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Founders' Day

Seton Hill University's Founders' Day is held annually to honor and celebrate the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, who, under the leadership of Mother Aloysia Lowe, came to Greensburg in 1882 to establish a new community, new ministries and new schools that would eventually lead to the founding of a four-year college for women in 1918. More than 100 years later, Seton Hill has grown into a co-educational university that continues to educate students in the legacy of the Sisters of Charity.

Founders' Day is held each year on March 19, the Feast Day of Saint Joseph, who is the patron Saint of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill.

Founders' Day 2025

The theme of Founders' Day 2025 is "Honoring our Founders, Embracing Our Future: Responding to the Cries of the Poor."

The day's events will focus on the ways the Sisters of Charity through their various missions have assisted those from underresourced communities and how Seton Hill faculty, staff and students continue to do so today.

Join us on Wednesday, March 19, 2025 for Founders' Day. A full schedule of the day's events follows.

The Opening Prayer for Founders' Day 2025 will feature a celebration of Sister Cyril Aaron, a Sister of Charity who left her position at Seton Hill College, to advocate for the poor in the Hill District of Pittsburgh. The mission that Sister Cyril founded in the Hill District had a direct impact on the life of famed Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson.
A full schedule of poster and oral presentations will be announced soon.
Rev. Dennis Holtschneider, CM, Bernardin Fellow of Church Leadership, Catholic Theological Union and past president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, will celebrate Mass on the Feast of Saint Jospeph, in Saint Joseph Chapel.
Join us for Lunch in Lowe Dining Hall. Free for faculty, staff and commuter students. Resident students will use their regular meal swipe.
Msgr. Roger Statnick, University Chaplain, will lead this panel discussion in Cecilian Hall, featuring experts in immigration, medicine and education who are all serving people in poverty. Panelists include: Sr. Maria Goetschalckx, a Sister of Charity who is an immigration attorney; Dr. Jim Withers from Pittsburgh’s Operation Safety Net, a street medicine initiative; and Shannon Prentiss, Dean of Students at The Neighborhood Academy, a college preparatory school in Pittsburgh that serves students from low-income families.
Student activities will include a service project, button making, trivia and more. Details to come.
Rev. Dennis Holtschneider, CM, Bernardin Fellow of Church Leadership, Catholic Theological Union and past president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, will present this year's Sister Mary Schmidt Lecture as part of Founders' Day. The title of his lecture is, "Viewing Poverty through the Lens of Setonian/Vincentian Charism." The lecture will take place in Cecilian Hall.