Susan Sygall M.S. ’82
Originality, Creativity, and Dedication Earn Her Genius Award

Since her high school years in Queens, New York, through and beyond her studies at the University of Oregon, Susan Sygall has personified the “active” in activism. Her tireless advocacy in championing the rights and changing the lives of persons with disabilities recently earned Sygall a $500,000 no-strings attached MacArthur Fellowship.

Sygall was one of twenty-five scientists, scholars, activists and artists nationwide selected for the 2000 MacArthur awards—commonly referred to as “genius awards”—which recognize creativity and potential. By design, the fellowship is granted to individuals who demonstrate extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative, self-directed pursuits. No restrictions are made on how the grant money can be spent so that fellowship recipients will have maximum freedom and flexibility in using the award in ways that most effectively facilitate their future work. For Sygall, the award means the freedom to forge ahead with whatever project comes her way next. “Exciting plans in the future include being involved in a unique microcredit program for women with disabilities in Africa and international exchange programs with Uzbekistan and Vietnam,” she says.

Sygall is the executive director of Mobility International USA (MIUSA), a nonprofit organization she co-founded in 1981 to promote international educational exchange, leadership development and travel opportunities for people with disabilities. Sygall’s inspiration for MIUSA came from her master’s project in therapeutic recreation, now a Mobility International publication entitled “A World of Options: A Guide to International Exchange, Community Service and Travel for Persons with Disabilities.” Her project became one of the first publications for people with disabilities and international exchange organizations and discussed including people with disabilities in work, study, research and volunteer programs, says Sygall. “Very significant in my studies at the University of Oregon was taking courses in international studies and those advisors that enabled me to go beyond preconceived notions about what therapeutic recreation should accomplish,” she says.

Sygall herself uses a wheelchair as a result of a spinal injury suffered in a car accident when she was seventeen years old, just prior to beginning classes at the University of Colorado. Determined even as a young woman, she used the challenge of her yearlong recovery to lay the foundation for what became her life’s passion. She went on to the University of California in Berkeley in the early 70s. She joined a disabled women’s coalition that promoted equality and rights for disabled people, and she put belief to practice by cultivating her love for travel and recreation. To date, she has been to more than twenty-five countries around the world. She also writes for a variety of magazines and is a columnist for Transitions Abroad, a national magazine.

A much-abbreviated list of Sygall’s other dynamic accomplishments and projects clearly illustrates her dedication. Sygall co-founded and directed the Bay Area Outreach Recreation Program; she spearheaded the 1995 International Symposium on Women with Disabilities in Beijing, the 1997 Women’s Institute on Leadership and Disability and the 1998 International Symposium on Microcredit for Women with Disabilities; and she received the Rotary Scholar Alumni Achievement Award in 1998.

Aside from her innately spirited attitude, Sygall modestly gives credit for her drive and determination both to her time at the UO and to the people she has met along her journey. “During my years at the University of Oregon, I was surrounded by other graduate and doctoral students who encouraged me and also worked side-by-side with me to develop and implement what is now MISUA,” she says. “Meeting people with disabilities from around the world and seeing their dedication and experiencing their passion for the improvement of human rights for people with disabilities around the world is something that refuels my energy.”