Speakers

Patricia Morton, PhD, RN, ACNP-BC, FAAN
Editor of the Journal of Professional Nursing
Dean Emeritus
University of Utah

Patricia G. Morton is Dean Emeritus, University of Utah College of Nursing. Dr. Morton has authored three textbooks, numerous book chapters, and over 60 journal articles. She has served on the editorial board of six nursing journals and for seven years was the editor of a clinical journal sponsored by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. Currently, Dr. Morton is the editor of AACN’s Journal of Professional Nursing. She is a certified acute care nurse practitioner. Dr. Morton was inducted as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing in 1999.

Speakers

Jennifer Lollar
Executive Director, Strategic Marketing and Communications
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Jennifer Lollar is the Executive Director of Strategic Marketing and Communications for the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Nursing. She has been with UAB since 2001, starting in University Relations doing Media Relations first for the University side of campus and then from 2005 to 2013 for the health schools and medical center. She moved to the School of Nursing in 2013 and now leads an eight-member marketing and communications team that is responsible for all communications and marketing functions for the School of Nursing (except for media relations). Prior to joining UAB she was a general assignment and business reporter for newspapers in the Birmingham area.

Steve Rudolph
Director of Marketing and Strategic Communications
University of Minnesota

Steve Rudolph is the Director of Strategic Communications at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, where his goal is to connect the school and its stakeholders through authentic storytelling and compelling communications. He joined the School of Nursing from the Carlson School of Management where he led the creation of the business school’s external communications and ground-breaking digital and video content. Prior to higher education, he was a public relations executive known for providing sound and strategic counsel to clients, building and protecting brands, and staging successful events and programs.

Speakers

Rebecca C. Mueller, PhD, RN, CRNP, FNP-BC
Associate Professor
Neumann University

Dr. Rebecca C. Mueller is an associate professor of nursing at Neumann University. Prior to joining Neumann, she was employed as a primary care family nurse practitioner in Philadelphia, PA and Las Vegas, NV. In addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate nursing students, she works as a nurse practitioner at Swarthmore College’s Student Health and Wellness clinic providing primary care to a college-aged population. Dr. Mueller received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Villanova University, a Master of Science in Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing from Villanova University. She is passionate about the care of adolescents, young adults, and vulnerable populations. After earning her BSN, she spent a year of service with the Augustinian Volunteers program working as a nurse in a free clinic in San Diego, CA. Her background also includes medical-surgical nursing, home health, and community-based nursing. Her passion for equitable health care has translated to research at Neumann to develop and implement curricula focused on caring for patients who are LGBTQ. Dr. Mueller serves on the board of the Southeastern Pennsylvania College Health Nurses Association, and is an active member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, earning an AANP and Sigma Theta Tau research grant in 2022.

Speakers

Sofia Aragon, JD, BSN, RN
Executive Director, Washington Center for Nursing
Mayor, City of Burien

Sofia Aragon is the executive director for the Washington Center for Nursing and Mayor for the City of Burien. As Washington State’s nursing workforce center, WCN works to address the nursing shortage. Public policy is her passion. In her previous role as Governmental Affairs Advisor for the Washington State Nurses Association, she represented registered nurses, ARNPs United of Washington, and the School Nurse Organization of Washington. She advocated for legislation on workplace safety, full state adoption of the Affordable Care Act, higher education and public health funding, banning toxins in the environment, racial equity, and other issues. She was elected to the Burien City Council in 2019 and elected Mayor in 2022. As Chair of the Burien Airport Committee, she influences regional, state, and federal legislation to mitigate the health impact of exposure to communities by SeaTac International Airport. Most of Washington state’s communities of color live within a 10-mile radius of SeaTac airport. She partners with other cities, public health and community-based organizations to lessen exposure from the airport and health disparities among communities living and working near the airport. She also voted to pass city ordinances for environmental preservation and addressing climate change, such as requiring the use of compostable products, a tree ordinance, and a city Climate Action Plan. She earned a BA in Economics from UW-Seattle, a BSN in Nursing from Seattle University, and a Juris Doctor from Loyola University-Chicago School of Law.

Speakers

Robin Lockhart, PhD, MSN, RN, CNE
Chair and Assistant Professor
Midwestern State University

Dr. Robin Lockhart professionally focuses on the education, retention, and support of pre-licensure, post-licensure, and graduate nursing students. She has served as a nursing faculty member for the last 29 years. She holds a BSN from Midwestern State University, and an MSN and PhD in Nursing from the University of Texas in Arlington. Her scholarship focuses primarily on pre-licensure student retention. However, she has secured external funding to support nursing student retention, provide new technologies to educate nursing students, increase nurse practitioner enrollment and clinical placement, and improve resiliency of healthcare providers. During her 37 years of nursing, she worked in emergency, critical care, cardiac care, post-surgical, medical, and pediatric units in three acute care hospitals. She served as a relief house supervisor for 16 years. She is a champion of new technologies. Today she is speaking about the use of artificial intelligence in academia, and specifically about the use of ChatGPT. She will share ideas on how to reduce the challenges associated with its use, and how to use it to the advantage of the nurse educator in teaching and scholarship.