Full Text of SR1223 103rd General Assembly
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened | 3 | | to learn of the death of Dr. Charles E. Morris Jr. of | 4 | | Bloomington, who passed away on August 11, 2024; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris, the son of Charles E. Morris Sr. and | 6 | | Verta E. Warner Morris, was born in Big Stone Gap, Virginia on | 7 | | September 30, 1931; he graduated from high school as class | 8 | | valedictorian at the age of 16 and Swift Memorial Junior | 9 | | College as class salutatorian in 1948; he was a cum laude | 10 | | graduate from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, North | 11 | | Carolina; he married Jeanne Brown in Charleston, South | 12 | | Carolina on August 18, 1957, and they had two children while | 13 | | residing in Urbana, Illinois; he and his family relocated to | 14 | | Normal in 1966, where they built their home and resided until | 15 | | 2018, when they moved to Westminster Village in Bloomington; | 16 | | and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris taught high school in High Point, | 18 | | North Carolina; he then finished the doctoral program at the | 19 | | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; he became an | 20 | | associate professor of mathematics at Illinois State | 21 | | University (ISU); he was later promoted to vice president for | 22 | | Administrative Services and then vice chancellor of Academic | 23 | | and Student Affairs for the Illinois Board of Regents in |
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| 1 | | Springfield; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris was initiated into Alpha Phi Alpha | 3 | | Fraternity, Inc. through the Alpha Omicron Chapter seated at | 4 | | Johnson C. Smith University on December 15, 1951, becoming | 5 | | Life Member 5322 on April 15, 1983; he took his | 6 | | responsibilities as a member and the success of Black students | 7 | | at ISU very seriously, serving as campus advisor to the Eta Tau | 8 | | Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha during the 1970s and 1980s, as an | 9 | | instrumental part of the establishment of the National Pan | 10 | | Hellenic Council of ISU, and as a mentor to Men of the Eta Tau | 11 | | Chapter into the 1990s, even after leaving full-time | 12 | | employment at ISU; he was also instrumental in chartering the | 13 | | Nu Psi Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha in 1981, where he | 14 | | remained an active member until his transition; he was | 15 | | recently honored with his 70-year fraternity anniversary pin; | 16 | | and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris was deeply committed to his students | 18 | | and the ISU community; after relocating to Normal, he and his | 19 | | wife were part of a team that purchased housing for African | 20 | | American students at ISU; he helped countless students afford | 21 | | college and succeed during his tenure at ISU; because of his | 22 | | support, many students, some he would never meet, were able to | 23 | | afford college, succeed while students, and go on to lead | 24 | | prosperous lives after graduation; both he and his wife also |
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| 1 | | wrote legislation that continues to benefit ISU today; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, Post retirement from the university systems, Dr. | 3 | | Morris served as coordinator of SIMaST (Students Integrating | 4 | | Mathematics, Science, and Technology), senior associate of the | 5 | | Center for the Study of Educational Policy at ISU, and | 6 | | president of and consultant with CEM Associates, Inc.; he | 7 | | continued serving on many community boards and was a board | 8 | | member of the Interdenominational Theological Seminary in | 9 | | Atlanta, Georgia; upon retirement, he remained a supporter of | 10 | | ISU as well as a community leader in the Bloomington-Normal | 11 | | area; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris was the recipient of numerous | 13 | | acknowledgments and awards; he and his wife became the | 14 | | namesake of a social justice library at the ISU Multicultural | 15 | | Center, where they donated books and pictures, ensuring that | 16 | | students and visitors would continue to learn and research | 17 | | African American history; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris enjoyed traveling with his family | 19 | | across the country and around the world; he also enjoyed | 20 | | documenting the ancestries of his family and his wife's | 21 | | family; and | 22 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris, whose life's work encompassed faith, |
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| 1 | | family, philanthropy, and education, was affectionately known | 2 | | as "Buddy" to family members; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris was preceded in death by his parents | 4 | | and his sister, Dr. DeLois Miriam Morris Fuller; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Dr. Morris is survived by his wife of 67 years, | 6 | | Dr. Jeanne Brown Morris; his children, David C. Morris Sr. and | 7 | | Lyn E. Morris; four grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; | 8 | | and a host of extended family members, friends, and board, | 9 | | committee, and fraternity members across the country; | 10 | | therefore, be it | 11 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | 12 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 13 | | Dr. Charles E. Morris Jr. and extend our sincere condolences | 14 | | to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be | 15 | | it further | 16 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 17 | | presented to the family of Dr. Morris as an expression of our | 18 | | deepest sympathy. |
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