Donor Spotlight: Fred Morrison
For sixty years, Judge Fred Morrison, Jr. has been a proud friend of Maryville College, and now he is finally able to call himself an alumnus. On June 16, 2020, President Brian C. Ralph Ph.D., presented a degree on behalf of Maryville College to the Honorable Fred Morrison Jr. Judge Morrison attended Maryville and completed most of his undergraduate degree at the College, but was unable to finish his degree and graduated from another university. After sixty years, his hard work at Maryville has been recognized and he was presented with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Maryville College and William Peace University have a long-standing relationship with the Presbyterian church. Due to travel restrictions regarding COVID-19, Maryville President, William Bogart, Ph.D., was unable to travel to Raleigh to present Judge Morrison with the degree. Dr. Ralph happily stepped in and attended the “social-distanced” ceremony, along with Jodi Stamey, Vice President of University Advancement.
Judge Morrison and his wife, Dr. Carolyn Morrison ’62, an alumna of Peace College, are long-standing friends of Peace and champions of education. Carolyn is a former Alumni Board Member and served as the Peace College Director of Education (2007-2009). She retired in 2009. After graduating from Peace in 1962, Carolyn earned a bachelor’s degree from UNC-Chapel Hill and her Master’s and Doctorate in Education from Duke University.
Judge Morrison and Carolyn are generous supporters of Peace. They created The Carolyn Bond Morrison Endowed Scholarship for Education in 2008 to honor her love for Peace and lifetime as an educator. Most recently, Fred named a room in Lucy Cooper Finch Library in honor of Carolyn and her work with the Education Program here at Peace.
Maryville College founder, Issac Anderson’s motto is to “Do good on the largest scale possible.” Judge Morrison’s career has been defined by these words. He has dedicated his life to serving the people and helping those in need. After graduating from Wake Forest School of Law in 1963, he began working with local prisons to help give inmates the tools to better themselves after their sentences. Throughout his career, Judge Morrison has served as Legal Counsel for the Governor of North Carolina, Executive Director of the NC Inmate Grievance Commission, NC Board of Education Attorney, and is currently serving as the Senior Administrative Law Judge at NC Office of Administrative Hearings. Judge Morrison is a dedicated member of the church. Both he and his wife serve as Elders of the First Presbyterian Church of Raleigh, and Fred also serves as a Deacon and Sunday School Teacher.
In his charge to Judge Morrison, Dr. Bougart stated, “You are the latest in the long and distinguished line of alumni, who have prepared for lives of citizenship and leadership, as they have been challenged to search for truth, grow in wisdom, work for justice, and dedicate a life of creativity and service to the people of the world. Today is not the end of that process; rather we charge you to continue to take on the challenge, best summarized by Paul’s words to the church in Rome, in Romans 12:2, ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.'”
“You are the latest in the long and distinguished line of alumni, who have prepared for lives of citizenship and leadership, as they have been challenged to search for truth, grow in wisdom, work for justice, and dedicate a life of creativity and service to the people of the world. Today is not the end of that process; rather we charge you to continue to take on the challenge to take on the challenge, best summarized by Paul’s words to the church in Rome, in Romans 12:2, ‘Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.'”
On Sunday, July 26, 2020, Dr. Carolyn Bond Morrison ’62, passed away. Read William Peace University’s tribute to Morrison here.