Hall of Fame - Jack Jones

During the 1960's and 70's Jack Jones worked in the financial aid office at West Texas State University in Canyon, Texas. He teamed up with his friend Clifford B. Baker, Financial Aid Director, to establish an outstanding financial aid operation at WTSU. Jack's education and background in accounting made him a valuable member of that team. Together Jack and Clifford developed such a model financial aid operation that they were frequently called upon by the Department of Education to use the WTSU Financial Aid Office as a training site for their new personnel. Jack's fiscal ability also influenced the early development of TASFAA through his membership on various committees. It was his quiet demeanor that led him to work tirelessly in the background as a member of each committee to accomplish the work of TASFAA rather than take the more visible position of committee chair.

In the1960's in his early days of financial aid at WTSU, Jack started the Opportunity Plan Credit Union in Canyon, TX and ran it until he left the WTSU Financial Aid Office to go to work for the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corp. (TGSLC). This credit union was for students only who had been on financial aid at WTSU and served the needs of students after graduation for loans to buy their first car or to pay for the moving expense to their first job, etc. During the 1970's Jack served as a faculty member of the NASFAA/NACUBO Student Loan Collections workshops and aided the U. S. Department of Education in developing their loan collection manual and Audit Guide.

1980 there was only one person in the entire state who Joe McCormick considered for the job of Associate Director of the newly formed Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation: Jack Jones. During the first week on the job as Executive Director of TGSLC, McCormick flew to Amarillo to meet Clifford Baker and Jack at the airport to strike a deal. Jack would come to work for TGSLC in Austin and McCormick would forever be in Clifford's Baker's debt! The implementation of the new guaranty agency was scheduled to take 14 months to complete. Jack did it in 8 months!!! McCormick described it a joy to have worked with Jack and feels he deserves so much more credit than he ever got for making TGSLC the success it is today. "There has never been a person who was more loyal, dedicated, and a true friend as Jack Jones." McCormick likes to relate a typical Jack Jones quote that was made following a particularly trying Board meeting. Joe McCormick commented that "had we been smart we would have handled some of the issues a different way" and Jack came back immediately with: "H_ _ _, McCormick, if 'smarts' had been a criteria for the job, they would never have hired us!"

Jack left TGLSC in 1990 and worked for the South Texas Higher Education Authority until his death July 15th, 1992.

McCormick feels that everyone who knew him would say that Jack Jones could be described in one word: Love!

he loved his family and was extremely devoted to them
he loved his work and was very dedicated to serving students
he loved his friends and loved to laugh, play, and work with them
he loved life and lived it to the fullest!!!

Jack Jones was a man of total integrity, honest as the day is long, his word was his bond, and his loyalty steadfast. Jack blessed and enriched the lives of everyone he touched.