In 2019, the UMKC Chapter of Sigma Phi Alpha- Dental Hygiene National Honor Society began a Community Service project for UMKC dental and dental hygiene students at the Kansas City Zoo’s “Boo at the Zoo” event.

In recent years, Clinical Instructor, Prof. Tamra Hoffman, RDH, organizes volunteers from the student led organizations and classes  from the School of Dentistry. Participation in this event allow students to dress up in costume, grab an oral hygiene puppet and connect with community kids about the fun of good brushing while passing out some goodies. Kids gather around for the opportunity to show our future dentists and dental hygienists their brushing skills.

This year, there were participants from dental hygiene class of 2025 and 2026 and dental classes of 2025, 2026, 2027 and 2028. Alexmarie Gomez, President of the Dental Hygiene Alumni Association (DHAA), and DHAA board member Grace Wilson, joined in on the festivities. It is always great to see present and past graduates of our programs reaching out to our communities.

Volunteers included:
Erica George
Kaytlyn Kunkel
Abby Garcia
Marissa Johnson
Daysha Horne
Peyton Howard
Toni Fraizer
Klare Rollins
Julia Messina
McKenzie Caster
Charlotte Kettler
Anna Mitchell
Amrutha Sudarsana Babu
Dhruvi Patel
Emily Fuchs
Jade Bauer
Radhika Swaminathan
Tommy Mataya
Danny Pham
Emma Blain
Tin Chen
Itzhel Martinez
Hira Sukhera
Lauren Rowland
Flavia Santos
Hardi Thacker
Kaylee Kytasaari
Hannah Sloan
Kylee Kiernan
Chloe Gerken
Grace Ipsen
Abby Hecker
Isabella Cannon
Shreya Patel
Alyssa Knaak
Kamryn Peters
Chelsea Breihan

See photos from the event here.

Courtesy of Prof. Tamra Hoffman