Chris Morgan, senior assistant to Provost and Executive Vice President Tony Waldrop, is coordinating her 19th and final Founders’ Day Honors Convocation before she retires May 31.
Morgan was hired in 1994 as a personnel representative in Human Resources and was promoted to her current job in 1995. She has served three provosts at UCF in her role: Gary Whitehouse, Terry Hickey and Waldrop.
“In my position, no two days are alike,” she said, likening all the varied duties she coordinates for her job as similar to being a plate spinner.
The annual Founders’ Day awards began in 1989, and Morgan became the coordinator in 1995. She said her guiding principle in coordinating the ceremonies for nearly two decades has always focused on what a former co-worker said: UCF is such a young institution that establishing traditions such as the convocation help to put the “ivy on our walls.”
In her retirement, Morgan said she is looking forward to focusing on fitness, taking some art classes, walking on the beach with her husband, planning an Alaskan cruise to celebrate her 25th wedding anniversary next year, and “discovering what’s next.”
But first, Morgan’s hard work will be on display at Wednesday’s Founders’ Day. The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. in the Pegasus Ballroom of the Student Union.
The university will recognize faculty members who have demonstrated excellence in teaching, advising, research, professional service, and librarianship. Also to be recognized are faculty members who have completed 20, 30, 40, and 45 years of service and those who recently retired or who are retiring soon.
Ten students who have demonstrated exceptional ability in a particular area of study will be recognized along with four Honors in the Major students for having written the most outstanding theses. Recently graduated seniors who completed honors theses and juniors and seniors who are in the top 1 percent academically of undergraduates within each college will also be recognized.