Biographical Information

Dr. Laura Morris was born on February 21, 1910, in Brooklyn, New York. She was raised along with her brothers and sisters in Northern New Jersey. After graduating from Elimira College in New York in 1931, she was admitted to the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. Dr. Morris subsequently received her degree from Columbia in 1935. In 1937, her career centered around a private practice in Florida. After marrying in 1939, she moved to the Tidewater area. Dr. Morris practiced pediatrics in this area until 1962. While self-employed as a private physician, she also worked at the Children's Clinic in Norfolk and as a school physician. In 1962, Dr. Morris became director of School Health Services for Norfolk schools. Her career continued to evolve as she became a member of the Norfolk Health Department and later director of Chesapeake Health Department. Dr. Morris added another achievement to her long list of professional accomplishments by becoming director of admissions at Eastern Virginia Medical School in 1979.

Although Dr. Morris still holds her position at EVMS, she is also a participant in numerous civic activities including involvement in the Lung Association and volunteer health agencies. Throughout her career as a physician, she has become a member or several professional organizations as well. The Norfolk Academy of Medicine, the Medical Society of Virginia, the American Medical Association, the Tidewater Pediatric Society, the Virginia Pediatric Society, the Virginia Public Health Association, and the Virginia Association of Local Health Directors are all organizations to which Dr. Morris holds a membership.

A discussion of Dr. Morris' family background, professional career, private life, and personal philosophy follows in a transcription of an interview held on November 1, 1982, at Eastern Virginia Medical School. As the interview began, this fascinating and vivacious woman and her interesting life began to unfold.

Transcript

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