Jeremiah Morris Built a Network of Support to Thrive

Jeremiah Morris rattles off the names of students and faculty he’s connected to without missing a beat. In fact, Morris can’t walk around campus without friends coming up to hug him or say hello. He built an extended network of support he needed at UNC Charlotte to push through and thrive in his education. 

Morris always knew he would go to college because education is a deeply ingrained family value. Morris was raised by his grandmother who was a school teacher for more than two decades, so he benefited from the mentorship of his grandmother’s connections. After moving around a lot to follow his grandmother’s work, Morris joined his aunt and uncle’s household to settle in North Carolina to attend high school, and he wasn’t sure where he would land. 

He applied to attend several North Carolina schools but didn’t get into Charlotte as a freshman and took the opportunity to join the one-year Passport Program to start his Charlotte journey at community college. The experience was a positive one, but afterwards, Morris faced mounting mental health challenges as he tried to find himself and determine his interests for a program that would lead to a career. He took a gap year to figure things out, save money for school and prepare for more education.

“When I got to UNC Charlotte, I didn’t know who I was. I suffer from depression and anxiety and I would think to myself ‘I don’t know why I’m here’,” said Morris. 

Morris struggled to find his footing as a science major, so with his grandmother’s encouragement he explored other options. He enjoyed reading, so he took classes in Africana Studies with Malin Pereira and English with Jeffrey Leak, who both encouraged him to reach out to Janaka Lewis, professor of English and now associate dean in the College of Humanities & Earth and Social Sciences. 

Morris then faced financial challenges. “I wasn’t able to pay my tuition one semester and I didn’t think I was going to come back. My grandmother almost went into the negative to make sure I could keep going,” said Morris.

When he returned, Morris took Black Girl Studies with Lewis and it cemented his path. “I needed a sense of redemption after sitting out for a semester and I was able to find myself sitting in her class. Dr. Lewis is so amazing and I wanted to be just like her. She began mentoring me and has been my rock at UNC Charlotte,” said Morris.

Lewis connected Morris to support and brought additional opportunities leading to significant campus involvement, including being a peer mentor in the CHESS FIT program, where he was named best peer mentor. 

Morris also worked extensively with the Women + Girls Research Alliance, where Executive Director Michelle Meggs praised his efforts to support the Leadership Café and Women’s Summit. “His ability to command a room with confidence and charm, combined with his strategic planning skills, marketing acumen, and deep community connections, has helped to elevate these events to new heights,” said Meggs. “With an impressive intellectual capacity and a friendly demeanor that fosters collaboration, Jeremiah exemplifies the spirit of excellence and dedication that defines W+GRA’s mission.”  

Morris was also awarded the Sandra Y. Govan Award for Excellence in African American Literature from the English department. This award is given to a promising undergraduate who has expressed and demonstrated a strong interest in African-American literature and culture and who plans to attend graduate school and continue research. 

Morris will be graduating as a double major in English and Interdisciplinary Studies, with a concentration in Women’s and Gender Studies and is currently applying to graduate schools and hopes to continue in English through a combined doctoral program next fall. 

But first, Morris will take the stage on December 13 as the commencement speaker for the morning undergraduate ceremony, and will share a lesson in perseverance with his favorite quote by Toni Morrison, “You wanna fly, you got to give up the thing that weighs you down.”

Morris is giving the speech in honor of his grandmother. “My grandmother saw something in me that no one else could see. She calls me everyday and helps me re-center when I am depressed. Everything I’m doing in education is because she poured into me.”

Morris is hopeful he can continue to pour into others with the same mentorship he received from his grandmother, Meggs, Lewis, and so many others who are now part of his network. “I feel free. I want to be a college professor and to teach students who are just like me– to mentor and encourage them to find their way,” said Morris.