James R. Jones – former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico and member of the U.S. House of Representatives – will provide the 10th annual Maurice Meyer Distinguished Endowed Lecture on Friday, Nov. 13, at Rogers State University.
The luncheon and lecture will begin at 11:30 a.m. in the Ballroom of the Centennial Center on the RSU campus in Claremore. The cost to attend the event is $20.
The Meyer lecture is part of RSU’s Centennial Celebration – a year of special events celebrating the 100th anniversary of the university’s founding in 1909.
The title of Jones’ lecture will be “Diversity and Culture in Global Business.”
“We are pleased to have a distinguished former U.S. Ambassador and Congressman on campus to deliver the Meyer lecture,” said RSU President Dr. Larry Rice.
The Maurice Meyer Endowed Lectureship was established at RSU in 1999 as a tribute to Sgt. Maurice Meyer by his nephew, the late Irvin and Sharna Frank, who lived in Tulsa.
Maurice Meyer was a member of Company A, 357 Regiment. He served with distinction as an officer of the 90th Division during the St. Mihiel campaign in France during World War I. He was killed by German shrapnel on Sept. 23, 1918. He died the following day and was accorded a hero’s funeral in Tulsa on May 3, 1922.
In 1920 the first barracks were built on the campus of the Oklahoma Military Academy (RSU’s predecessor institution). The building was named the Maurice Meyer Barracks in honor of Oklahoma’s fallen war hero. Today, the same building, now Meyer Hall, houses the RSU administrative offices and the Oklahoma Military Academy Museum.
The Maurice Meyer Endowed Lectureship is held annually to honor the legacy of the Meyer family and the life of an American who died defending freedom and democracy. Irvin and Sharna Frank established the lectureship to foster an appreciation for diversity and humanity and to promote tolerance and understanding of other cultures, people and ideas.
Jones’ practice focuses on international trade, investment and commerce, business-government relations and financial services. A former U.S. Ambassador and member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Mr. Jones has also worked extensively with global distribution and marketing organizations targeting Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East.
Jones currently provides business development advice and consulting for clients primarily in Mexico and Latin America. For example, he provides strategic advice to Toyota and assisted them to enter the automobile market in Mexico. He works with energy firms such as Williams and ConocoPhillips in Mexico, Venezuela and Ecuador. He represented MetLife in its purchase of a privatized Mexican insurance company, as well as a US-Mexico joint venture to build a water treatment project in Mexico. He also is assisting a U.S. developer establish projects in Mexico and a Class I U.S. developer establish projects in Mexico and a Class I U.S. railroad with transportation investments in Mexico and Panama. Additionally, Mr. Jones counsels clients on both business and government strategies in the U.S.
Prior to joining Manatt, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Mexico (1993-1997), where he was very successful in his leadership during the Mexican peso crisis, the passage and implementation of NAFTA and in developing new, cooperative efforts to combat drug trafficking. He also assisted U.S. business with commercial ventures in Mexico.
Jones’ previous experience also includes the position of President at Warnaco International, as well as Chairman and CEO of the American Stock Exchange in New York (1989-1993). During his tenure at AMEX, listings, revenues and market share increased. As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma (1973-1987), he was Chairman of the House Budget Committee and a ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Committee, where he was active in tax, international trade, Social Security and health care policy.
Jones was only 28 when President Lyndon Johnson selected him as Appointments Secretary, the position presently entitled Chief of Staff. He was the youngest person in history to hold this position.