Events for 2025 Ethics Week
FEBRUARY 7-14, 2025
February 7 | all day
Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges Applied Ethics Bowl at the University of Richmond
The Marymount Saints Ethics Bowl Team will compete against 16 schools for the championship. | www.vfic.org
Coach: Dr. Brian Hollar, Professor of Economics, School of Business, Marymount University
February 10 | 5:30-7:00 pm
Ethical Advocacy in Pharmaceutical Development
This experience will explore the complex ethical challenges in pharmaceutical development with leaders in the pharmaceutical and health care sectors. This structured dialogue will examine key issues and suggest how citizens can advocate for positive change in the development and use of pharmaceuticals.
Hybrid: Ballston Center Conference Center and Virtual
Panelists:
- James C. Stansel, Esq., Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary, PhRMA
- Mr. George Sprinkel, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, University of Maryland Medical Center
Moderator: Professor Katie Sprinkel, Lab Coordinator and Continuing Instructor, School of Science, Mathematics, and Engineering, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Lester A. Myers, Founding Director, Center for Professional Ethics, Marymount University
February 11 | 11:00 am-12:15 pm
Advocacy: How You Can Take Action
This experience will provide practical skills and tools for individuals to advocate for issues important to them personally and professionally. You can make a difference! By the end of this session, you will know how to advocate virtually, find and contact state and federal representatives, and plan and conduct in-person advocacy.
Presenters:
- Dr. Gwendolyn S. R. Francavillo, Associate Professor of Health and Human Performance, School of Health Sciences, Marymount University
- Dr. Melissa Leisen, Assistant Professor of Nursing, Malek School of Nursing Professions, Marymount University
- Dr. Megan Moran, Associate Professor of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Noor Hashim, Associate Professor of Accounting and Finance, School of Business, and Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
February 11 | 3:00-4:15 pm
Ethical Advocacy in Action: Live Simulation of Interprofessional Care in Education and Health
This experience will model collaboration across professions in a dynamic case study simulation for evaluating and recommending patient care options. Participants will tackle real-world challenges while honing skills in ethics, advocacy, and decision making in a culturally responsive and team-based approach that showcases the thought leadership, methodologies, and experience that each profession brings to the table.
Presenters:
- Dr. Stephanie Chalk, Associate Director and Assistant Professor of Counseling, School of Counseling, Marymount University
- Dr. Julia Doto, Assistant Professor of Health and Human Performance, School of Health Sciences, Marymount University
- Dr. Patricia C. Heyn, Founding Director, Center for Optimal Aging, and Professor of Gerontology & Physical Therapy, Marymount University
- Dr. Michelle Lee, Director of Clinical Education and Adjunct Professor of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, Marymount University
- Dr. Megan Mahowald, Interim Associate Dean, College of Health & Education; Program Director and Professor, Speech-Language Pathology Program, Marymount University
- Dr. Jessica Marotta, Director and Associate Professor of Education, School of Education, Marymount University
- Dr. Maureen Moriarty, Associate Director, Graduate Nursing Programs, and Associate Professor of Nursing, Malek School of Nursing Professions, Marymount University
Moderator: Dr. Megan Mahowald
Host: Dr. Darrell N. Burrell, Assistant Professor of Business, School of Business, and Associate Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 11 | 7:00-8:30 pm
Ethical Advocacy in the Artificial Intelligence Age
Advocacy involves public support or recommendations on behalf of people, organizations, policies, and/or causes. What does principled and trustworthy advocacy mean in an era when social media platforms abandon fact checking, when misinformation is commonplace, and when deep-fakes recreate trusted voices?
Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing all aspects of life and amplifying the pace and scope for these ethical and technological questions, including how we get information, make decisions, create value, preserve our security, foster human flourishing, and promote the common good. Join us for a roundtable discussion of these questions of ethical advocacy in action in the age of AI with thought and executive leaders in technology and related fields.
Discussants:
- Dr. Al Argudo, U.S. Army (Ret.)
- Dr. Kimberlee Brannock, VP, Hewlett Packard
- Dr. Tony Knutson, Principal, Palo Alto Networks
- Dr. Vito Nozza, Principal, SoftChoice
- Dr. Josh Scarpino, Vice President, TrustEngine
- Dr. Clifton Stone, U.S. Army (Ret.)
- Dr. Justin Ubert, Division Chief, U.S. Department of Transportation
Moderators:
- John Adair, D.Sc. (Cand.), Chief Technology Officer, Compatible Technology Solutions
- John Checco, D.Sc. (Cand.), Information Security Executive
- Trent Teyema, D.Sc. (Cand.), President, Founder, and Principal Consultant, CSG Strategies
Hosts:
- Dr. Anne M. Magro, Dean and Professor of Accounting, College of Business, Innovation, Leadership, and Technology, Marymount University
- Dr. Donna Schaeffer, Program Director in Cybersecurity and Professor of Information Technology, School of Technology and Innovation, Marymount University
- Dr. Courtneay Kelly, Associate Professor of Education, School of Education, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 12 | 11:30 am-12:30 pm
Landscapes Tell Stories: Memorial Design as Civic Action
How can design contribute to ethical advocacy? Sal Pirrone and Miriam Gusevich will share their vision for Circles of Memory, a Remembrance and Reflection Park. Their charge was to create a public space to remember, reflect, and renew in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and other tragic events.
Presenters:
- Professor Salvatore Pirrone, Associate Professor of Interior Architecture and Design, School of Design and Art, Marymount University
- Professor Miriam Gusevich, Associate Professor Emerita, The Catholic University of America
Moderator: Dr. Jessica Bonness, Assistant Professor of Interior Architecture and Design, School of Design and Art, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Delario A. Lindsey, Assistant Professor of Sociology, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, and Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 12 | 3:30-4:45 pm
Literary Activism: A Discussion with Contemporary Writers
Literature is a powerful tool for engaging with the world, and many writers and proponents of the literary arts are also community organizers. In this experience, we shall hear from two accomplished writers and literary activists about their work in the community, as well as the advocacy role the literary arts can play in our society.
Panelists:
- Dr. Sarah J. Trembath, Professorial Lecturer of Literature, College of Arts and Sciences, American University
- Professor Sean Murphy, Founding Director, Center for Story, and Lecturer of English, Shenandoah University
Moderator: Dr. Hollynd Karapetkova, Professor, School of Humanities, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Bess Fox, Associate Professor of Literature and Languages, School of Humanities, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 12 | 6:15-7:45 pm
Marymount Saints Ethics Bowl Team Simulation Regarding Ethical Dimensions of Artificial Intelligence
A team of Marymount students who will have competed in the Virginia Foundation for Independent Colleges (VFIC) Applied Ethics Bowl debate competition on February 7 at the University of Richmond will simulate how they prepare and engage in their debates on this year’s Ethics Bowl theme of ethics of artificial intelligence.
The students will demonstrate how they work together to analyze ethical issues they encounter in case formats, and explain how they got involved in this competition.
Coach: Dr. Brian Hollar, Professor of Economics, School of Business, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Harishchandra Aryal, Assistant Professor of Engineering, School of Sciences, Mathematics, and Education, and Associate Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 13 | 12:00-1:30 pm
Caregiver to Breadwinner
This experience will showcase this grant-funded program that creates opportunities for women who left professional positions to care for others and who are unemployed and underemployed in the workplace. The program assists in their professional development by supplementing their excellent customer service skills with capabilities in technology so that they can reenter the workforce as highly skilled and well-paid technology service providers, with opportunities for help desk support or on cybersecurity incident response teams.
Hybrid: Ballston Center Conference Center and Virtual
Presenter: Dr. Diane R. Murphy, Director, Center for the Innovative Workforce, and Distinguished Professor of Technology, School of Technology and Innovation, Marymount University
Panelists:
- Karly Kiefer, Grants Manager, Office of Sponsored Programs, Marymount University
- Jennifer Weiser, Project Manager, Center for the Innovative Workforce, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Brianna C. J. Clark-Williams, Director, Center for Career Development and Community Engagement, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 13 | 3:00-4:30 pm
Nursing Workforce Development: Advocacy for Our Communities
Nursing professionals’ proximity to health care and other needs of individuals and groups uniquely enables them to advocate for their communities. Ensuring that the nursing workforce has essential resources to play its vital role in promoting health and well-being implicates the public good. Melody Eaton, Ph.D., Professor and Director of the School of Nursing at James Madison University, will speak on her work alongside faculty at Marymount University and other nurses across the Commonwealth to advocate for nursing workforce development. A panel discussion will follow with a leader in nursing practice, VHC Health Chief Nursing Officer Melody Dickerson, D.N.P., and a nursing education leader and advocate, Kellie Bryant, D.N.P., of the Virginia Nurses Association/National League for Nursing.
Hybrid: Reinsch Auditorium and Virtual
Keynote: Dr. Melody Eaton, Director and Professor, School of Nursing, James Madison University
Panelists:
- Dr. Kellie Bryant, Virginia Nurses Association, Director for the Center for Innovation in Education Excellence, National League for Nursing
- Dr. Melody F. Dickerson, Senior Vice President, Hospital Operations & Chief Nursing Officer, VHC Health
Moderator: Dr. Melissa Leisen, Assistant Professor of Nursing, Malek School of Nursing Professions, Marymount University
Host: Dr. Brianna C. J. Clark-Williams, Director, Center for Career Development and Community Engagement, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 13 | 7:00-8:30 pm
Unintended Consequences in Advocacy and the Importance of Getting Feedback About the Effectiveness of Actions
Good intentions alone do not always lead to good results. Marymount’s Economics Club will host an experience exploring the dangers of unintended consequences in advocacy and how to think through and mitigate these issues.
Venue: Ballston Center Conference Center
Moderator: Dr. Brian Hollar, Professor of Economics, School of Business, and Faculty Moderator, Economics Club, Marymount University
Organizer: Marymount University Economics Club
Host: Dr. Darrell N. Burrell, Assistant Professor of Business, School of Business, and Associate Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
FEBRUARY 14 | 12:00-1:30 pm
Not Me-search, You-search: Ethical Considerations for Research Involving Marginalized Outgroups
This experience presents a published study that explores experiences of quantitative researchers who worked with marginalized populations. Participants from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Forum responded to questions regarding their struggles and leading practices while working with marginalized populations in which they are or are not members. Responses included concerns regarding bidirectional trust, community norms, perceived bias, diversity and participant recruitment, and compensation.
Hybrid: Gerard Dining Zones 1 and 2 and Virtual
Presenter: Dr. Hannah Snidman, Assistant Professor of Psychology, School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Marymount University
Commentator: Malaz Hassan, M.D., Early Career Cochrane Collaboration Research Trainee Associate-International Fellow, Marymount University Center for Optimal Aging
Host: Dr. John P. Duggan, Associate Professor of Counseling, School of Counseling, and Associate Ethics Fellow, Marymount University
