Roy Duane Harris

Roy Duane Harris was born on December 4, 1934 to Roy and Lois Harris in Palestine, Texas. Roy resided the majority of his adult life in Austin, Texas and died peacefully with family by his side on February 4, 2021 at Sodalis Senior Living in Buda, Texas.

In 1953, Roy’s mom drove him to Austin to attend the University of Texas at Austin. He had $120 from his grandfather A.O. Harris, and the promise of a job awaiting him in the General Land Office that had been secured by Jim Bob Paxton, a state representative who was from Palestine, with urging from Roy’s high school counselor. Roy graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in 1958 and then a Master’s degree in 1960, both in Mechanical Engineering. In addition to his studies Roy played tuba in the Longhorn Band. He was a sophomore when Darrell Royal became the new head coach of the Longhorn football team. The university needed to make sure the marching band was on par with the football team, and Roy was the student representative on the hiring committee that hired the new band director, Vince DiNino. Roy’s musical aptitude also led him to sing in the choir at First United Methodist Church where he met his future wife, Cathryn Sue Mayfield. They were married on August 6, 1960, in the church where they met, and then they promptly left for Los Angeles, California where Roy earned a Ph.D. in Business Administration (1965) from the University of California, Los Angeles. While proud of his rise from a solidly blue-collar background, Roy often said that marrying Cathy was the best decision he ever made.

Upon completion of his PhD, Roy joined the faculty of the College of Business at the University of Texas at Austin where he taught from 1965 to 1995. Dr. Roy D. Harris was the F. Wright, Jr. Centennial Professor for Management of Innovative Technology at the University of Texas at Austin.

During Dr. Harris’ 30-year career, he held a number of positions, including Director of Manufacturing for Accelerators, Inc. in Austin, Texas, Chairman of the Management Department in the College of Business, Chairman of the Board of the University Co-Op, Inc., and Associate Director of the Center for Manufacturing Systems. He was instrumental in establishing the joint degree program between the College of Engineering and the College of Business at both the undergraduate and the graduate level. Dr. Harris’ academic specialty was the application of computers to industrial and manufacturing management. A prolific book author in the field of operations management, his final book, titled “The Operations Manager: Role, Problems, Techniques” was published with Richard Gonzalez in 1981.

Roy was a member of St Johns Methodist Church where he was active for many decades. He was also a member of the Scottish Rite Temples of Austin, Texas and Guthrie Oklahoma, and was a 32nd degree Mason and a lifetime member of his home lodge in Buda, Texas.

Roy spent his retirement restoring old cars, sipping sodas under a shade tree, and enjoying his grandchildren. He was a trusted mentor to many of his former students and took an active interest in their lives.

Roy was preceded in death by his parents Roy Hughie Harris and Lois Ethel Pool Harris, his grandparents, Albert Owen "A.O." Harris, Roxanna Harris, Ira Lemmie Pool, and Willie Nevada Bowdoin Pool, his sisters Hilda Attaway (Robert), Francis Nobles (James), and June Venters.

He is survived by his wife of 60 years Cathryn Harris, his children Randall Harris (Kelly) of Corpus Christi, Texas, Ronald Harris of San Marcos, Texas, Cynthia Harris (Sandi) of Austin, Texas, his grandchildren Paden Harris of Dover, Delaware, Zachariah Crowley of Pflugerville, Texas, Zena Crowley of Belton, Texas, Grayson Harris of San Marcos, Texas, his great-grandson Troy Harris of Dover, DE, his brother Robert (Margaret) Harris of League City, Texas and many nieces and nephews.

The memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 13, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. at the Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Funeral Home at 14501 North Interstate 35, Pflugerville, Texas.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a donation be made to St. Johns United Methodist Church, MD Anderson, or to any memorial fund that honors your memories of Roy.