Peorian John Morris named development officer for
Reagan-Related programs at Eureka College

John D. Morris of Peoria has been named director of development for the Ronald W. Reagan Leadership Program and the Ronald Reagan Museum at Eureka College. Morris’ responsibilities include fundraising for the Reagan program, which provides full-tuition, four-year fellowships and worldwide mentorship opportunities to select Eureka College students, and for the campus Reagan Museum, which hosts more than 10,000 visitors each year.

In the newly created position, Morris will concentrate on acquiring new donors from across the nation who have an affinity for both the 40th president of the United States and higher education, said Eureka College President J. David Arnold. “As we’ve seen in the presidential primaries, the Reagan legacy is stronger than ever, and Eureka College is a part of that living legacy,” Arnold said. Reagan graduated from Eureka College in 1932 and returned to campus numerous times.

Morris called Eureka College a national treasure and said that it is a great honor for him to be part of the Eureka College team. “The story of the relationship between Eureka College and Ronald Reagan provides a living monument for the idea that, no matter one’s roots, a good education and solid values give people the tools they need to achieve great things,” Morris said. “Eureka College continues to emerge as one of America’s finest symbols of this adage.”

Morris formerly was the chief development officer at Peoria’s Lakeview Museum of Arts and Sciences and WTVP Channel 47.  He was a member of the Peoria City Council for eight years, and he was a candidate in February’s U.S. Congressional 18th District Republican primary election. Morris worked in numerous volunteer and staff positions in Washington, D.C., including in Congress and in the White House, where he was an intern during Reagan’s presidency. Morris received bachelor’s and master’s degrees in public administration from George Washington University, Washington, D.C. 

“In addition to his extensive nonprofit development experience, John Morris brings an appreciation for both the liberal arts and the devotion that President Reagan showed for his alma mater by lending his name to create a premier leadership program that has been producing future civic- and service-minded leaders for more than 25 years,” Arnold said.

        
The Reagan program selects six incoming freshmen as Reagan Fellows from a field of approximately 85 semifinalists in a competition held on the campus each February.  The awards are based on recipients’ leadership, service and academic excellence.

Working with Morris will be Michael Thurwanger of Peoria, who will begin duties as director of the Reagan program on July 1.

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Contact:

Michele Lehman

Media Relations Coordinator

mlehman@eureka.edu

(309) 467-6318