MIT professor among winners of Heinz Award

One of the recipients of the award today will be Joseph Rogers, who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 1969.

Rogers took tests to see whether he was eligible for vocational rehabilitation, but counselors said the 18-year-old should just collect disability benefits. ''I cried right there," he said. ''They basically suggested that I should retire."

Years of homelessness and stays in psychiatric hospitals followed, but Rogers used those experiences to lead a mental health association.

Rogers joined the Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania in 1984 and rose to become its president and chief executive officer.

Rogers promoted the idea that people with mental illness should play an active role in their treatment.

He created the Self-Help and Advocacy Resource Exchange project, an umbrella organization for support groups, drop-in centers, and homeless outreach programs.

Another Heinz winner, Mildred S. Dresselhaus, is a physics and electrical engineering professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who has promoted the advancement of women in the sciences for more than 40 years.

Dresselhaus, whose research has focused on carbon science, once served as the director of the US Department of Energy's office of science. She also received the National Medal of Science.

In 1970, Dresselhaus cofounded MIT's Women's Forum, which aimed to give female students more opportunities.

She also used a Carnegie Foundation grant to encourage women to study in traditionally male-dominated fields.

Other recipients of the Heinz Award include:

Mark di Suvero, a sculptor and the founder of the Socrates Sculpture Park in New York City.

Sidney Drell, a professor emeritus at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center and a fellow at the university's Hoover Institution.

Jerry Franklin, a professor of ecosystem analysis at the University of Washington in Seattle.