Rooted in faith, equity, and compassion, the Loveless Morris Foundation supports emerging scholars, aspiring tradespeople, and working families.

This foundation was created from both personal truth and professional understanding—shaped by the lives that raised and supported the Morris’, the students who inspired Dr. Loveless-Morris, and the mentors who believed in them when they didn’t yet know how to believe in themselves.

Dr. Loveless-Morris is the daughter and stepdaughter of Black men from the rural South who had a high school education and every statistical strike against them—and yet, her father became a business owner before the age of 40, and her stepfather became a Command Sergeant Major in the U.S. Army. She is also the daughter of a Korean woman, the firstborn in her family, whose education ended after seventh grade simply because of her gender. Though her parents never went to college, they instilled in her a non-negotiable belief: your identity or circumstances should never be a barrier to your success.

As an only child, she carried both the strength and burden of being her parents' dream. She was a “traditional” student in age and achievement—but in reality, she was a working wife and mother, navigating college with a family to raise and no roadmap. She earned degrees from an associate’s to a PhD, ultimately graduating from one of the top programs in her field. Bryan Morris earned degrees from an associate to an advanced degree from UW’s School of Pharmacy. But they did not do it alone.

Judy’s career—first as a tenured professor, then as an academic administrator, and now as an executive which includes overseeing our organizational Foundation—has been about lifting people up. She has taught and supported students, including those who had been incarcerated, involved in gangs, or outcasted. She has witnessed them become not only scholars, but community leaders and mentors in their own right. She has studied the data, lived the reality, and created pathways where none existed.

But the seed for this foundation is more personal.

His name was Merle Palmer. He was a community leader who started his own scholarship foundation to support local youth. Bryan and Judy were both Merle Palmer Scholars, and among all the scholarships and fellowships they’ve received, his was the most meaningful. Not only did it provide financial support—it came with mentorship, academic guidance, and spiritual encouragement. Merle took his own time and resources and invested them in people like them. His generosity and personal care changed the trajectory of their academic pathways.

Judy also carries deep gratitude for her K-12 teachers, Mrs. Dullen, Mr. Arbogast, Mrs. Cook, Mrs. Gammel, Mr. Smith, and Dr. Barbara Reskin, her dissertation chair, whose mentorship was instrumental to her academic success. They believed in her, invested in her, and supported her through critical milestones in ways that were both academic and deeply human.

This foundation exists in that same spirit.

We don’t aim to solve every systemic problem. But we do aim to stand in the gap: helping someone afford a quarter of tuition, purchase trade tools, get a laptop, or pay sports fees that keep a young person connected to something hopeful. The amounts may be small—but their impact can be immeasurable.

This foundation is for the dreamers, the builders, the in-betweeners. The ones who are worthy of support but may not see themselves as “scholarship material.” The ones navigating a path where guidance, encouragement, and a little financial help could make all the difference.

We are here—rooted in faith, driven by equity, and grounded in the belief that opportunity should never be reserved for the few.

If you’ve ever been overlooked, if you’ve ever worked hard but needed just a little help, or if you’re someone who wants to help others make it—this foundation is for you.