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Our Team

Our board consists of representatives of our membership delegation of local domestic violence programs, and the community at large, who are committed to our mission of ending domestic violence across the state.

Board of Directors

  • Joanna Otero-Cruz

    President

    Joanna Otero-Cruz

    President

    Joanna Otero-Cruz, Executive Director and President of Women Against Abuse, has a rich history of serving children, families and survivors of intimate partner violence. As Executive Director and President of Women Against Abuse, Joanna oversees the implementation of the organization’s mission from both a strategic and operational standpoint.

    Joanna Otero-Cruz served as Deputy Managing Director for the Community Services cabinet. Within this post, Mrs. Otero-Cruz leads and oversees’ operations for 311, the Office of Immigrant Affairs, the Community Life Improvement Program (CLIP), and the Office of Civic Engagement and Volunteer Services and Town Watch Integrated Services.

    Prior to coming to the City she served in key leadership roles for organizations that serve and meet the needs of Philadelphia’s most vulnerable. Mrs. Otero-Cruz led Pennsylvania’s oldest Latino non-profit organization, Concilio, since 2010, serving as community leader and voice for the needs of women, children, and families across the state. As the Executive Director of Concilio, she oversaw the organization’s foster care services, youth development programming, and children’s health work. She also led the organization and Latino community’s historic events – the Hispanic Fiesta and the Puerto Rican Week Festival culminating with the Latino Parade on Philadelphia’s Ben Franklin Parkway.

    In 2014, she led the relocation of Concilio from its home of nearly 45 years to a brand-new 30,000 square-foot facility in the Hunting Park neighborhood. She is credited with bringing Concilio into a position of strong financial health, as well as building on the capacity and goodwill of the organization among the civic and public leaders of the city and state, and the community members that utilize its services.

    Mrs. Otero-Cruz is an active and respected voice for equity and access at the city and state level.

    She serves as Pennsylvania Commissioner for the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs GACLA. She has served as a board member Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, CEIBA Coalition where she has held various officer positions over five years. She has also served on the Board of the Women’s Way and Youth Valley House as well as various other committees and coalitions. Her leadership in the area of victim’s services earned Concilio the new appointment of East Division Victims Services’ provider by the City of Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office.

    Mrs. Cruz is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Community Impact Award from the Hispanic Choice Awards, Philadelphia’s Business Journal 40 Under 40 Award, KYW Women’s Achievement Award, and Aetna Healthcare – Latina Leadership Award.

    Mrs. Otero-Cruz holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Peirce College in Business Administration with a concentration in management.

  • Melinda Ghilardi

    Vice President

    Melinda Ghilardi

    Vice President

    Melinda C. Ghilardi is an Associate Attorney at Munley Law in Scranton. Prior to joining that firm, she was the First Assistant Federal Public Defender, an Assistant Federal Public Defender as well as an Attorney/Investigator for the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania for 33 years until her retirement in February 2019. She began her legal career as an Assistant District Attorney in Lackawanna County.

    Melinda is Co-Vice Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA)’s Federal Practice Committee and serves on the Executive Council of the Civil Litigation Section. She served on the PBA Board of Governors as the Woman Governor as well as the Unit County Governor. Melinda is a former Chair of the Diversity Team as well as a past Co-Vice Chair of the DEI Team. She is also a long-time member of the House of Delegates.

    In 2005, Melinda received the Lynette Norton Award presented by the PBA’s Commission on Women in the Profession. That same year, she received the inaugural Athena Award presented by the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce. She has also served as Secretary of the National Association of Federal Defenders and is a past President of the Lackawanna Bar Association, and current Treasurer of the Association of Women Lawyers of Lackawanna County.

    Melinda is Co-Chair of the Geisinger Health System’s Women’s Health Volunteer Leadership Council and Co-Chair of the Geisinger Northeast Advisory Council. The University of Scranton honored her by establishing an Ignatian Scholarship in her name and, in 2000, presented her with the Frank J. O’Hara Distinguished Alumni Award for outstanding achievement in the field of law. She is a current member of the Board of Visitors of the University’s Panuska College of Professional Studies.

    In 2016, Melinda received the Robert J. Munley Distinguished Service Award from Lackawanna Pro Bono, Inc. She is a 1976 graduate of Scranton Preparatory School and a 1980 magna cum laude graduate of the University of Scranton. In 1983, she was awarded a juris doctor from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

  • Vashti Bledsoe

    Secretary

    Vashti Bledsoe

    Secretary

    Vashti Bledsoe has worked for the Lutheran Settlement House Bilingual Domestic Violence Program (BDVP) for over 20 years. In her current role as the BDVP Program Director, she provides leadership & supervision for a staff of 28. She oversees program development, assists with grant writing, coordinates program budgets, and develops program evaluation procedures. Vashti served as the PCADV Women of Color Caucus Co chairs for 7 years. Additionally, she represents the program on various regional task forces and collaborations, including the Philadelphia ACE Task Force and Coordinated Community Response. She has presented on her work at numerous local and national conferences. She was the recipient of the 2015 Outstanding Contribution to IPV Award from Pierce College, 2004 Sunshine Lady Peace Award, and 1997 Freedom Development Corporation Youth Advocate Award.

  • Heather Maneval

    Treasurer

    Heather Maneval

    Treasurer

    Heather is the Managing Director, Central Region, for Procopia Nonprofit Consulting. She has focused her career on growing nonprofit fundraising capacity and driving strategic initiatives. She previously served as the Chief Development Officer for YWCA York, the county’s sole provider of services for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.

  • Judy Chang, MD

    Judy Chang, MD

    Judy Chang is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and an Associate Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences and General Internal Medicine. She also serves as an Assistant Dean of Medical Student Research and the Director of the Clinical Scientist Training Program. Dr. Chang has worked as a victims’ advocate in community organizations assisting victims of intimate partner violence, an IPV researcher and educator, and a women’s health care provider. She obtained her research training in health services research from the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program (1999-2001) and completed a Master of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her early research focused primarily on understanding intimate partner violence (IPV) and how health care providers can help women experiencing IPV. More recently she has focusing on topics such as children who witness intimate partner violence, developing IPV training interventions to improve health care providers’ IPV communication skills, and understanding perpetrators of violence. She has also expanded her research expertise to focus on patient-provider communication in women’s health with an overall objective to identify and promote communication styles, approaches and skills that facilitate positive behavioral change to improve the health of women, particularly during pregnancy. She has also been privileged to be a longtime collaborator (over 20 years!) with the Women’s Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh in various projects, initiatives, and educational efforts.

  • Amy Eusebio

    Amy Eusebio

    Amy Eusebio is a proud first-generation American, Afro-Latina, and daughter of Dominican immigrants. Eusebio joined the City of Philadelphia in 2018 as Municipal ID Program Director and was responsible for launching the PHL City ID. She has more than 15 years of experience working in non-profit social services. Eusebio’s previous roles included a focus on ensuring the programs she was part of were culturally responsive to the immigrant communities they were intended to serve. She completed her undergraduate and graduate education in social work, earning a bachelor’s degree from Temple University and a master’s from the University of Pennsylvania.

  • Rhonda Fleming, MSOL

    Rhonda Fleming, MSOL

    Rhonda Fleming is the Director of Education & Outreach at the Women’s Center and Shelter (WC&S) of Greater Pittsburgh. WC&S is one of the country’s oldest domestic violence shelters for women and their children. She has served in multiple prevention roles since her employment with the organization.

    Rhonda’s career awards include the Governor’s Victim Services award, the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Service award, and most recently, the New Pittsburgh Courier 2016 Women of Excellence, and several other recognitions.

    She received her Bachelor of Arts in Administration of Justice at the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership at Geneva College

  • Joe Garcia

    Joe Garcia

    Until 2021, Joe Garcia was a life-long resident of Philadelphia. He served in the United States Marine Corps, shortly after graduating high school. After serving his country, honorably, Joe returned to Philadelphia and its system of higher education where he earned an undergraduate degree, in English, from Temple University and a master’s degree in Administration of Human Services from Chestnut Hill College.

    Today, Garcia is an award winning law enforcement professional and a proud 34-year veteran of the Temple University Police Department, where he holds the rank of Deputy Chief of Administration. In addition to his administrative duties, Joe is responsible for the professional development and maintenance of the department’s Communication Center and its Training & Development Unit.

    He is also an award-winning community advocate.

    His commitment to his community includes but is not limited to his contribution the following causes:

    1. Member: Congreso de Latinos Unidos’ Community Advisory Board;
    2. Co-founder: Latino Lines Redistricting Coalition;
    3. Board member (sub-committee co-chair): The Philadelphia Police Community Oversight Board; The President’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing;
    4. Commissioner: The Philadelphia Police Advisory Commission;
    5. National Vice President and Board member: The National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights;
    6. Board member: Community Academy of Philadelphia Charter School;
    7. Youth advocate: The Lower Kensington Environmental Center

    In June 2016, Joe was honored with the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence Excellence in Male Leadership Award.

    Joe feels blessed to be married to his wife, Diana, of almost 20 years! He has four brilliant children: Cori, C.J, Lorena and Lucas.

  • Susan Higginbotham, MEd

    PCADV Chief Executive Officer

    Susan Higginbotham, MEd

    PCADV Chief Executive Officer

    Susan Higginbotham is the Chief Executive Officer, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence. She has more than 25 years of experience dedicated to addressing mission-related issues including domestic violence, reproductive and sexual health, HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ health. She has been in nonprofit executive leadership for nearly twenty-four years at organizations including the Society of Family Planning, Planned Parenthood of Chester County, AIDS Fund, and the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault. She serves on the Board of Directors in a non-voting, ex officio capacity.

  • Mae Ling Kranz

    Mae Ling Kranz

  • Nicole Molinaro

    Nicole Molinaro

    Nicole Molinaro has been involved with Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh for almost 25 years. She started as a direct service volunteer & has worked for WC&S for a total of 13 years. She was proud to be promoted to President/CEO in August 2018. Prior, she served as Chief Program Officer, Director of Services, Director of Development, and Training Center Manager. Before boomeranging back to WC&S, Nicole served as the Executive Director for Communities In Schools of Pittsburgh-Allegheny County for seven years and as VP for Development and Communications for Adagio Health for three years.  She earned her Master of Arts in Psychology from Duquesne University, and is an alumnae of Leadership Pittsburgh, the Harvard Graduate School of Business’s program on Strategic Perspectives in NonProfit Management, and Coro’s Leaders In Learning program. Nicole was honored as a “40 Under 40” young leader, and received the Islamic Center’s Humanity Day Award and NAWBO’s “Make the Connection” Award. She was a founding Advisory Board member of the Greater Pittsburgh NonProfit Partnership and Girls Going Places, serves on several community advisory committees, and volunteers in the community and in her church.

  • Juliet Jones

    Juliet Jones

    Juliet N. Jones is the CEO and Proprietor of CHRE (Certified HR Experts Consulting, LLC – formerly VIP Fortune 500 Consulting). CHRE is a personal and professional development /consulting firm offering Human Resources and Business Solutions to small to larger businesses and/or nonprofit organisations that either do not have in-house HR departments or want to downsize and outsource their HR department’s work. Juliet is also an Author, Speaker, and respected Executive Leader who works with many businesses in the private and public sectors. Juliet is dedicated to helping other entrepreneurs and/or business owners by empowering them to Dream-Build-Win through her motivational and inspirational online broadcasting channels such as “Ask Julie the HR Expert at CHRE”! Juliet has made numerous impactful speeches at conferences, workshops, and summits derived from her books titled: “Tired of Being Tired” (recharge-refuel-restart), “The Parentpreneur Survival Guide Co-Authors Edition”, and more recently her book titled “A Crash Course in Human Resources”.

  • Marvin Rudnitsky

    Marvin Rudnitsky

    Marvin J. Rudnitsky is Senior Counsel of RHP Law Group, LLC, a law firm he founded in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. A Distinguished Military Graduate of the Pennsylvania State
    University, he was named a Penn State Liberal Arts Centennial Fellow in 2009 and serves on its Liberal Arts Development Council. He is an honors graduate of University of Pittsburgh School
    of Law. His government experiences include service as a US Army Judge Advocate, US Army Military Judge, Assistant Attorney General for the Pennsylvania Department of Justice, and as
    Chief Counsel for the Pennsylvania Department of Commerce. He was appointed to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s Disciplinary Board and served as its chair. After serving on the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Board of Governors, he received the Gilbert Nurick Award for lifetime achievements. He also served as president of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, the leading provider of continuing education for Pennsylvania attorneys. He served three terms in the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates. Marv served on the Selinsgrove Borough Council for nine years and six as president. Marv sings with the Susquehanna Valley Chorale and is very active in his church where he is the choir’s lead tenor. He is a four-decade Rotarian and oversees the club’s International Exchange Student Program. His is married to his college sweetheart, Raven, with whom he recently shared their 56th wedding anniversary. They have three daughters and six grandchildren.

PCADV Executive Staff

  • Susan Higginbotham, MEd

    Chief Executive Officer

    Susan Higginbotham, MEd

    Chief Executive Officer

  • Chastity Moran

    Chief Finance Officer

    Chastity Moran

    Chief Finance Officer

  • Jennifer Beittel

    Chief Philanthropic Officer

    Jennifer Beittel

    Chief Philanthropic Officer

  • Tammy Oliver

    Chief Program Services Officer
    Training Institute, Training & TA, Housing, Contract Monitoring

    Tammy Oliver

    Chief Program Services Officer
    Training Institute, Training & TA, Housing, Contract Monitoring

  • Jenifer Thompson

    Chief Operating Officer
    Program Services, Finance, Legal Services, HR

    Jenifer Thompson

    Chief Operating Officer
    Program Services, Finance, Legal Services, HR

  • Jenna Harris

    Executive Support Specialist

    Jenna Harris

    Executive Support Specialist

PCADV Delegation Leadership

  • Dr. Dolly Wideman-Scott

    Chairperson
    Domestic Violence Center of Chester County

  • Michelle Gibb

    Vice-Chair
    Alle-Kiski Area HOPE Center

  • Audia Boyles

    Secretary
    Alice Paul House

Delegation Regional Representatives

  • Peg Ruddy

    Eastern PA Region
    Women’s Resource Center

  • Christine Gilfillan

    Central PA Region
    Domestic Violence Services of Lancaster County

  • Grace Coleman

    Western PA Region
    Crisis Center North

Delegation Committee Chairs

  • Maria Macaluso

    Membership Committee
    Women’s Center of  Montgomery County

  • Lori Sywensky

    Planning Committee
    Turning Point of Lehigh Valley

  • Nicole Cadman

    Services & Standards Committee
    AWARE Inc.

  • Ashley Gay Vocco

    Legislative & Public Policy Committee
    Family Services Incorporated

PCADV Caucus Co-Chairs

Learn More About PCADV’s Caucuses