Dr. Joe Cox

Joe Allen Cox
May 10, 1947 – July 13, 2014

Joe Allen Cox, 67, of Waco, passed away suddenly on Sunday, July 13, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada, while enjoying a family vacation. Services will be 11 a.m. Saturday, July 19, at Woodway United Methodist Church, 21000 Woodway Drive, with Rev. Jeff Smith officiating. Visitation with the family will be 5 - 7p.m. Friday, July 18, at Grace Gardens Funeral Home, 8220 Woodway Drive.

Joe, the younger of two boys – and later the father of three more – was born in Stillwater, Oklahoma, on May 10, 1947 to W.B. and Mary Cox. He attended public schools throughout childhood and graduated from Stillwater High School in 1965. He then earned Bachelor of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees from Oklahoma State University. While a student, Joe was President and a charter member of his fraternity, Phi Kappa Psi. He also met his college sweetheart, Linda Lea Haynes, with whom he shared a Dr. Pepper on their first date and began a conversation that lasted more than forty years. Linda and Joe married in 1971. After a short time working in Dalton, Georgia, they returned to Oklahoma State, where in 1978 Joe completed his Ph.D. in Management.

For the next 37 years, Joe taught at Baylor University, where he was Professor of Management in the Hankamer School of Business. Joe considered teaching his craft and his life’s work. He helped shape the professional lives of thousands of students.

A beloved teacher, Joe received numerous accolades from his students, his peers, and the University. In 1994, Joe received the first Collins Outstanding Professor Award, given annually to a single professor at Baylor University for outstanding service as a teacher. Joe also received the Herbert H. Reynolds Award for Exemplary Service, was regularly recognized by Mortar Board as an outstanding professor mentor, and was honored (with his son, Cody) with the Global Forum Best Symposium Award by the Academy of Management. He served as Chairman of Baylor’s Faculty Senate and for many years chaired the Business School scholarship committee.

For over thirty years, Joe served as the faculty sponsor for the Baylor Association for Human Resources, which he founded. He was a member of the Academy of Management and the Heart of Texas Chapter of the Society for Human Resource Management.

Since his early days in Waco, Joe was an active member of Woodway United Methodist Church. He and his wife taught children’s and adults’ Sunday School classes for over 25 years, and Joe chaired the Pastor-Parish Relations committee.

Happiest when surrounded by those he loved, or while fishing, Joe was passionate about his work, cherished his friendships deeply, and was utterly devoted to his wife and children. An active father with a terrific sense of humor and a deep laugh, Joe was a sports and movie enthusiast. He loved the music of the 1960’s, taking long road trips with his wife, and reconnecting with old friends, many of whom remained close to him from Stillwater. Joe never met a stranger and often could be heard telling stories about his children and grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Linda; their three children, Collin Joe Cox and wife, Jacquelyn, of Houston; Cody Brent Cox and wife, Amy Lou, of San Marcos; and Clint Tyler Cox and wife, Shae, of Las Vegas. Joe also is survived by three grandchildren – Clayton, Gemma, and Marshall Cox, all of Houston. Other loved ones include sister-in-law, Sheryl Cox, of Tulsa, Oklahoma; her children, Julie Cox Chew and family, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Steven Cox and family, of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; and brother-in-law, Scott Haynes and wife, Penny, of Elk City, Oklahoma. Joe was predeceased by his parents and his brother, Bill Cox, of Tulsa.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Dr. Joe A. Cox MS-HRM Scholarship (MS-HRM Scholarships #05-70430), The Texas A&M Foundation, 401 George Bush Drive, College Station, TX 77840; the Hankamer School of Business Endowed Scholarship Fund, Baylor University Development, One Bear Place #97050, Waco, Texas 76798-7050; or Woodway United Methodist Church, 21000 Woodway Drive, Waco, TX 76712.