Fordham University mourns the loss of Francis Morison, FCRH ’62, longtime member of the Board of Trustees and a Trustee Fellow until his death this week.
“Today we grieve the loss of Frank Morison, and hold his family and loved ones in our prayers,” said Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham. “We will miss his warmth, his dedication and his quick intelligence. But Frank’s generous heart lives on at Fordham. His lifetime of selflessness and hard work on behalf of the University has left it a better place than he found it, and left us better people for having known him.”
Morison attended Xavier High School, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Fordham College at Rose Hill with a degree in English. He went on to a master’s degree in English and comparative literature from Columbia University, and then a J.D. from New York University School of Law, where he was an editor of the Law Review. Morison joined Davis Polk & Wardwell upon graduation, and became a partner in 1975.
He served as chair the academic affairs committee of Fordham’s Board, as a member of its executive committee, and as a member of Fordham College at Rose Hill’s Board of Visitors. Morison was also a trustee of the New York University School of Law Foundation and the chair of the executive committee of Manhattan Theatre Club. He also served as chairman of Xavier High School’ s board of trustees. He was the 1997 recipient of the Arthur T. Vanderbilt Medal, New York University School of Law’s highest honor.
Morison is survived by his wife, Ann, and their children, Jennifer (FCRH ’90), Francis (FCLC ’92), Mark, and Gregory, and their families. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to Memorial Sloan Kettering or Little Sisters of the Poor.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010, at Our Lady of Mercy Church, 70-01 Kessel Street, in Forest Hills, Queens.
