Abbie Muthoni Muhoro, a graduate student seeking an MBA in supply chain management at IUP, has been awarded the Ray Coppler Disability Awareness Award for 2025–26.
Ten years ago, an injury changed the course of Abbie’s life and reshaped how she moved through the world. Rather than allowing that experience to define her limits, she carried it into her leadership, advocacy, and service, using her voice and lived experience to help make IUP a more accessible and inclusive place for students with disabilities.
At IUP, Abbie has brought disability awareness into student spaces in visible and practical ways. As PR director for the Graduate Student Assembly, she has raised important questions about access, representation, and inclusive programming, while also creating more room for students to share their experiences openly. Her advocacy has also extended into RAINN Day, Take Back the Night, and related gender-based violence awareness efforts, where she has helped bring attention to the added barriers students with disabilities may face in safety, reporting, and support. In campus dining, including in a student manager role, she has also pushed for greater awareness of how physical demands and task placement affect participation.
Originally from Nairobi, Kenya, Abbie came to IUP with a strong background in service, logistics, and community-based work. Before coming to the United States, she did event decoration work for churches and corporate organizations across Kenya, often handling supplies, coordination, and logistics on a volunteer basis. She also worked closely with Rotary in Nairobi in service to children with disabilities living in underserved communities. Those experiences helped shape both her commitment to inclusion and her decision to pursue an MBA in supply chain management. After graduation, she hopes to build on the work she began in Kenya by creating opportunities for young adults, both in Indiana, Pennsylvania, and eventually in communities across the world, using business, operations, and logistics to create jobs, serve people well, and show that inclusion and impact can go hand in hand.