(JACKSON, Miss.) — Jackson State University President Thomas K. Hudson extends congratulations to alumna Dr. Charlotte P. Morris on the announcement of her appointment as the ninth president of Tuskegee University, as announced by the Tuskegee University Board of Trustees on Monday.

“As a fellow alumnus of Jackson State University, it is an honor to welcome my colleague, Dr. Charlotte P. Morris, into this distinguished circle of HBCU leadership to serve one of the nation’s most treasured institutions,” said Hudson. “The entire JSU community joins me in extending congratulations to President Morris and our heartfelt best wishes for her presidency.”

For more than three decades, Morris has served in several roles at Tuskegee University, including chief of staff to the fifth president and secretary to the Board of Trustees. As chief of staff, she assisted in the development and implementation of a successful $169 million capital campaign in 2005. Most recently during her tenure, Morris also served as the director of the university’s Title III Program and acted as interim and associate dean in the Brimmer College of Business and Information Science.

Through Morris’ leadership, she has strengthened the university’s strategic partnerships with corporations such as Google and Cargill to generate $6 million in gifts and donations to strengthen career-readiness initiatives and invest in the next generation of STEM leaders. In addition to the many honors and awards Morris has received, she was given the Distinguished Administrative Staff Achievement Award at Tuskegee University.

In a release from Tuskegee University, Morris said, “It is with great humility and honor that I accept the role of president. Having been a member of this remarkable university community for much of my professional career, it will be a pleasure to lead the university into the future. I look forward to working with the entire campus community to seize the opportunities that lie ahead and continue to transform Tuskegee into a leading 21st-century living and learning environment.”

A native of Kosciusko, Mississippi, Morris completed her undergraduate work at Jackson State University, where she received a B.S. degree in business education. Her master’s degree was obtained from Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi, and the Ph.D. degree in education and business management was earned from Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas.

She has done further study at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education’s Institute for Educational Management. Additionally, she completed coursework in Higher Education Administration at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, as well as summer institutes in Curriculum Development in Higher Education at Pine Manor College in Boston, Massachusetts, and the American Council on Education’s National Leadership Forum sponsored by the National Center for Higher Education in Washington, D.C. Her research interests include leadership and the relationship between undergraduate degree majors and current jobs.

Tuskegee University will formally welcome Morris as the ninth president during an inauguration ceremony planned for the weekend of April 9-11, 2022, to coincide with Founder’s Day Reunion Weekend.