Alumni

First celebrated in 1993 in New York, the White Coat Ceremony marks the moment in which each clinical learner is bestowed with their first white coat, recognizing the professionalism and patient-centered care expected of the wearer.

Aruna Rao, DDS ’12, was named a 2022 10 under 10 award winner by the American Dental Association. The ADA 10 under 10 recognizes “dentistry’s rising stars: dentists who are making an impact in the profession less than ten years after graduating from dental school,” according to the ADA’s website.

A new effort from School of Dentistry Development is connecting dentistry students with their scholarship donors, building partnerships across generations of gophers.

Nearly seventy members of the President’s Club, alongside other notable donors, came together to celebrate the School of Dentistry and honor the ways donors make achievement possible. The School of Dentistry offered a special welcome to new President’s Club members Stephen Bejarano, DDS ’91 and Elizabeth Rydell Bejarano, DDS ’91.

Amy Full, DDS ’19, grew up in a cornfield. And today, she’s practicing dentistry in those same cornfields, fulfilling her lifelong dream to practice rural dentistry. Part of what made that dream possible was scholarship funding.

A joint event between the Women’s Dental Association and School of Dentistry Alumni Relations connected alumni and soon-to-be-graduates to discuss work, life and being a woman in dentistry. On Tuesday, April 5, alumni Lisa Young, DDS ’98, and Sarah Heuer, DDS ’94, shared their career journeys and their perspectives on issues facing current graduates.

Jackie Callaway-Campbell, MDT ’21, took a big risk when she moved halfway across the country from Delaware to Minnesota to become a dental therapist. “I’m just a humble girl from the East coast, trying to make her way here in Minnesota,” she joked. “I’m surviving the winters, living for the summers, and looking for a cheese steak.” Almost a year out from graduation, Callaway-Campbell is glad she made the leap.
 

“Lesley is a dynamic, young Dental Hygienist who is passionate about providing dental care,” said Carol Dahlke, who nominated Tuomi for the award. “Shei is a perfect role model of what a distinguished dental hygiene alumna looks like.

The future of the School of Dentistry will be significantly impacted by one alumnus, one gift and 109 acres of Freeborn County farmland. That alumnus is A. David Flor.