Morris College (MC) is a private, Baptist historically black college in Sumter, South Carolina. It was founded and is operated by the Baptist Educational and Missionary Convention of South Carolina.

History

Morris College was founded in 1908 by Jacob J. Durham, initially as a grade school, high school, and college. The college is named after the Reverend Frank Morris because of his outstanding leadership throughout the African American community of South Carolina. The college's first president was Edward M. Brawley (1908–1912). Morris College awarded its first bachelor's degree in 1915 under the administration of the college's second president John Jacob Starks. The college's third president was Ira David Pinson, who steered the college to expansion during the Great Depression.

The college's longest-serving president was Luns C. Richardson, who served from 1974 to July 2017. The current president is Leroy Staggers, who formerly served as the college's academic dean.

In 2023, Morris College received funding from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to create plans for preserving the school's historic buildings, some of which date back to 1924.

Academics

Morris College offers bachelor's degrees in 20 areas of study. The college is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award four different types of bachelor's degrees: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Science, and Bachelor of Science in Education.

To effectively accomplish the purpose and philosophy of Morris College, its academic programs are organized into five academic divisions which oversee their respective departments.

Student life

Greek letter organizations

Morris College currently has chapters for eight of the nine National Pan-Hellenic Council organizations.

Athletics

The Morris athletics teams are called the Hornets. The college is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), primarily competing as an independent within the Continental Athletic Conference since the 2005–06 academic year. The Hornets previously competed in the defunct Eastern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (EIAC) from 1983–84 to 2004–05 (when the conference dissolved).

Morris competes in six intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball and track & field; while women's sports include basketball, softball and volleyball.

Notable alumni

Name	Class year	Notability	Reference(s)
Laura Hall	1965	Politician; member of the Alabama House of Representatives from the 19th district
Arthenia J. Bates Millican	1941	Educator and author, protégée of Langston Hughes
J. David Weeks	1975	Politician; member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 51st district; serves on the Judiciary Committee and was chair of the Legislative Black Caucus

See also

• List of historically black colleges of the United States