Cox School improve the quality of its
students and faculty; enhance its programs, particularly in the area of leadership development; and strengthen
its relationships with the business community. A long-standing member of the Cox Executive Board, he is founder
of the Cox Distinguished MBA Scholars Program, the Business Leadership Center for graduate students, the
Edwin L. Cox BBA Leadership Institute for undergraduates and the Cox BBA Scholars Program.
A Trustee Emeritus at SMU, Mr. Cox has also served the University in numerous leadership roles, including vice
chairman of SMU’s Board of Trustees from 1973 to 1976, chairman of SMU’s Board of Trustees from 1976
to 1987, and chairman of the National Steering Committee for SMU’s “Design for the Third Generation” capital
campaign from 1975 to 1983.
Throughout his career, Mr. Cox has been involved in numerous professional and civic activities. He has served
on the boards of Halliburton Company, the American Enterprise Institute and the American Petroleum Institute,
among others. He is currently an honorary trustee and member of the Trustees Council at the National Gallery of
Art in Washington, D.C., and he is a member of the Library of Congress Trust Fund and the Dallas Museum of Art.
In 1990, he was inducted into the Texas Business Hall of Fame.
Through his leadership vision, selfless character, boundless energy and unwavering commitment to helping
others, Mr. Cox has changed the lives of thousands of students, faculty, staff and business professionals for
the better.
COX VISIONARY AWARD
The Cox School of Business bestows, as its highest honor, the
Visionary Award, in recognition of extraordinary contributions to
the business community.
Recipients of this honor have demonstrated exemplary leadership
of the highest caliber. Through exceptional foresight and strategic
outreach, the honoree has affected positive change in the world that
will resonate far into the future.
