16th Annual McGinley-Rice Symposium on Justice for Vulnerable Populations

October 23, 2025 - Duquesne University's Power Center

Registration

The McGinley-Rice Symposium on Justice for Vulnerable Populations is a unique scholarly forum for nurses and other health care professionals to address issues of justice in health care. Organized annually by the holder of the Jacques Laval Endowed Chair in Justice for Vulnerable Populations at the Duquesne University School of Nursing, the McGinley-Rice Symposium is an expression of the mission of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, the Catholic missionary order that founded Duquesne and assists needy and marginalized persons throughout the world.

Symposium Information

Program Schedule

8:00 a.m Registration
Shepperson Suite
8:30 - 9:00 a.m. Welcome
Conference Rooms B and C

Sr. Rosemary Donley, PhD, APRN, BC, FAAN
Professor & Jacques Laval Chair for Vulnerable Populations
Duquesne University School of Nursing, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Mary Ellen Glasgow, PhD, RN, ACNS-BC, ANEF, FAAN
Dean & Professor, School of Nursing
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Fr. Raymond French, C.S.Sp.
Vice President for Mission and Identity 
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.
9:00 - 10:00 a.m. Keynote Address
Conference Rooms B and C

Protecting Our Children: The Path Forward
Angela Karakachian, PhD, RN
Assistant Professor, Duquesne University School of Nursing, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Bullying through the Lifespan
Dr. Laura Crothers, DEd, NCSP
Professor, Duquesne University School of Education, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Moderator
Ruth Irwin, PhD, RN, CSN
10:15 - 11:15 a.m. Plenary Panel
Conference Rooms B and C

Observing Children for Abuse 
Samantha Norris, MSN, RN, CPEN, SANE-P
Emergency Department
UPMC Childrens. Hospital, Pittsburgh Pa.

Bethany Hallam
Council Member at Large for Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Moderator
Rebecca Kronk, PhD, MSN, CRNP, FAAN, CNE, ANEF
11:20 - 12:30 p.m. Plenary Panel
Conference Room A

How Safe is Grandma?
Brendan Hanley
Deputy Director, Allegheny County Area of Aging
Pittsburgh, Pa.

¿Cómo está usted?
Monica Ruiz
Casa San Jose 
Pittsburgh, Pa.

Mental Health Professionals Working with Trauma and Experiencing Vicarious Trauma
Sarah E. Dalton, PhD
Associate Professor, Counselor Education Department, College of Professional Counseling, The Chicago School
Chicago, Il.    

Moderator
Mary Esther Van Shura, EdD
12:40 - 1:30 p.m. Lunch and the Presentation of the Eileen Zungolo Spirit of Service Award
Conference Rooms B and C
Posters will be available for viewing during this time in the Shepperson Suite

Prayer 

Mary Ellen Glasgow, PhD, RN, ACNS-BC, ANEF, FAAN
Dean & Professor, School of Nursing
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Bishop Mark Eckman
Diocese of Pittsburgh

Jack McGinley, Esq

Susan Rauscher
2025 Eileen Zungolo Spirit of Service Award

Marianne Cornetti
American Opera Singer
1:45 - 2:45 p.m. Keynote Address
Conference Room A 

Pennsylvania's Most Vulnerable Children in an Era of Diversity, Data and Denialism
Rachel Berger, MD, MPH
Medical Director, Pennsylvania Office of Children, Youth and Families

Moderator
Kathleen Sekula, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, FAAFS, FAAN
2:50 - 3:50 p.m.

Keynote Address
Conference Rooms A

Advocating for Children who are Abused
Michelle Clayton, MD, MPH
Director of the Child Advocacy program, UPMC

Moderator
Rick Zoucha, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, CTN-A, FTNSS, FAAN
3:55 - 4:55 p.m. Breakout Sessions
Conference Rooms A, B, or C
Please choose one of the sessions below

Session 1a: Abuse is a Public Health Problem

Institutional Violence in Healthcare: Disability Theory, Justice, and Abuse Prevention
Jamie Kojiro, MLIS Student
University of Pittsburgh

Institutional Neglect and Abuse: A Lack of Support for Second Victims
Michael Neft, PhD, DNP, MHA, RN, CRNA, FNAP, FAANA, FAAN
Clinical Professor/Director, Duquesne University School of Nursing


Session 1b: Lack of Reporting in Elder Abuse

Prevention of Elderly Abuse: What can we do?
Faina Linkov, PhD, MPH
Associate Professor, Duquesne University

Elder Abuse and Neglect: An under-recognized problem
Patricia Watts Kelley, PhD, FNP-BC, GNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN
Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs
University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing


Session 1c: Children of All Ages are Victims of Abuse

Mandated to Report, Called to Support: Navigating Child Abuse Reporting with Trauma-Informed Care
Shenoa Dale, CPNP, SANE-A, SANE-P
Child Advocacy Center and Adolescent Medicine, UPMC Children’s Hospital

What is the Cause and Effect of Abuse and its Impact on Socialization?
Jean Augustine
Former Member of the House of Commons of Canada
4:55 - 5:00 p.m. Closing Remarks

Sr. Rosemary Donley, S.C., PhD, APRN-BC, FAAN
Professor & the Jacques Laval Chair for Vulnerable Populations
Duquesne University School of Nursing, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Benediction 

Fr. William Christy, C.S.Sp.
University Chaplain & Director of Spiritan Campus Ministry
Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.
5:00 p.m. Reception and Poster Session 

 

Contact Hours

Duquesne University, School of Nursing is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Contact hours will be offered for nursing, psychology, and social work.  Up to six (6) hours will be available if the entirety of the program is attended and the evaluation is submitted by the deadline.

No partial credit will be offered.

Symposium Fees

The 2025 McGinley-Rice Symposium is a one-day event which includes meals as part of the fees: Thursday (breakfast, lunch and a reception). The Symposium is free to current Duquesne University students, faculty, staff and those with religious affiliation. For those outside of these designations, the following fees apply:

Days Amount
Thursday $175
Duquesne Alumni $175
Current Duquesne University students, faculty, staff No Charge

Sponsors

We thank the following sponsors:

  • Allegheny Health Network
  • UPMC / UPMC Health Plan
  • United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania
  • Catholic Charities
  • McAuley Ministries / Trinity Health
  • Duquesne University Civic Engagement and External Relations
  • Epsilon Phi Chapter, Sigma International
  • Pittsburgh Child Guidance Foundation
  • Scott & Susan Lammie
  • Buhl Foundation

Previous Symposium Topics

Each year, the Symposium looks into the face of a specific vulnerable population and views the world through their eyes, including:

  • The Face of the Person Who is Incarcerated
  • The Face of the Person Who is Socially Isolated
  • The Face of the Person Who is Poor
  • The Face of the Person Who is Hungry
  • The Face of the Person Who is Homeless
  • The Face of the Person Who has been Trafficked
  • The Face of the Person with an Addiction
  • The Face of the Person with a Disability
  • The Face of the Person Who Has Experienced Violence
  • The Face of Mental Illness
  • The Face of the Child
  • The Face of the Veteran
  • The Face of the Immigrant
  • The Face of the Elderly
  • The Face of the Person with Dementia

If you would like to learn more about a past symposium, please contact Sr. Rosemary Donley.

Sixteenth Annual McGinley-Rice Host Committee

Rev. Paul T. Abernathy

CEO

Neighborhood Resilience Project

Marianne Cornetti

Chair Western Behavioral Health Foundation

Richard H. Beigi, MD, MSc.

President, UPMC Mercy and

UPMC Magee-Womens Hospitals

Pam Golden

Executive Director

Pittsburgh Child Guidance Foundation

Deborah Brodine

President, UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital

President, UPMC Senior Services

Diane Hupp, DNP

President

Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, UPMC

Fred Brown

President and CEO

The Forbes Funds

Scott Lammie

Board Treasurer

UPMC Health Plan (retired)

Diana A. Bucco

President

The Buhl Foundation

John Lovelace

Public Health Leader

Marisol Valentine

Executive Director

McAuley Ministries Foundation

Susan Rauscher

Executive Director

Catholic Charities, Diocese of Pittsburgh

Karen Wolk Feinstein, PhD

President and Chief Executive Officer

The Jewish Healthcare Foundation

Lisa Schroeder

President and CEO

The Pittsburgh Foundation

Bobbi Watt Geer, PhD

President and Chief Executive Officer

United Way of Southwestern PA

Kristy Trautmann

Executive Director

FISA Foundation

William Generett Jr., Esq.

Vice President for Community Engagement

Duquesne University

James Taylor, PhD

Chief Diversity, Inclusion and Talent

Management Officer

UPMC

 

The Laval Chair

Addressing injustice is a key aspect of Duquesne University's heritage and character. The Jacques Laval Endowed Chair in Justice for Vulnerable Populations underscores our commitment to provide a nursing education for the mind, heart and spirit.

Duquesne's commitment to helping those most in need is advanced through the efforts of Sister Rosemary Donley. The faculty of the School of Nursing has identified health care disparities among the elderly, poor, disadvantaged and other marginalized groups as its research priority.

Reflecting on the mission of the Laval chair, Sister Donley says that its intent is to ground nursing actions in justice and to assist others to work in the community and at the policy level to lessen the impact of injustice. She believes that nurses have phenomenal opportunities to express the works of justice by: increasing the level of understanding of the justice tradition and its particular application to vulnerable populations; acting to decrease vulnerability; and working collectively to identify and change the structures which perpetuate injustice.

Sr. Rosemary Donley
Sister Donley is a leader in nursing education, research and public service whose career has been devoted to providing better care for the underprivileged and the chronically ill.

A native Pittsburgher and member of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, she has taught health policy at The Catholic University of America for more than three decades, and has served as that institution's executive vice president, chief operating officer and dean of nursing. In addition, she was instrumental in developing and teaching community health nursing graduate courses, which focused on the care of vulnerable populations, including inner city residents, immigrants and refugees.

As holder of the Laval Chair, Sister Donley teaches and conducts research related to health care access and quality for underserved persons and communities. Her responsibilities include developing community partnerships, and organizing academic colloquia such as the annual McGinley-Rice Symposium. 

The Laval Chair is endowed through a bequest from the estate of the late Thomas F. Bogovich, a 1953 Duquesne business graduate and retired Penn Hills funeral director. It is named for a 17th-century Spiritan priest and physician who dedicated himself to caring for freed slaves on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius.

Born in France in 1803, the Rev. Jacques Laval, C.S.Sp., was a physician for many years before joining the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, the order that founded Duquesne University. As a Spiritan priest he volunteered for a missionary venture to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, where he dedicated himself to helping the island's newly freed African slaves.

Questions

For questions, assistance and further information, please contact us

Sr. Rosemary Donley, PhD, APRN, FAAN

Jacques Laval Endowed Chair in Justice for Vulnerable Populations

Photo of Sister Rosemary Donley

Jill Speer

Assistant to the Dean

School of Nursing