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Elyn R. Saks
We work to improve the quality of life for those affected by schizophrenia and psychosis through education, support programs, influencing public policy, and encouraging research.
USC Gould School of Law professor and Associate Dean Elyn Saks [pictured] has been selected as a 2009 fellow of the MacArthur Foundation. Saks is the first fellow selected from the faculty of USC and one of only 24 selected for this year’s awards.
The prestigious fellowship, known informally as the "genius grant," provides each recipient with a $500,000 "no strings attached" award over five years. The awards were announced by the Chicago-based John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Saks is a nationally recognized scholar in mental health law, criminal law and the ethical dimensions of medical research. She also has battled schizophrenia and acute psychosis. In 2007, after decades of hiding her illness, Saks published a memoir about her struggles and successes in The Center Cannot Hold: My Journey Through Madness. The book won far-reaching acclaim from literary critics and advocacy groups.