Taylor Morris joins School faculty to work in emergency management and code enforcement

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By Andy Bradshaw

The UNC School of Government is pleased to welcome Taylor Morris to its faculty ranks. Morris joined the School in March 2025 as a nominated assistant professor, working specifically to teach, research, and advise in emergency management and code enforcement law.

In his new faculty position, Morris looks forward to trailblazing and finding innovative ways to serve the public officials who rely on him for instruction and advice.

“I want to make sure I'm engaging with public officials in ways that are relevant and helpful. Especially since this position hasn't existed before, I'm interested in being flexible and creative in how I connect with communities,” he said.

Morris shared that his desire to serve at the School stems in large part from the support he received from the public in his community during his upbringing.

“I grew up mostly in North Carolina and benefited from having great community support here,” he said. “I benefitted so much from their time and attention, which helped me get through school and become an attorney. And I've hoped that I could have some sort of similar role for others someday. In some ways, the draw to public service comes from wanting to fill that role and be like the people who helped me.”

Before joining the School of Government, Morris served as an assistant attorney for the City of Asheville. Previously, he worked as an associate for a private, national, and international litigation firm. Morris earned his undergraduate degree at Harvard College and J.D. at Yale Law School.

In his first month in the role, Morris has already hit the ground running—laying out a multi-step plan to effectively engage with the officials he serves.

Here, he describes it:

“First, since arriving at the School, I've been getting in touch with groups of public servants that work in my focus areas. In my second week, I attended both the North Carolina Emergency Management Association's Spring Conference and the North Carolina Municipal Attorneys' Winter Conference.

“Second, the School of Government also has several existing courses that may benefit from additional emergency management and/or code enforcement programming. So, I will be looking for ways to plug into those courses.

“Third, in the longer term, I will also be exploring what new courses or programming the School of Government could provide public officials in my main focus areas.”

As he looks ahead to the rest of his tenure at the School, Morris said he looks forward to spending his time on the faculty to provide the trusted, helpful instruction to public officials for which the institution is known.

“I hope that I'll provide engaging, relevant, and helpful content in my fields and that I will be a valuable resource to the people turning to me for help.”