Each year during Fall Convocation, the University of Missouri-Kansas City Alumni Association honors alumni who have unselfishly served the community and lent their talents to their professions. Four UMKC School of Dentistry faculty and alumni were honored by the University at the 2001 ceremony.

Spotlight Award
This award recognizes those whose accomplishments and public service have caused regional and national attention to be focused on the University and the metropolitan area. This year, the award was presented to two members of the UMKC School of Dentistry faculty who also happen to be husband and wife:  Dr. Bruce F. Barker and Gerry J. Barker. Bruce has served as an oral pathologist in the Department of Oral Pathology since 1973. Gerry, a dental hygienist, serves as coordinator of both Oncology Education and the Oncology Dental Support Clinic. Together the Barkers have dedicated their personal and professional lives to cancer prevention, detection, education and treatment. Both have numerous publications to their credit, and they have gained national recognition and respect for their efforts and accomplishments. Recently they helped coordinate Pouring from the Heart, an annual banquet and live auction that benefits the UMKC Oncology Dental Support Clinic. The money raised by the event enables the clinic to offer services to financially disadvantaged patients who are undergoing cancer treatment.

Presidential Citation for Outstanding Alumni Service
This award recognizes an individual from each of the four campuses in the University of Missouri System (Kansas City, Columbia, Rolla and St. Louis). The award recipients are alumni who have received public acknowledgement of their achievements and have rendered outstanding service to their respective campus programs. This year’s UMKC recipient is Charles M. Cobb, Ph.D., (D.D.S. ’64). Dr. Cobb serves as a professor in the Department of Periodontics. His publications and presentations have earned him international eminence in his field. He has received more than $3 million in research grants that have led to new knowledge and the enhancement of dental care. His findings have been widely published in professional journals, extending even further his effects on dental care. His advice and counsel on numerous committees has been immeasurably helpful to the faculty, students and alumni.

Alumni Achievement Awards
These awards recognize alumni from academic units at the University who have achieved notable success in their professional field and have rendered outstanding service to their communities.

Brett L. Ferguson (D.D.S. ’81, OMX ’90), chair of the Department of Hospital Dentistry, has proven himself as a leader in his profession as well as in his community. As a faculty member in Oral Surgery at the School of Dentistry and in the Graduate Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Training Program at Truman Medical Center, Ferguson earned numerous awards in recognition of his talent and enthusiasm as an educator. He has been active in professional organizations as well as numerous volunteer and service activities with the University and in the community.

Adele B. Eberhart (MSDH ’73), a member of one of the first graduating classes of the master’s program in Dental Hygiene Education, now serves as West USA Regional Manager for Merck and Company Inc. From 1974 to 1984, she served the University as the coordinator of the graduate hygiene research program and the coordinator of oral and dental health programs for both the Kansas City General Hospital and the School of Dentistry. In 1985, Eberhard expanded her role as a dental hygienist and educator by serving as the director of applied clinical research at the School of Dentistry. During that time she also served as director of the UMKC-Argus Surveillance Data Base.