Ambassadors for the underserved
Posted: August 26, 2010
by Robyn Siroky
Friends and family cheered as A.T. Still University-Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health’s class of 2010 entered the Ikeda Theater at the Mesa Arts Center in Mesa, Ariz., for commencement ceremonies on June 12.
The 55 members of ATSUASDOH’s fourth graduating class received their doctor of dental medicine (D.M.D.) degree, 12 of whom also received a master in public health through ATSU’s School of Health Management. In addition, four ATSU-ASDOH postgraduate orthodontic program residents received their doctor of health sciences (D.H.Sc.) degree. The residents will receive their certificate in orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics on August 12.
According to ATSU-ASDOH Dean Jack Dillenberg, D.D.S., M.P.H., ATSU-ASDOH’s class of 2010 has the highest percentage of graduates going to practice on community healthcare settings, as well as the highest pass rate on the Western Regional Examining Board exam compared to previous classes – 96 percent. “We are proud of this extraordinary class and are looking forward to the contributions that they will make in the communities where they choose to practice and serve,” he said.
“The class will be remembered for its many great accomplishments benefiting our community and university. Free Family Health and Wellness Day, a free community health project serving over 1,000 Arizonans to date, is just one example,” said former ATSU Provost Craig M. Phelps, D.O., ’84, now ATSU’s executive vice president for strategic initiatives. “ATSU looks forward to a lifelong relationship with each graduate and wishes them well as they begin a new life chapter.”
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President Jack Magruder presented an honorary doctor of humane letters degree to keynote speaker Jonathan E. Fielding, M.D., M.P.H., M.A., M.B.A., Los Angeles County Department of Public Health director and health officer. Dr. Fielding, an accomplished expert and active advocate for public health and preventive medicine, spoke to graduates about the importance of being not only great clinicians, but also ambassadors for the profession and for underserved patients who need access to quality care.
“I am so impressed with your university, with the incredible progress that it has made … progress that you have made as students, including the commitment to community dentistry, which is one of our most urgent and widespread needs,” said Dr. Fielding. “Bring people into your profession, stand tall, and remember that you are the safeguards of the next generation, and the generation after that. I salute you.”
An annual awards brunch was held June 10 at the Hilton Phoenix East Mesa. Thirty-seven awards were presented, including the International College of Dentists Student Leadership Award, which went to Brock Lorenz; and the American College of Dentists Outstanding Student Award, which went to Katie Rebecca McNutt.