Dr. Eileen Carrigg Specchio Nursing Scholarship Honors a Lifetime of Teaching, Mentorship and Service
August 26, 2026
Dr. Eileen Specchio was honored in 2019 for her impact on global healthcare at the Third Annual International Nurses Day at the United Nations.
For 35 years, Dr. Eileen Carrigg Specchio helped nursing students at Saint Elizabeth University recognize their potential — and then challenged them to achieve even more. Now, through a commitment from the Specchio family, her influence will continue through the Dr. Eileen Carrigg Specchio Nursing Scholarship. Established by her husband of 50 years, Dr. John Specchio, her daughter, Dr. Kate Specchio Barrientos and their family, the scholarship honors her extraordinary career as a nurse, educator and advocate for compassionate care.
The commitment establishes a permanent endowed scholarship while also providing immediate scholarship assistance beginning in fall 2026. The scholarship will primarily support registered nurses advancing their education through Saint Elizabeth University’s new RN to Master of Science in Nursing program scheduled to accept its first cohort in the Fall of 2027.
The scholarship’s focus reflects Dr. Specchio’s deeply held belief in helping working nurses continue their education and expand the difference they could make in the lives of patients, students and communities.
Dr. John Specchio joins Dr. Marjorie Tapia, chair of SEU's Nursing Department, Dr. Patricia Heindel, Associate Vice President and Dean of Academic Affairs, and Michael Smullen, Vice President of Advancement.
A Nurse Who Educated and Inspired Nurses
Born in Jersey City, Dr. Specchio earned her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in nursing from Rutgers University. She began her career as an intensive care nurse at Bayonne Hospital and later served as a geriatric-psychiatric nurse at Morristown Medical Center and the Morris County Nursing Home.
She brought that clinical experience into the classroom at Saint Elizabeth, where she served as a professor of nursing for 35 years before retiring as Professor Emeritus. Her students remembered her not only for what she taught, but also for the individual attention, encouragement and confidence she gave them.
Terri Pietsch ’03 recalled that Dr. Specchio’s work as a practicing nurse made her an especially effective instructor. She was approachable, made time to speak with students and demonstrated how classroom learning translated into compassionate clinical practice.
For Mark T. Williams ’04, Dr. Specchio provided invaluable encouragement as he entered nursing as a male student in what was then a predominantly female program. He remembered her as his favorite professor and an important source of guidance throughout his studies.
Marisa Ruschak ’14 described Dr. Specchio as a tremendous influence on both her academic and professional development. As Ruschak’s advisor and capstone mentor, Dr. Specchio helped her explore the many directions available within nursing and recognize her passion for psychiatric care. She also urged her not to stop with an undergraduate degree, advice that led Ruschak to proceed directly into graduate study.
Dr. Monina Franco-Tantuico ’12 similarly remembered Dr. Specchio as a mentor who could see possibilities in her students before they fully saw those possibilities themselves. Dr. Specchio once encouraged her to try on doctoral regalia and predicted that she would one day earn a Ph.D. That confidence helped inspire a journey that ultimately led Franco-Tantuico into doctoral study and a career advancing nursing education and simulation.
Dorma McFarquhar ’01 called Dr. Specchio “extremely instrumental” in her development as a nurse. She remembered a faculty mentor who wanted minority nurses to succeed and who helped make educational experiences—including an opportunity to study holistic nursing in England—possible.
Together, these recollections portray an educator who did far more than deliver instruction. Dr. Specchio listened, advised, opened doors and helped students imagine larger futures for themselves.
Compassionate Care Without Borders
Dr. Specchio’s commitment to nursing extended far beyond the University’s classrooms. She led nursing teams serving underserved and marginalized communities in the United States and abroad, helping establish nurse-led international medical programs that brought clinical services and health education to thousands of people.
Her work included nursing programs in the United Kingdom, Tanzania and Liberia, as well as numerous Foundation for Peace medical missions to the Dominican Republic. These experiences gave Saint Elizabeth nursing students opportunities to develop their clinical abilities while encountering the profound human responsibility at the heart of their profession.
Her contributions to global healthcare received international recognition at the United Nations in 2019. In 2025, the Sigma Mu Theta Nurses Association honored her with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
Even after retiring, Dr. Specchio continued serving others through the Chester Lioness Club and the Morristown Performing Arts Center.
Dr. Specchio passed away on March 15, 2026, following a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 75. Her Celebration of Life was held in Holy Family Chapel at Saint Elizabeth University, bringing her life’s journey back to the campus and community she had served for more than three decades.
The Dr. Eileen Carrigg Specchio Nursing Scholarship ensures that her work will continue there. Each recipient will carry forward a part of her legacy: a belief in education, an ethic of service and a commitment to providing skilled, compassionate care wherever it is needed most.
Through the nurses it supports—and the patients, families and communities those nurses will serve — Dr. Specchio’s influence will endure for generations.