Anna Morrow ’28 loves being part of a team.
When she was younger, she played multiple sports and dreamed of becoming an NFL coach. Two months into her Davidson College experience, she’s covering athletics for The Davidsonian, providing analytics for various teams through the ’Cats Stats program and studying the intersection of disability and sports. Her newest teammates, however, are other students with disabilities and disability advocates she’s connected with on campus.
At age nine, Morrow was diagnosed with Friedreich’s Ataxia, a neurodegenerative disorder that causes progressive muscle impairment and nerve damage.
“I’ve identified myself differently within the disabled community over time,” she said. “Using a wheelchair and having an apparent disability makes it even more important for me to speak up about the issues this community faces.”
Applying to colleges looked much different for Morrow than for her peers. She met with disability offices at several schools to talk about access and accommodations and said Davidson stood out above the rest. As a new Wildcat this fall, she also became the inaugural recipient of the McArthur-Fitzpatrick Scholarship for Disability Advocacy. Alex McArthur ’09 and Owen Fitzpatrick ’09 established the scholarship to support students while making Davidson a more accessible place — financially, physically and socially.
“A small community of support is exactly what I needed,” she said. “Davidson made it clear they were willing to do anything to get me here. We still have a lot to advocate for, but so many people before me paved the way for me to feel this kind of support on campus.”
Eliminating Barriers, Building Community
Alex McArthur ’09 stepped into her own identity as a disabled woman during her time at Davidson, an experience she shared with her older sister, acclaimed conceptual artist Park McArthur ’06. The sisters were far from the only disabled students on campus, but conversations around accessibility and community were limited. Student groups like the one Morrow belongs to didn’t exist yet, and disability studies in academics were just beginning to take shape.
“As a student, advocacy meant constantly asking for support in order to be involved in the Davidson community,” McArthur said. “It has meant a lot of different things to me since then. I experienced tremendous support, but there was a lack of structure to that support.
Accommodations weren’t formalized, but thanks to the advocacy of students, staff, and faculty, Davidson has made accessibility and inclusion an increasing institutional priority.”
Since graduating, McArthur has continued to advocate for inclusivity and access in all areas of her life — including in the corporate and nonprofit worlds. Now, she and her husband, Owen Fitzpatrick ’09, want to help Davidson prioritize bringing students with disabilities to campus.
“No one should be kept from attending Davidson because of financial reasons,” Fitzpatrick said. “For many people with disabilities and their families, funding can be a major barrier to higher education. By creating this scholarship, we’re hoping to alleviate that burden in a small way and make Davidson more accessible to all.”
McArthur has remained involved with the college in the years since her graduation and has watched Davidson’s disabled community grow more visible. Beyond advocacy, she believes these changes require pride in the shared experiences of disabled students, staff and faculty.
“I want us to see disability as an ordinary part of the human experience and as something additive that we all can be proud of,” she said. “We feel incredibly lucky to be able to create impact in this way. Getting involved with the college is fairly easy, whether you had a positive experience or not, and it’s been really refreshing to see how open Davidson is to new ideas.”
Still in the early stages of her Davidson journey, Morrow looks forward to finding teammates across campus. When she was first accepted, a family friend introduced her to a Davidson student who also uses a wheelchair, and he gave her a tour of campus. Since then, she’s connected with other wheelchair-users, students with rare diseases, and mentors who will guide her for years to come.
“I’m looking forward to building these relationships and knowing these people for a long time,” she said. “To be recognized for disability advocacy and to be able to continue this important work means so much to me.”
