Aerospace Engineering 1964
James “Red” Hawkes graduated from the University of Oklahoma, College of Engineering in 1964 with a degree in aerospace engineering. While at OU, Hawkes was involved in many College of Engineering clubs and activities. He was a member of the Loyal Knights of Old Trusty and was named St. Pat his senior year. He was also a member of Delta Upsilon fraternity. After graduation, he spent four years in the U.S. Navy Nuclear Submarine Service, serving aboard the USS Robert E. Lee missile submarine based in Scotland. After leaving military life, he joined United Nuclear Corporation as a senior engineer.
In 1970, Hawkes earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and went to work for mutual fund management firm Eaton Vance as an analyst and vice president, where he would stay for the remainder of his 37-year career. From 1996 until his retirement in 2007, he was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company. During his leadership, the assets under Eaton Vance’s management grew from $17 billion to nearly $160 billion.
He and his wife, Mary Lou, live in Jupiter, Florida and are fortunate to be close to their daughter and her family, including one grandson. He is an avid pilot who collects and flies antique aircraft. While a student at OU, he took his first flying lesson and soloed in 1963 at Westheimer Airport in Norman.
