CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
Jerry Jones
Owner, President & General Manager of Dallas Cowboys
In one of the most dramatic eras of ownership in professional sports, Jerry Jones' stewardship of the Dallas Cowboys has brought unprecedented results and success to one of the world's most popular sports entities.
Aside from being one of just three current owners to guide their franchises to at least three Super Bowl titles, Jones' efforts in the areas of sports marketing, promotion and the development of AT&T Stadium have created a vivid imprint on the landscape of the NFL and the American sports culture.
Highlighted by Super Bowl victories following the 1992, 1993 and 1995 seasons, Jones became the first owner in NFL history to guide his team to three league championships in his first seven years of ownership. In 1995 Dallas also became the first team in NFL history to win three Super Bowls in four seasons while tying the then NFL record for most Super Bowl victories by an organization with five.
The first decade of Jones' ownership closed with eight playoff appearances, six division titles, four conference championship game appearances and three world crowns as the Cowboys were named the NFL's Team of the 1990s. More recently, the Cowboys have won NFC Eastern Division titles in 2007, 2009 and 2014, while the '14 club secured the 13th playoff appearance in Jones' 27 years of leadership.
Following the 2014 season, a year where the Cowboys posted a 12-4 record and then won a home playoff game, Jones was named the NFL Executive of the Year by the Pro Football Writers Association of America.
Along with the success of the Dallas Cowboys on the field, Jones' vision and leadership provided the driving influence behind the concept, design and construction of AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas - a venue that is recognized internationally as perhaps the most spectacular and state-of-the-art sports stadium in the world.
Opened to the public in May of 2009, the stadium's dramatic first season of operation resulted in the venue being named the Sports Facility of the Year by the Sports Business Journal in May of 2010. Along with that achievement for the team's new home, Jones was also named the 2009 Sports Executive of the Year by the SBJ.
The 100,000-plus seat stadium established the attendance record for an NFL regular season game as 105,121 witnessed the September 20, 2009 home opener, while the 108,713 who attended the NBA All-Star Game on February 14, 2010 became the largest crowd to witness a basketball game in the history of the sport.
Jones has recently turned his football development and marketing expertise to the new World Headquarters of the Dallas Cowboys as The Star in Frisco, Texas opened its doors for operation in the summer of 2016. Located in a rapidly growing community of more than 150,000 residents, The Star is a partnership with the City of Frisco and The Frisco Independent School District that places a strong focus on inspiring a strong future for high school football, youth sports and the next generation of players and fans by uniquely engaging them at the place where the Dallas Cowboys live, work and practice.
The Star is the only NFL training facility in the U.S. that is shared with a public high school athletic program. All eight Frisco ISD high schools will play home games within the Ford Center at The Star, a state-of-the-art, 510,000-square-foot indoor athletic facility. With a capacity of 12,000 seats, the Ford Center will host a variety of events in addition to football games.
On the league front, Jones actively contributes his vision and enthusiasm to enhancing the NFL's status as the world's premier professional sports league by serving on a wide range of league committees. In 2011 he was very involved - as a member of the Management Council Executive Committee - in the labor negotiations that resulted in the most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NFL and its players. In addition to the CEC, Jones is currently the Chairman of the NFL Network Committee, Chairman of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Committee, and he is a member of the NFL Broadcasting Committee, and the Health and Safety Advisory Committee. Jones also served on the committee that was charged with overseeing the search for a successor to retired NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue - a process that successfully landed current NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in September of 2006. In addition, Jones has served two prior terms as a member of the NFL's Competition Committee as well as a stint on the Business Ventures Committee.
In April of 2014 Jones received the prestigious Horatio Alger Award in Washington, D.C. and was inducted as a lifetime member into the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans. In May of 2014, Jones was also recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. On October 3, 2013, Jones was inducted into the National Football Foundation's Leadership Hall of Fame, an award which celebrates leadership of a lifetime of success on the field, in the boardroom and in the community.
As a co-captain of the 1964 National Championship Arkansas Razorbacks, Jones is one of a small number of NFL owners who actually earned a significant level of success as a football player. He is the only man in the history of the National Football League to play for a collegiate national championship football team and own a Super Bowl winner. In addition, Jones and the legendary George Halas are the only two men to become NFL owners after playing in a major college football bowl game. His current ties to the college game include membership on the Board of Directors for the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame.
A man of varied interests who will not rest on yesterday's achievements - he is a dedicated businessman and family man - sharing a vivid enthusiasm for both. Although Jones and his family are very involved in numerous civic and charitable causes, the Joneses have left an indelible local and national impression on the philanthropic landscape with their love and dedication to The Salvation Army.
For the past 19 seasons, the Jones family has dedicated the Cowboys Thanksgiving Day halftime show as a national showcase to kick off The Salvation Army's annual Red Kettle Campaign. Through the donation of national television air-time, the event has created a holiday tradition, while helping to increase donations to The Salvation Army's annual fund raising efforts by more than two billion dollars. Reba McEntire, Destiny's Child, Sheryl Crow, Carrie Underwood and Kenny Chesney are just a few of the distinguished artists who have provided the entertainment for the holiday extravaganzas.
The Salvation Army points to the annual Cowboys kickoff event as one of the most effective, creative and important innovations that has been developed in the long and storied history of the organization.
The Joneses received the Evangeline Booth Award in 1999, one of The Army's highest national community service awards and have been selected for membership into the prestigious Salvation Army William Booth Society. Jerry and his wife Gene were also named to the Army's National Advisory Board in April of 1998 shortly after being named the organization's Partners of the Year in 1997. In April of 2007, the Joneses served as the honorary chairpersons for The Salvation Army's National Advisory Organizations Conference (NAOC) that was held in Dallas.
For 10 years, Gene and Jerry Jones served as hosts and underwrote the costs for the Super Lunch, a fundraising event for The Salvation Army Irving Corps Community Center. In 1998 the Gene and Jerry Jones Family Center for Children opened in conjunction with The Army.
As part of the Jones Family and the Dallas Cowboys commitment to Arlington, Texas, the home of the club's stadium, Gene and Jerry Jones Family Charities will donate a total of $16.5 million to non-profit organizations serving youth in Arlington from 2009-2041.
In 2001 the Joneses were awarded the Chairman's Award by The Boys and Girls Clubs of America. In June of 2002, Gene and Jerry Jones were recognized as the recipients of the Children's Champion Award for Philanthropy that was presented by the Dallas for Children organization. In 2003 the Family Gateway organization of Dallas presented Gene and Jerry with the Annette G. Strauss Humanitarian Award. In April of 2005, Gene and Jerry were recipients of the Hope Award, the highest community service recognition awarded by the Lone Star Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. In 2010 the Jones Family and the Cowboys were selected by The Boys and Girls Clubs of America to receive the prestigious Chairman's Award that recognized the Cowboys long and dedicated history of supporting that organization.
The Jones family is very involved with several other community-related organizations, including Children's Medical Center of Dallas, Happy Hill Farm Academy/Home, the National Board for The Boys and Girls Clubs of America, the Kent Waldrep Paralysis Foundation, The Rise School of Dallas, The Family Place and The Family Gateway. In 2010 the Jones family endowed the North Texas Youth Education Town with a $1 million grant. Created as a lasting legacy of Super Bowl XLV, the North Texas YET is administered by The Salvation Army and provides North Texas youth with education, mentoring, fitness and character enrichment programs.
Jerry (10/13/42) and Gene live in Dallas. They have three children, Stephen, Charlotte and Jerry, Jr., and nine grandchildren.
Stephen is a graduate of the University of Arkansas and serves as the Cowboys Chief Operating Officer/Executive Vice President/Director of Player Personnel. Charlotte is a Stanford graduate and serves as the Cowboys Executive Vice President/Chief Brand Officer/President of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. Jerry Jr., a graduate of Georgetown University, who earned his law degree from Southern Methodist University, is the Cowboys Executive Vice President/Chief Sales and Marketing Officer.
Jones graduated from Arkansas in 1965 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration, and earned a Master of Arts degree from the University that same year.
 |  | | | |