The Office of Academic Affairs is pleased to announce the approval of the long-awaited Advanced Standing International Dental Program from the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA).
This program will accept nine students and focuses on training dentists from foreign dental programs who desire to have a United States dental degree from a CODA approved institutional program. It includes a semester-long didactic and laboratory orientation to the dental school. The cohort will then enter the third-year dental class during the summer term and complete the Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) curriculum.
Applications are being accepted through the ADEA Centralized Application for Advanced Placement for International Dentists (ADEA CAAPID), and the program is slated to begin in January 2024.
Dr. Gustavo Leal, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Restorative Clinical Sciences, will act as Interim Director.
The dental school hosted 32 prospective students on Friday, September 29 for a showcase day, where attendees were able to meet each other and learn more about what their dental school experience would look like. Attendees came from far and wide, including Hawaii and Kuwait.
After being introduced to faculty, staff and the dean, attendees were led on a tour of the school. Although these students would have their clinical experiences in the new Healthcare Delivery and Innovation Building, which is currently in final planning stages, the current building will still house many key operations. Following the tour, attendees went to a “Class 1 Prep” activity, where they were led through an operative experience to show the students what they can expect during their first two years of dental school.
Attendees were invited for a social gathering at Vested Coffee and tours of the Beacon Hill Apartments near campus after an informative day at the school.
This year’s JayDoc Memorial 5K took place on September 16 at Shawnee Mission Park. The run directly benefits the JayDoc Free Clinic, located at 340 Southwest Blvd and provides medical and dental care for the uninsured and underinsured population of Kansas City.
The clinic operates on the help of both student and physician/dentist volunteers and is funded entirely through donations and grants. This 5k is one of the many efforts to raise funds so that the clinic can afford lab testing, medications, and supplies.
The school has a long history with the JayDoc clinic, and is involved in multiple events, including a “pediatric night” of free dental care, where ten dental students in conjunction with pediatric faculty supervisors provided free dental care to 10 children who presented for care at the evening clinic.
This year’s event was in honor of Caroline Trupp. Caroline was a rising second-year medical student who was passionate about giving to the underserved and the JayDoc Free Clinic. She was also an enthusiastic runner and thus, it is with a heavy heart and great sense of purpose the JayDoc Memorial 5K was named in her honor.
Dr. Yong Wang, Professor in the Department of Oral and Craniofacial Sciences and Director of Craniofacial Bioengineering, was recently named a University of Missouri Curators’ Distinguished Professor. The Board of Curators voted unanimously to present this honor which recognizes his exemplary service, performance, and teaching record. Dr. Wang received enthusiastic endorsements from peers as well for his contributions, research and engagement, which bring great credit to UMKC and the University of Missouri System.
Wang came to UMKC in 1999 and it’s been his home ever since. “I have stayed because this is the place where I could collaborate with researchers across disciplines and campus,” he says.
Wang’s research focus has been translational dental and craniofacial research related to dental biomaterials, material/tissue interfaces and dental/oral tissues, which requires interdisciplinary collaborations. Wang’s collaborative research has made some significant contributions to these fields.
For example, his research on quantifying the interfacial chemistry of adhesive and dentin bond obtained considerable international recognition, has laid foundation for understanding failure mechanisms of dental restorations. His collaborative research revealed the new underlying mechanisms of tooth enamel loss and dental caries caused by head neck cancer (HNC) radiotherapy, an oral disease disturbing detrimentally the quality of life of HNC survivors. His lab developed novel hyperspectral imaging techniques including infrared and Raman spectroscopy to explicate the heterogeneous interfaces between tissues and biomaterials. And working with engineers, he is the pioneering researcher to apply non-thermal atmospheric plasmas into various oral and dental applications.
“I’m proud to be surrounded by talented and dedicated professionals, like Dr. Wang, who have made such a profound impact on the field and the university,” says Dr. Steven Haas, Dean of the UMKC School of Dentistry.
Wang’s research and achievements have earned him highly regarded research reputation internationally. He is an elected Fellow of American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), whose fellows are the top 2% of medical and biological engineers. He is also the elected Fellows of the American Association for Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) and Academy of Dental Materials (ADM). He has served on the editorial or advisory board of eight peer-reviewed journals related to Dentistry or Biomaterials research. Dr. Wang has been an ad hoc reviewer of several NIH study sections as well as a member of NSF, DOD and NIST panels. He was selected as a standing member of NIH ODCS study section (2021-2025). His insights and expertise are widely sought after.
“Dr. Wang is an internationally renowned researcher and scholar who has dedicated his career to UMKC while making outstanding contributions to dental biomaterials research. I can’t think of anyone more deserving of this prestigious recognition,” says Dr. Melanie Simmer-Beck, Professor and Chair of Dental Public Health and Behavioral Science.
Dr. Mary Walker, Professor and Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs, echoes that statement, “His science is world-class and he has been internationally recognized for his research by a number of societies that elected him as a Fellow. He is an outstanding collaborator and mentor and one of the most productive investigators at UMKC. The unanimous approval for his appointment as a Curators’ Distinguished Professor is well-deserved recognition of his career accomplishments and contributions to the university.”
Wang has co-authored ~200 papers in peer-reviewed journals and proceedings, which have been cited over 10K times with H-index of 55. In addition to his research contributions, Wang is a dedicated mentor, who has successfully guided over 80 students and fellows, including 24 DDS students participated in summer research programs, 33 MS and PhD students as a chair, co-chair or member of thesis committees and about 30 post-doctoral fellows and visiting scholars. More of Dr. Wang’s work can be found on his Google Scholar page here.
“This is surely an important moment of my more than two-decade career at UMKC, and I feel so honored and proud,” says Wang. “I view this honor as recognition for all of the collaborators, colleagues, post-doctoral fellows and students I have worked with over the years.”
Congratulations to Dr. Wang for this exceptional and truly deserved honor!
UMKC School of Dentistry offers clinical experience at the Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium. To read the full story, click here.
Story by Bryce Puntenney | University of Missouri-Kansas City Marketing and Communications
The UMKC Dental Alumni Association hosted the incoming dental and dental hygiene classes by taking them out to a Royals game. Students, alumni, faculty and staff attended the Kansas City Royals vs. Pittsburg Pirates game on Wednesday, August 30, at Kauffman Stadium.
Attendees enjoyed a pre-game tailgate with grilled favorites before heading inside. Although the Royals didn’t bring home a win, the UMKC Dental Alumni association was happy to host this fun annual event once again.
The Dr. Roy J. Rinehart Foundation invited the DDS Class of 2027 and the Dental Hygiene Class of 2025 to a BBQ lunch catered by Jack Stack on Thursday, August 31.
Lunch was followed by remarks about the foundation from board member and outgoing Chair, Dr. Nick Rogers. After a meet and greet, students received embroidered UMKC pullovers courtesy of the Rinehart Foundation.
The STAHR Scholars Program provides students with the opportunities, resources, and knowledge to become competitive applicants to health professional programs. Students in the Scholars Program undergo personal and professional development as they pursue and apply to health programs. To provide sustained support to students, the Scholars Program is composed of a summer experience and an academic year experience. The program began in 2011, known then as the Admissions Enhancement Program (AEP), and has been growing ever since.
Since the program started in 2011:
167 scholars have participated in either AEP or STAHR Dentistry (DAT Prep)
Of those 167 scholars, 133 went on to apply to the UMKC School of Dentistry and 76 were accepted (not including the 15 that just completed the summer program)
58% of all STAHR/AEP participants have been accepted to dental school somewhere (UMKC School of Dentistry or elsewhere)
71 scholars attend or attended the UMKC School of Dentistry
Their summer experience this July, known as Onsite Week, featured a wide spectrum of activities, encompassing dentistry-specific labs, enlightening presentations, and engaging panels given by esteemed experts within the field. Scholars also got to visit to one of our community partners, Swope Health, offering then the invaluable opportunity to gain firsthand insights into the dental profession outside the classroom.
To balance the academic rigor of the week, scholars had the opportunity to engage in some fun, including a trip to Main Event, so that they could not only forge connections with each other but also provide a unique avenue to acquaint themselves with the School of Dentistry and Kansas City.
“A paramount objective was to ensure that our students are well-prepared for the DDS Application cycle. To achieve this, we orchestrated mock interviews, equipping our scholars with the tools and confidence needed to excel in this stage of their professional journey,” says Deja Lamb, Student Services Coordinator for the dental school.
The STAHR program prepares scholars for a holistic application process in addition to the mock interviews. They also attend weekly sessions with the OSP team to work on their AADSAS applications and get insight and advice. They participated in multiple sessions designed to help them write a powerful and impactful personal statement and participated in shadowing experiences at general practices, public health clinics, and specialty clinics.
A standout amongst these experiences was the inaugural Professional Development Dinner. This occasion serves as a platform for STAHR Scholars hailing from both the Dental and Medicine Tracks to cultivate interprofessional relationships. It facilitated meaningful interactions with esteemed faculty and staff members from both the School of Dentistry and Medicine, fostering a sense of unity and shared purpose.
GEHA Solutions, who have been instrumental in providing generous support to the STAHR Program through the GEHA Solutions Diversity in Dentistry Pre-Dental Fellowships, was also in attendance. Gene Willis, Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility at GEHA/GEHA Solutions, was the keynote speaker at the event.
2023 STAHR Scholars:
Nyla Anderson
Treasure Boykin
Mariah Duron
Kristen Gilbert
Aaliyah Granado
Ariel McConnell
Danny Pham
Marisela Quetzecua
Muhamed Rush
Josephine Sebunyenzi
Elizabeth Turner
Priya Vanmali
Bri’Asia Warren
Cassidy Valentine
Of this year’s STAHR participants, 13 are female, 2 are male, 8 are first generation college students and they represent their home states of Missouri, Oklahoma, Georgia, New Mexico, Louisiana, Kansas and Florida.
Dr. Melanie Simmer-Beck, Director of the STAHR Program and Professor, Chair of Dental Public Health and Behavioral Science, says, “In addition to preparing the STAHR Dental Scholars to be strong dental school applicants, we are preparing them to be successful in dental school, and after they graduate to have a desire to return to their home communities that lack access to dentists. This is about improving health equity.”
UMKC School of Dentistry recently donated 600 dental hygiene kits for Hope Community School in Ndola, Zambia and Spark Ventures Educator Empowerment Initiative in an effort to extend care to those outside of Kansas City after hearing about the opportunity through a request from University Academy.
Photo courtesy of Danielle Farr
“This initiative was a perfect opportunity for the School of Dentistry to stand with our community “University Academy” as they sought to touch and enrich the lives of communities far beyond our local borders,” says Jamie Charles of the UMKC School of Dentistry Business Office.
Spark Ventures looks to build global partnerships between US-based teachers and Hope School in Zambia. Although the dental school wasn’t able to perform care in Zambia, the gift still made an impact.
“Though your students were not able to perform any direct services for the students of Hope Community School, the donation of dental hygiene kits was invaluable to them,” says Danielle Farr of University Academy and Spark Ventures. “The toothbrushes and dental hygiene lesson were an integral part of the lessons taught that help to foster self-esteem and self-care knowledge to aid in growing healthy, well-adjusted humans despite the adversity the students face regularly.”
Thank you to the numerous School of Dentistry faculty and staff who contributed to the success of this, including Dr. Melanie Simmer-Beck and Brandie Roberts of the Department of Dental Public Health and Behavioral Science, Diane Elliott and Verna Crowder of the Clinic Dispensary and Jamie Charles, Patrick Dixon and Jeff Primos of the Business Office.
