On April 4, the SMU Cox School of Business held its annual Distinguished Alumni Awards Luncheon in the Collins Executive Center, bestowing two Distinguished Alumni Awards and two Outstanding Young Alumni Awards. Nominations are submitted to the SMU Cox Alumni Association for consideration by a selection committee.
In alphabetical order, this year’s Cox Distinguished Alumni Award winners are James Landen, Sr., B.B.A. ’82, executive chairman of Omaha-based Security National Bank, and William Shaddock, MBA ’74, owner/partner of Shaddock Companies. Cox Outstanding Young Alumni honorees are Gloria Salinas, B.A. ’10, EMBA ’23, Frisco Economic Development Corporation senior vice president, and Amrita Vir, B.B.A. ’12, Gates Foundation senior program officer. All four made heartfelt speeches about how the Cox School influenced their career paths and lives.
Nebraska native Landen recounted how, just before they both started at Cox, he met Diny, his future wife, whom he credits for 66 helping him become a better student. Their dedication to SMU and the Cox School inspired their siblings, children, and several nieces and nephews—a total of 20 more family members—to attend SMU and/ or SMU Cox. Diny and Jim Landen are generous donors to the SMU Cox Renovation and Expansion Fund.
Shaddock grew up in Orange, Texas, and founded Shaddock Development Company in Plano with his brother Peter. Shaddock has since developed a series of successful real estate and related companies based in North Texas. He and his wife, Kim, are benefactors of Shaddock Hall in the David B. Miller Business Quadrangle. At the awards luncheon, Shaddock fondly recalled an impactful real estate class during his MBA program. He gained insight and inspiration from titans including Trammell Crow and Ray Nasher, who talked not so much about their accomplishments but about the challenges they overcame and their thought processes in doing so.
Salinas, a Frisco resident, is an economic development executive with more than 15 years of experience and a track record of success in Texas cities and the nonprofit sector. She is passionate about developing sustainable cities and creating access to thriving opportunities for the people who live in them. At the awards luncheon, the double SMU alumna shared a story about a daunting EMBA group consulting assignment that started badly. Ultimately, it yielded a glowing review from the client. “I learned that failure combined with perseverance will yield success—eventually.”
Vir, who was a B.B.A. scholar during her time at SMU Cox, said two lecture tickets given to her by Associate Dean Jim Bryan proved “catalytic.” The tickets enabled her to hear from Muhammad Yunus, the “father of microfinance.” She left the lecture inspired to pursue a career focused on transforming lives through innovative financial solutions. Today, she works for the Seattle-based Gates Foundation scaling inclusive, global financial interventions with a focus on women underserved by the financial sector.
