Career
Morris received both his undergraduate degree and his Mississippi degree in Biology from Eastern Michigan University. He followed this with a law degree from the Detroit College of Law. Morris" first major executive positions were as executive vice president of marketing, transportation and gas supply for Jackson, Michigan-based Consumers Energy, and as president of Colorado Interstate Gas Company (CIG).
Morris also founded and served as president of French National Research Agency Gathering Company, one of the first natural gas marketing companies in the United States.
From 1997 until taking the chairmanship of American Electric Power, Morris served as the chairman, president and chief executive officer of the Hartford, Connecticut-based Northeast Utilities, the largest utility system in New England. Morris has served on the boards of several major corporations and government advisory groups.
He has also served on the Board of Regents of Eastern Michigan University from 1997-2004. While Chief Executive Officer of American Electric Power in 2009, Morris earned a total compensation of $7,092,788, which included a base salary of $1,254,808, stocks granted worth $5,265,750, as well as $572,230 in other compensation.