Title: Professor of Biology
Company: Troy University
Location: Troy, Alabama, United States
Michael Wayne Morris, PhD, Professor of Biology at Troy University, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Educators for dedication, achievements and leadership in Higher Education.
Dr. Morris has established himself in the field of biology, with more than three decades of dedicated service to education, research and community engagement. For the past 10 years, he has served as a professor of biology in the department of biological and environmental sciences at Troy University. In this capacity, Dr. Morris teaches a comprehensive range of courses, including principles of biology, organismal biology, general ecology, dendrology and cell biology. He also coordinates faculty and graduate teaching assistants for lectures and laboratories, develops laboratory exercises in ecology and human biology, and advises students majoring in biology with concentrations in general biology, ecology, field biology and biomedical sciences.
Committed to student success, Dr. Morris has been instrumental in supervising both undergraduate and graduate research projects, particularly in field botany, plant conservation and the preservation of natural areas. His efforts have created baseline data for the future management and monitoring of rare plant species. Moreover, Dr. Morris has played a pivotal role in curriculum revision across Troy University’s Troy, Montgomery and Dothan campuses, leading to the Common Reading Initiative on the Troy campus.
In addition to his primary academic appointments, Dr. Morris has been an associate graduate faculty member at The University of Southern Mississippi since 2022, serving on graduate student thesis committees. He has also coordinated internships for both North Georgia College and Troy University for more than two decades, beginning in 2004, facilitating opportunities, such as participation in the National Science Foundation’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates program at The University of Southern Mississippi and rangeland ecology studies at the University of Wyoming.
Before his current role, Dr. Morris served as an associate professor at Troy University from 2008 to 2016. Earlier, he served as the freshman biology coordinator on campus between 2006 and 2014, overseeing instructional coordination for introductory courses and laboratories. Dr. Morris initially served as a lecturer at Troy University from 2006 to 2007.
Before joining Troy University, Dr. Morris was a professor in the department of biology at North Georgia College & State University, now the University of North Georgia, from 1993 to 2006. There, he developed a reputation for excellence in teaching and research and fostered student engagement through internship coordination, beginning in 2003.
Earlier in his career, Dr. Morris worked at the University of Florida, first as a teaching assistant from 1988 to 1990 and then as a research associate in the department of botany until 1993. His experience also included an internship at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in 1989 and his role as a research assistant at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Southern Weed Science Laboratory, now U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, Delta States Research Center, now Delta Research and Extension Center, Mississippi State University, from 1987 to 1988.
Dr. Morris began his professional journey as a field botanist at The Crosby Arboretum with the Mississippi State University Extension Service in 1986, and then served as a teaching assistant in the Department of Biological Sciences at Mississippi State University from 1986 to 1987. His earliest roles included affiliation with his alma mater, Delta State University, while pursuing his degree as a laboratory assistant in the department of biological sciences in 1984, following his tenure as a computer operator for the department of data processing from 1982 to 1985.
Highly educated, Mr. Morris earned a Bachelor of Science in biology and chemistry from Delta State University in 1985. He also earned a Master of Science in plant taxonomy from Mississippi State University in Starkville, Mississippi, in 1987, and a Doctor of Philosophy in botany, with a focus on systematics and anatomy, from the University of Florida in Gainesville in 1993.
Throughout his career, Dr. Morris has been an active member of several esteemed organizations, including the Association of Southeastern Biologists. He has served in various roles for the Association of Southeastern Biologists, the Georgia Botanical Society, the Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council and the Society of Herbarium Curators, among others.
Dr. Morris’s scholarly output includes authorship and co-authorship of more than 20 scientific journal articles. He also co-authored a customized laboratory manual for Troy University via Cengage Publishing. He allocated all royalties from this publication to establish a fund to support undergraduate and graduate research and student conference attendance to present their findings. Additionally, Dr. Morris authored a book chapter titled “The Natural Communities of Georgia.”
Among his many career achievements, Dr. Morris discovered and co-described, with two colleagues, Pediomelum piedmontanum, a previously unknown plant species native to Georgia and South Carolina related to peas. This achievement has contributed valuable knowledge regarding nitrogen-fixing plants that support pollinators within unique ecosystems.
In light of his success, Dr. Morris has received several awards, including the Outstanding Student Paper Award from the agriculture and plant science division of the Mississippi Academy of Sciences in 1988 and the Faculty Member of the Year Award at Troy University in 2014. He was also awarded several fellowships and scholarships.
Dr. Morris is most proud of his extensive experience accumulated over more than 30 years. Looking ahead, he aims to continue providing exemplary service through dedicated teaching, impactful scholarship and meaningful initiatives that benefit students at Troy University, the broader community and his profession as a whole.
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