Meet the Vice Chancellor
Morris A. Taylor, PhD, has served as Vice-Chancellor for Administration since October 2, 2020. He is a tenured associate professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy Analysis (PAPA) in the SIUE College of Arts and Sciences. Taylor has taught courses in public management, policy analysis, administrative law, program evaluation, ethics, homeland security and public safety. Having served in PAPA since 1997, he brings 22 years of higher education experience to the vice chancellor position.
During his SIUE tenure, Taylor has been extensively involved in campus leadership. He served as PAPA'S Department Chair from 2014-2020, while simultaneously chairing the University Planning and Budgeting Council (UPBC). Other prior chairperson duties include Faculty Senate Rules and Procedures Committee, College of Arts and Sciences Academic Policies and Curriculum Committee and several graduate student thesis committees. Additional service activities include Chancellor’s University Leadership Team, Enrollment Management Council, Extended Chancellor’s Council, University Quality Council, Provost’s Space Committee, Teaching Excellence Award Committee, Graduate Council Program Committee, Graduate Studies and Research Committee, and several others.
Prior to joining SIUE, Taylor was an administrator with the Social Security Administration in St. Louis. He served as a police officer for both the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County during the 1970s. From 2004-2005, he was the Ira Glasser Racial Justice Fellow for the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri. His private sector business experience includes work as a senior bodily injury claims adjuster/attorney negotiator for the State Farm Insurance Companies, management associate for Citicorp, and power operations technician for Ameren Corporation of Missouri, formerly known as Union Electric.
Taylor believes his public safety experience will be particularly beneficial to the campus community. “Having served in two large urban police departments as a patrol officer, I am keenly aware of the need for ensuring public safety,” he said. “That experience is supported further by my professional activities in various public service organizations focusing on public safety, which will serve me well to help ensure a safe campus.”
His public and community service include active memberships on the United States Attorneys’ Hate Crime Task Force for Eastern Missouri, Board of Directors for St. Louis Area Regional Response System (STARRS), Southwestern Illinois City Manager Association (SWICMA), ACLU of Eastern Missouri, East-West Gateway Council of Governments (EWGCOG), and a variety of other public policy-focused organizations.
Taylor earned a bachelor’s in liberal studies from Saint Louis University in 1985 with a specialization in organizational development, and a Master of Public Administration from SIUE in 1992. His doctorate in public policy analysis with a specialization in social jurisprudence was earned in 2000 from Saint Louis University.
