By USTFCCCA Communications, USTFCCCA
December 15, 2025  
GRAPEVINE, Texas – Dr. Donald Cox was posthumously honored with the Jimmy Carnes Distinguished Service Award on Monday at the annual USTFCCCA Convention.
Cox’s legacy was feted during Opening Session.
The Jimmy Carnes Distinguished Service Award is presented annually to an individual who has gone above and beyond in the call of duty in their service to the Association and to the sports of cross country and track & field.
Cox served as NJCAA Cross Country Coaches Association representative to the USTFCCCA from 2014 to 2022 and as president of the NJCAA Cross Country Coaches Association from 2013 to 2021. Throughout his tenure, he worked tirelessly to secure full USTFCCCA membership for two-year college coaches – an effort that ultimately came to fruition in 2021.
With the NJCAA, Cox aided in the creation of the half marathon as an official championship sport in 2003, as well as the reinstatement of Division II cross country in 2020. Cox was inducted into the NJCAA Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2022.
As a coach, Cox spent more than 30 years at the NJCAA level. He ended his career at Cuyahoga Community College, where his athletes starred on the grass circuit – earning 73 Academic All-America honors and five NJCAA All-America plaudits.
Cox passed away on June 22, 2024.
