I don’t care how many people continue to heckle me while I’m on this wrestling mat! I know that I am a true champion! I am a winner! I will not submit myself to defeat! I am GREATNESS!” —Mr. Kameron Ri’Chard Morris, May 12, 1993- May 20, 2025.
Kameron allowed these thoughts to ruminate as he fought to win first place at a middle school wrestling match. Kameron is wrestling against an opponent of a formidable size on a large mat. This match is becoming strenuous, and the crowd’s persistent jeers get into Kameron’s head. Suddenly, the school’s referee yells, “3…2…1…! And this class weight match goes to… Kameron Morris!”
This wrestling match was not Kameron’s first time winning at a wrestling tournament. Kameron had won other wrestling matches in the past. However, he would face many challenging moments to which the thought of winning would become unattainable. From competing against heavy hitting wrestlers, to receiving the anticipated jeers during his matches, he would question his aptitude as a wrestler.
Often, Kameron vacillated in his mind on whether he should allow fear to over take him. Instead of Kameron choosing to allow fear to subdue him, he chose to face fear. Kameron garnered the spirit of valiance and became resolute in his decision to be a champion. He then took the necessary steps to train himself up physically, mentally, and emotionally. Firstly, he strengthen himself physically by him training against the best wrestlers on his team.
Next, when it came to mental training, he looked at wrestling like playing chess. Kameron was a meticulous chess player that could detect others moves beforehand. Finally, Kameron started to build his emotional strength through the use of daily affirmations. He would say daily affirmations himself to buildup his confidence. Kameron working on his self-confidence would later help forge an impenetrable self defense against the naysayers.
During future matches, he started to reap the fruits of his labor. Instead of letting jeers get to him, he ate them like vitamins for breakfast. The jeers became mellifluous to his ears. The jeers would invigorate Kameron to endure strenuous matches and give it all he had. The anticipated clamor of jeers would then turned into cheers. When it came to wrestling against a well seasoned wrestler, he translated his chess playing skills to the wrestling mat. He would detect the other opponents moves so well, that he would often dominate them.
Kameron’s wrestling became so good that he started to become renowned within the local wrestling community. Kameron started to garner the reputation as an undefeated champion! Even one rival school’s wrestlers did not want to compete against Kameron. The forfeiture led to an automatic win for Kameron. Kameron truly made a champion of himself because he didn’t quit on him.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Invictus, undefeated mentality Kameron had developed in his early childhood did translate into his adulthood. He remained resolute to be a young man of excellence that strove for greatness while he lived his life on this earth.
For example, during his early 20s, Kameron chose to take the rigorous educational path to become a prolific scholar, professor and magnet within the career field educational psychology. Kameron had achieved a great extent of his goals when he matriculated at both the Fayetteville State University and The Chicago School (formally known as The Chicago School of Professional Psychology).
While attending these educational institutions, he had successfully obtained Bachelor’s of Science, B.S, degree in Psychology from F.S.U, (2017). Additionally, Kameron obtained a Master’s of Psychology, M.A., degree from The Chicago School (2019).
Over the past few years, Kameron had actively pursued to attain his doctorates degree in Educational Psychology and Technology, Ed.D., at The Chicago School. Kameron wanted to utilize his doctoral degree to later become a professor at a distinguished university. Kameron’s doctoral research focuses on the importance of schools use emotional intelligence training within the classroom. As a would be Ed.D, Kameron was motivated to design online learning programs that are centered around emotional intelligence training for K-12 grade students within the United States.
Kameron believed that the lack of emotional intelligence training was a prevalent issue among the youth in today’s generation. Further, he noticed that emotional intelligence was not a concept taught to him or children in his generation as he was growing up. He felt that order to rectify the social ills that youth of today face, his research advocated for grade schools to incorporate emotional intelligence training within their curriculums.
Through years of comprehensive research and study, Kameron found that emotional intelligence is a key to self- actualization, self-realization, growth, and transformation of the mind. “Teach kids while they’re young the right way to manage their emotions and train them to become mentally strong, so that they will gain the capacity and necessary skillsets to handle challenges in the world, like I did!,” Kameron would say during he doctoral studies.
Thus, Kameron’s aim with emotional intelligence training was to help students to unlock their latent potential and to transform their minds become self-sufficient individuals. Introducing emotional intelligence training to students would most likely help student to learn how to handle challenges in the context of their home and school life. He envisioned that the long-term results of his emotional intelligence program would help students to motivate and strengthen themselves today, so that they would become effective leaders of tomorrow.
Lastly, Kameron’s academic research also highlights that K-12 grade schools should go beyond the traditional methods of teaching for student learning in the classrooms. He deemed it necessary for K-12 grade schools to incorporate the use of technology as a newly introduced learning method to students. He believed that student engagement with technology in the classrooms and beyond the classroom setting is important because advancement in the use technology.
Further, regardless of students’ socioeconomic status and background, he wanted his programs to have a wider outreach that would impact children beyond the context of K-12 grade education within the United States. Kameron wanted work with video game and software development companies to design games that incorporated emotional intelligence. This would provide children with even greater access to emotional intelligence training.
Kameron’s advancement towards achieving his life-long goals came to a sudden end. On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, this world lost Kameron—a champion—to an unexpected illness. Kameron was only a couple classes shy of completed his doctoral studies at The Chicago School this year. He would’ve graduated with an Ed.D. in Psychology and Technology this year. Before Kameron had departed this earth, he was known to his family, friends, love ones, peers, and the community as an accomplished individual, an ingenious leader, a brilliant student, and a visionary. He never stopped helping or giving as he was also a Donor.
Today, Mr. Kameron Morris’s family is looking to the community to help lay him to rest. Any donation amount that individual or group donors choose to provide will greatly support Kameron’s burial. Please help the family to support a champion that did not give up on himself in life and who was actively on a path to help make this world a better place for all!
Thank you!
The Morris & Taylor Family
