Ed and Anne Morton
Leaving a legacy
So he went to work in student affairs and spent 10 years as assistant director of Indiana’s University Division. In 1983 he came to UT Arlington, where he is assistant dean for student affairs in the College of Science. He has advised hundreds of students, helping ones as young as 15 and as old as 62 gain acceptance to medical school.
“Ed is very student-oriented,” biology academic adviser Jane Pugh says. “He is down to earth and approachable. Students appreciate that.”
Morton is quick to tell anyone that he loves his job.“The College of Science is like family to me,” he says.
“We support each other through the tough times.”
Morton and his wife, Anne, the senior director of therapy and special services for Our Children’s House at Baylor Hospital, recently sat down with their lawyer to create wills, and Ed began to think about leaving part of his estate to UT Arlington.
“We never considered ourselves wealthy,” he says, “but when we looked at our assets, we realized we could make a substantial bequest.”
Anne says that when you look at your legacy, you want to know that something lasting will come from the lean years when you scrimped and saved.“The college and the students have been a huge part of Ed’s life. He really believes in what they are doing.”
Ed is enthusiastic about UT Arlington’s momentum toward Tier One status. For that reason, he made a somewhat surprising choice—instead of scholarships, his estate will endow a faculty chair for the Biology Department, which does not have one.
“The Welch Chair in Chemistry, held by Daniel Armstrong, has catapulted that department’s research to new levels,” he says. “This is incredibly good for the University.”
With their bequest, the Mortons are leaving a legacy and creating a model of perpetual giving for others to follow.
For information on estate gift opportunities, contact Debra Purviance at purviance@uta.edu or 817-272-1080.
