Shawn M. Solomon Memorial Scholarship to aid the disabled

Shawn M. Solomon was born with muscular dystrophy, but he never let his disability hold him back. Growing up in the San Fernando Valley, as a teenager he built his own ham radio receiver and communicated with operators worldwide via Morse code, which he had taught himself. He was the first in his family to go to college, and in 1962, he graduated from Cal State LA with a degree in electrical engineering. He worked for Hughes Aircraft, Litton and Teledyne, as well as Arco Solar.

The hallmark of muscular dystrophy is the progressive weakening of muscles, and as time went on, Solomon, who was confined to a wheelchair, found it increasingly difficult to propel himself. So he did what any enterprising engineer would do—he invented a solution. After tinkering around with ideas, he designed a detachable electrical unit with a battery, drive wheels and joystick control that could be retrofitted to non-motorized wheelchairs. He patented it in 1967, and it worked so well that he decided to make a business of it. The Motorette Corporation, as he called his company, operated for about ten years in Reseda, employing ten people. The company also did van conversions for people who used wheelchairs. In a uniquely Los Angeles twist, the producers of the TV show Ironside bought one of his wheelchair units for Raymond Burr’s character, and Motorette also converted a van for the show.

Shawn died in 2010, and to celebrate his life and honor him in perpetuity, his sister, Brenda Anderson, recently endowed a scholarship in his memory in the college. Endowment is money that is invested, and the interest it generates is used for a specific purpose, such as a scholarship or endowed chair, while the principal remains inviolate.

“I always had a close relationship with Shawn, and he was an inspiration to me,” she says. “I wanted the scholarship to be a long-lasting legacy to my brother.”

Anderson was drawn to CSUN for the scholarship because of the campus’s commitment to assistive technology engineering and the CSUN conference on disabilities. “It seemed like it was the perfect place for a scholarship like this,” she says.

The Shawn M. Solomon Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to an undergraduate in his/her junior year who is majoring in electrical and computer engineering. The recipient must have at least a 3.0 GPA and preferably have a physical disability or interest in assistive technology. If neither applies, then the funds will go to a worthy student.

Anderson hopes the scholarship will allow more disabled students to contribute to their community and society.

“There are still so many barriers to the physically disabled in our society, I am hoping to lighten their financial burden slightly,” she says. “Because Shawn was disabled and so accomplished, I want to help.”