the ties that binddocshare01.docshare.tips/files/4628/46282639.pdf · the ties that bind a new...

The Ties That BindA new pedestrian bridge connecting the University’s Central Campus and the U-M Medical Center officially opened near the new Life Sciences Institute on September 15.

From opposite sides of the bridge that spans Washtenaw Avenue near Zina Pitcher Drive, deans from several schools and colleges unwound a 100-yard spool of ribbon. When both groups met at the center of the walkway, they tied the two ribbons together under an arch of maize and blue balloons.

Among the deans from Central Campus participating in the ceremony included Dr. Peter Polverini (right), dean of the School of Dentistry; George Kenyon, dean of the College of Pharmacy (center); and Liz Barry (right), managing director of the Life Sciences Institute.

They joined Dean Allen Lichter of School of Medicine and Dean Noreen Clark from the School of Public Health.

Several offices in the Life Sciences Institute, the physical focal point of the Life Sciences Initiative, also opened that day. The 230,000 square foot facility is one of three new buildings that are part of the life sciences initiative.

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

Upcoming Continuing Dental Education Courses

December 15-17, 2003 (Monday-Wednesday)Local Anesthesia for Dental HygienistsInstructors: Prof. Wendy Kerschbaum, Karen Ridley, Christine Klausner

This course, which includes 15 hours of classroom instruction and 14 hours of clinical training, introduces dental hygienists to the essential skills and knowledge for safe and effective administration of local anesthesia. Participants work in groups of three and will administer local anesthesia on each other.

January 14, 2004 (Wednesday)Kenneth J. Ryan, DDS Memorial Seminar: Maximizing Your Artistic Talent in Esthetic Dentistry and the Interdisciplinary ApproachInstructor: Ronald Goldstein, DDS

The morning section of this two-part course will focus on perfecting the artistic side of dentistry. This presentation will deal with visualization, one of the important elements in improving esthetic restorations. The afternoon section will offer guidelines on ways to obtain the best esthetic results, including profile considerations.

February 7, 2004 (Saturday)Associateships and Practice Buy-Ins: A Course for Established and New DentistsInstructor: Darrell W. Cain, CPA

Whether you’re an established dentist considering hiring an associate or thinking about selling your practice…or if you’re a new dentist who’s thinking about becoming an associate or purchasing a practice…this course is for you. Darrell W. Cain, president of a certified public accounting firm who has negotiated the sale of over 400 dental practices, will describe the advantages and disadvantages of associateships vs. buy-ins and also provide practical advice on how to minimize the tax burden for both buyer and seller.

For more information about these and other continuing dental education courses, contact:

University of MichiganSchool of Dentistry

Office of ContinuingDental Education

1011 N. UniversityRoom G508Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078Phone: (734) 763-5070Fax: (734) 936-3065www.dent.umich.edu

DentalUM Fall 2003 1

DentalUM magazine is published twice a year by the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Office of Alumni Relations and Continuing Dental Education.

Mail letters and updates to: Jerry Mastey, Editor, School of Dentistry, Room 1209, 1011 N. University Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078. Or you may send your letters and updates via email to: [email protected].

Dean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Peter PolveriniDirector of External Relations andContinuing Dental Education . . . . . . . Richard Fetchiet Writer & Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jerry MasteyDesign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris JungPhotography . . . . . . . Per H. Kjeldsen, Keary Campbell

Member publication of the American Association of Dental Editors

The Regents of the University: David A. Brandon, Laurence B. Deitch, Olivia P. Maynard, Rebecca McGowan, Andrea Fischer Newman, Andrew C. Richner, S. Martin Taylor, Katherine E. White, Mary Sue Coleman, ex officio.

University of Michigan School of DentistryAlumni Society Board of Governors

Terms Expire 2003:Kamal Asgar, ‘59, Park Ridge, NJWilliam J. Costello, ‘70, East Lansing, MI (Chairman)Susan Carron, ‘77, Farmington Hills, MIAnne Diederich Gwozdek, DH ‘73, Ann Arbor, MITerry Timm, ‘71, Saline, MI

Terms Expire 2004:Joseph T. Barss, ‘80, Chicago, ILEli Berger, ‘57, ‘61, Birmingham, MIWilliam E. Brownscombe, ‘74, St. Clair Shores, MIJanet Cook, DH ‘81, Whitmore Lake, MIThomas P. Osborn, ‘68, Bloomfield Hills, MI

Ex Officio Members:Steve C. Grafton, Executive Director, Alumni AssociationRichard Fetchiet, Director of External Relations and Continuing Dental EducationThomas C. Pink, ’69, Alumni Association Liaison Peter Polverini, Dean

The University of Michigan, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action, including Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The University of Michigan is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination and equal opportunity for all persons regardless of race, sex, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, or Vietnam-era veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions. Inquiries or complaints may be addressed to the Senior Director for Institutional Equity and Title IX/Section 504 Coordinator, Office for Institutional Equity, 2072 Administrative Services Building, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109-1432. (734) 763-0235, T.T.Y. (734) 747-1388. For other University of Michigan information, call (734) 764-1817.

DentalUMFall 2003 Volume 19, Number 2

It’s Great to beBack at Michigan

It’s great to be back at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.As you know, I was a department chair here prior to becoming dean

at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry.What I learned and experienced…in both roles and at both schools…

has reaffirmed in my mind that the University of Michigan School of Dentistry is among the nation’s, if not the world’s, premier dental schools whose faculty, staff, and students are rich with ideas and deep in talent.

Returning to Michigan is an opportunity to be in a world-class academic institution where there is freedom to be creative at a level not possible elsewhere.

I am committed to maintaining…and more importantly, advancing…that hard-earned and well-respected position.

That reputation was a major reason for my decision to return. It’s not often one is offered an opportunity to lead a dental school with a 128-year history of greatness.

Indeed, as I learned during the three years I was away from Ann Arbor, there is something to be said about absence making the heart grow fonder. When combined with being closer to family, the lure of Michigan was simply irresistible.

In conversations with faculty, staff, students, alumni, University officials, and others prior to becoming dean on June 1, I came to appreciate, even more, the breadth and depth of talent that is here.

It’s not just at the School of Dentistry. It’s elsewhere – at other University of Michigan schools and colleges, throughout Ann Arbor, across the state, and among our alumni. This is truly is a resource-rich environment.

I will continue to build upon the foundation that has made ours the great School it is.

Sincerely,

Peter Polverini, Dean

DentalUM Fall 20032

COVER STORY

FEATURES

In This Issue

4 Dr. Peter Polverini Assumes Deanship The new Dean of the School of Dentistry, Dr. Peter Polverini, has been busy since assuming his new job June 1. In an interview he talked about his first weeks back, what he would like to achieve, and who some of his mentors were that helped him to reach his current level of success.

32 Major Renovations Underway Never have there been as many simultaneous renovation projects underway in the history of the School of Dentistry as there are now. One major renovation project recently ended. However, four others continue.

37 Faculty Profile – Dr. Jacques Nör He didn’t know he graduated at the top of his dental class until seven years after earning his dental degree. A successful researcher, clinician, teacher, and mentor at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Dr. Jacques Nör admits his journey from Brazil to the U.S. has been amazing and that “I’ve been lucky to find the right people here at Michigan.”

47 Interesting Interests Talk to faculty and staff at the School of Dentistry, or visit them at their office or at a clinic, and you learn about an interesting hobby or pursuit that they have. In some instances, the activity parallels a career. However, some are engaged in activities away from the School that have no connection to their professional roles.

51 Graduation Day

32

37

4

12 Hall of Honor Unveiled The School of Dentistry unveiled its Hall of Honor at a gala celebration on September 4th as a part of homecoming weekend. Eighteen individuals once affiliated with the School were posthumously inducted during ceremonies attended by family, friends, and colleagues of those honored. Design by Chris Jung. Photo by Per Kjeldsen.

16 - The Honored 18 In alphabetical order (by last name) are the first 18 individuals that were inducted into the School of Dentistry’s Hall of Honor. A plaque with the head and shoulder image of each person, their post-graduate degrees, and a short narrative describing his or her achievements are provided.


DEPARTMENTS

Fall 2003

60 Alumnus Profile – Dr. William Maas As president of the dental class of 1973, William Maas challenged classmates to develop a personal or professional statement of purpose so they would find themselves providing oral health care in a system shaped with their input. Since then, Dr. Maas has been a part of the team that prepared the first Surgeon General’s report about oral health in America and has also been commended for his dedication to improving the oral health of the nation and reducing oral health disparities.

60

70

47

51

12 Alumni Relations & Development

12 - Hall of Honor & Other Homecoming Weekend Activities 29 - West Preclinic Renovations Proceeding 30 - The Fundamentals of Effective Gift Planning

43 Faculty News

57 Dental Hygiene

66 Department Report: Biologic and Materials Sciences

70 Research

70 - U-M Dental Students Win 40% of AADR Research Fellowships It’s about as rare as a major league baseball player with a .400 batting average. Collectively, U-M School of Dentistry students batted .409 when nine won 22 research fellowships from the American Association for Dental Research.

70 – School of Dentistry #6 Nationally in NIH Awards

72 - D1 Student’s Clinical Research Wins Award Sara Kellogg wasn’t even a student at the U-M School of Dentistry when she won first place for her dental research. She competed against 200 others and won a top award for her poster presentation on hypertension.

73 – Do Bones Support and Spread One Type of Cancer? School of Dentistry researcher, Dr. Abraham Schneider, recipient of the Dziewiatkowski Award, is seeking answers to that question.

75 School News

82 Alumni News

DentalUM Fall 20034

“I’m excited about the opportunities and the potential this School has to be even better.”

“I’m excited about the opportunities and the potential this School has to be even better.”

Question: Can you give DentalUM readers an idea of what your first

four weeks as dean have been like? What are some of the issues you’ve

been dealing with since your first full day on the job June 2nd?

Answer: I’d say the first four weeks have been a time of reacquainting myself with the University and faculty, and how the School functions at such a high level on a day-to-day basis; that is, understanding how this institution really works.

Q: Is the reacquainting process different as dean?

A: Yes it is. As a faculty member you see things from a somewhat narrow vantage point. But as a dean, it’s a broad panorama. I’ve become increasingly impressed with the level of activity and the challenges here, at all levels.

The new Dean of the School of Dentistry, Dr. Peter Polverini, has been busy since officially beginning his job on June 1. In addition to meetings in his office, Polverini has taken time to meet with faculty in their offices and clinics, talk to researchers in their labs, and converse with students. Four days after becoming dean, he addressed faculty, staff, and students in the Kellogg Auditorium discussing a range of issues and answering their questions. Several weeks later, he sent an electronic newsletter to faculty, staff, and students outlining some of his plans. That electronic newsletter, Thought You’d Be Interested…, was also sent to alumni. In early July, the new dean took time to answer questions on a range of subjects including his reasons for returning to Michigan, his short- and long-range plans for the School, how reductions in state appropriations to the University might affect the dental school, and new initiatives he would like to see. Below is an edited transcript of the interview.

Dr. Peter Polverini Assumes

Off and

Q&A

4

~~

Per Kjeldsen


Q: You were a department chair here in the

Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and

Oncology, and then named dean at the School

of Dentistry in Minnesota. Why did you want

to return to Michigan, this time as dean of the

School of Dentistry?

A: I felt Michigan offered opportunities that could be found at few, if any, other dental schools in the country, such as an opportunity to re-engage research at a level that I could not at perhaps other institutions, and an opportunity to be part of an innovative research and educational program that is continuing to evolve at this dental school.

I didn’t have to convince faculty of the need for change here. Change is part and parcel of what makes this place great. The issue is not that change should occur, it’s expected. The reason this place continues to be as good as it is, is because it accepts change as an opportunity for continued success rather than as an obstacle to derail programs or derail ideas.

Q: Do you see that acceptance of change

continuing?

A: Oh yes. Certainly there are going to be some aspects of change that are going to be perhaps more difficult than others. But by and large, there always are faculty here that are capable of engaging in that process. There’s a willingness to engage change here.

FACULTY AND DECISION MAKING

Q: Were there any major lessons you learned

as dean at Minnesota that surprised you,

compared to being a department chair? How

did those lessons prepare you for this job?

A: I think the one thing I did learn is the value and the absolute importance of engaging faculty in the decision making process. The dean’s role is to make sure the ship is on course and to make sure that it stays on course. But it’s the faculty that really drives the process. The one thing I did learn is that the more you engage faculty, the more information you share, the greater the likelihood wise decisions will be made.

Q: How are you engaging the faculty?

A: I do it several ways: through committees and by getting out and seeing faculty on the clinic floor as well as in their laboratories. So I actually get out to see them in their place of work.

Q: How often do you do that?

A: Every week. At least half-a-day a week I will be out on the clinic floor or in the research tower talking to faculty and talking to students.

Q: What’s been their reaction?

A: I think they welcome it. You learn things you don’t learn in a traditional committee-like structure. You hear things from people that you normally would not hear. There’s a hierarchy in any organization, but when you get right down to the faculty, it’s a wonderful way to learn about the operation of this institution through their eyes. Everybody has a different vantage point and sees things differently. So it’s valuable to see and hear what other people think.

Off and Deanship at School of Dentistry

“I’ve become increasingly impressed with the level of activity and the challenges here, at all levels.”

“I firmly believe in empowering people to make decisions.”

Running...Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

DentalUM Fall 20036

MANAGEMENT STYLE

Q: Is there anyting new you’ve learned your

first four weeks here compared to when you

left as a department chair? Anything taken

you by surprise?

A: There really have been no surprises. Not that this place is overly predictable. But there certainly have been no big surprises.

Q: What was your management style as dean

in Minnesota? Will it be the same here?

A: I firmly believe in empowering people to make decisions. I strongly believe in a decentralized system, but one in which I engage at every level. But decentralization doesn’t mean hands-off. What it means is empowering people to make decisions and allowing them to make those decisions and, at the same time, to provide a check and balance in the system.

Q: Is it a tough adjustment returning to

Michigan as dean compared to leaving as a

department chair?

A: It’s difficult in the sense the responsibility is much more substantial. I put in significantly more time daily just doing day-to-day things, and I haven’t even started re-engaging my research in a meaningful way yet. So it’s a lot of work. But I love every minute of it. Nothing I do is insignificant or unimportant because it’s dealing with people and therefore you pay attention to the details. There are a lot of details with this job, more so than as a department chair.

TIME MANAGEMENT

Q: Given your responsibilities, do you think

that perhaps your research might be one thing

that might have to be pushed off to the side?

A: It will no longer be my primary focus. But it certainly is one vehicle that I use to stay connected to the scientific community here. It’s the one thing I do that I enjoy doing. It’s a way I continue to exercise my intellect at another level compared to performing the administrative chores I have. I take it very seriously and it is very competitive. But once you’ve been in a competitive environment,

it’s hard to back out of it. I won’t be doing research at the level I used to. But I will be engaged and I’ll be expected to compete for research funding.

Q: Has there been “a typical day” since you

returned?

A: A typical day is one that begins at 7:00 a.m. and doesn’t end until 6:00 or 6:30 p.m. Between meeting faculty, getting out into the clinics, meeting alumni, it’s the whole package. There’s something different everyday. So that’s what makes the job really exciting.

Q: How do you plan to allocate your time

in the week s and months ahead; that is,

managing, mentoring chairs and faculty, fund

raising, your own research, etc.?

A: It’s difficult to put a time frame on each activity. I give the time that’s needed. My first responsibility is to the faculty, the students, and the staff of this School. They come first. After that, I focus on things that might be in my own areas of interest. I will be engaged in the teaching program on a limited basis. I will be involved in diagnostic pathology to help relieve some of the burden carried by junior faculty. And I will be participating in the research program, but I’ll do that only as time permits. My first responsibility is to make sure I’m at the table at the University level to ensure that when such decisions are made the dental school is on the radar screen and that we are able to garner the resources we need to continue to be successful.

PERCEPTIONS OF DENTAL SCHOOL

Q: During your trips from Minneapolis to Ann

Arbor to talk to officials at the University level,

what were their impressions of the School of

Dentistry? How is the School perceived by the

University’s central administrators?

A: There’s no doubt in my mind from the President, the Provost, and others that they perceive this as being one of the truly great dental schools. There are very few schools that have the breadth and depth of strengths that we have: our undergraduate program, our outstanding research program, and our quality postgraduate program,

“The more you engage

faculty, the more information

you share, the greater the

likelihood wise decisions will be

made.”

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

“Change is part and parcel of

what makes this place great. …The reason this

place continues to be as good as

it is, is because it accepts

change as an opportunity

for continued success.”


both PhD and specialty programs in postgraduate certificate and master’s programs in dentistry.

So there’s no doubt the President and the Provost realize what an outstanding institution the School of Dentistry is. The expectations are that it continue to be what it is, if not be better.

Q: Did they say how much better or suggest

any benchmarks?

A: No, but I think when you’re close to being in the top three, you don’t have much room to maneuver. So the thought is they want this to be looked at as the best dental school in the country.

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

Q: What are some of your educational

program plans?

A: I think, for example, we can continue to develop an innovative, creative educational program that better prepares our students for a different patient population than what I faced when I graduated from dental school. This will involve a population of patients that are older; that often suffer from multiple chronic diseases; that demand high quality care, as they should and most rightly deserve; and that requires students to be much more skilled in decision making.

They will continue to be excellent dentists. They will do the quality restorative dentistry this institution is known for. But the modern dentist is going to need to be even better prepared in areas that perhaps have not been a major area of focus, in this case, diagnosis. We’re in an age where genomics and proteomics will change how we live for several generations to come. Our students understand, better than earlier generations, the implications of this new knowledge on how it affects their practice and patients.

Q: How wil l these concer ns af fect the

predoctoral , dental hygiene, and other

programs?

A: It means we’re going to have to develop a curriculum that allows our students to be better self-learners, that better prepares them to be continuous learners, and forces them to take

more responsibility for their education, not only as students but also as graduates and practitioners. I think the focus will be more and more on decision making and the complex issues that affect decision making.

SHORT- AND LONG-TERM GOALS

Q: Do you have any short-term and long-

term priorities? Short-term being six to 18

months and long-term being the next two to

five years?

A: We’ve always had a quality educational program. We’ve always had a quality research program. And we’ve always had a quality patient care program. Those have always been considered very strong. Perhaps the linkages between those programs could be improved. One way I think to bridge those gaps or to create linkages is by developing a strong clinical and translational research program in which we can take to the chairside much of the outstanding science that is going on here at this institution and elsewhere and then implement that into our patient care program through a topflight clinical research agenda. What I’d like to see is the science we do translated into better patient care. I think one way of doing that is by developing a clinical research program that establishes linkages between research, education, and patient care.

Q: Will this require an overhaul or major

change or transition with current programs?

A: No, I think the will has always been there. I think it’s going to require some investment in individuals, some investment in programs, and some investment in facilities. We have an outstanding faculty doing state-of-the-art science in a 30-year-old facility. So there’s a mismatch. In order for us to retain our best scientists, in order for us to continue at the levels we are, this all has to be done in modern facilities. One of the things I’m going to be working very hard on during the next couple years is garnering the resources we need to rebuild this infrastructure.

“Our alumni should be very proud of this School, not only for the caliber of student it educates, but for the quality and breadth of its faculty and programs.”

“There’s no doubt the President and the Provost realize what an outstanding institution the School of Dentistry is.”

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

DentalUM Fall 20038

FUNDING AND TUITION

Q: When you mention investing in individuals,

programs, and f acil ities, you’re talk ing

money. Yet the University is facing a cut of

$36 million in state aid next year under the

governor’s budget proposal. Where are new

resources going to come from?

A: There may have to be some reallocation of resources. We have to make some difficult decisions. If you can’t fund everything, what then are you going to support? What we’re going to need to do is make some tough decisions. There will have to be some reallocation. There will also have to be some reinvestment with privatedollars, as well as, hopefully, some investment from the University.

Q: When you mention reallocation, are you

referring to paring back programs?

A: Some programs may have to be pared. But these decisions will have to be made with broad faculty input.

Q: Has the Provost or anyone at the University

level mentioned how the $36 million cuts in

state aid might affect the School of Dentistry?

A: Certainly my predecessor, Bill Kotowicz, and the chairs made decisions how they were going to deal with these cuts. In some cases, it’s reduction in open positions, that is, positions not being filled and reductions in dollars spent on services. Certainly, any time there are budget cuts, programs and people are affected.

Q: Will they be across the board?

A: No, not across the board. There have been strategic cuts. Each department came up with a list of things that they felt they could live without. I don’t believe in across the board cuts. You make decisions and you move on.

Q: On the other side of the coin, will there be

a need to raise tuition?

A: I don’t think a decision has been made yet. But it may occur. This is a tuition-driven enterprise in many respects. But I think we can no longer continue to put the burden on the student’s

shoulders. As an institution we have to look at other ways of raising revenue.

Q: In what ways?

A: I think of looking at how we do business in terms of faculty practice. Some changes could be made there that would allow faculty to be more productive and, at the same time, enable the School to both save and garner resources. Also, research enterprises need to expand well beyond traditional sources such as NIH. We could look at industry as a source of dollars to help drive the scientific engine here.

Q: Pharmaceutical companies? Biotech?

A: Pharmaceutical companies, biotech, dental manufacturing companies, all those would help.

ENCOURAGING RISK TAKING

Q: When you were here last October to speak

to faculty, staff, and students as one of several

candidates for the dean’s job, you said “I want

to encourage risk taking. People who take risks

are those I truly value.” Can you elaborate on

that comment and how that affects your plans?

A: I was referring to people who are willing to come up with ideas of new ways of doing things, someone who’s willing to sit down and say “I have an idea,” people who are willing to flush out ideas, to come up with new strategies to do business differently. That could mean getting involved in a number of ways. Someone might say “I might be willing to talk to this company to invest in our School,” or “Let’s look at our practice plan, can we do something differently to attract more faculty or keep them here,” or “Can our educational program change to be more creative and challenging?” Those are all risks because there’s no guarantee they’re going to work. But if you don’t try them, you’re never going to get there.

ALUMNI, FACULTY, STAFF, STUDENTS

Q: DentalUM is read not only by our alumni, but also by faculty, staff, and students. Is there anything you would like to say to each of these groups?

“I would hope our students

take advantage of every

opportunity they can to be the best

educated dentists they

can be and to engage every aspect of the educational program…”

“I hope staff would look at this place as a

career.”

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen


A: With the alumni, they should be very proud of this School, not only for the caliber of student it educates, but for the quality and breadth of its faculty and programs. The fact is, this place continues to work hard to be the very best at what it does. It has not shirked its responsibilities whether they be educational, scientific, or social. And it has done it without flinching.

This School has really set the bar when it comes to being the best at what you are and to be willing to admit that it needs to get better at what it does. So the alumni should feel that this place will continue to thrive and get better and that they will continue to be proud of it. I look at alumni as a valuable resource and welcome their dialogue.

I want our faculty to make sure that this is a place where they continue to grow and thrive. It’s my job to make sure that opportunities continue to exist for them to be creative. I don’t want people leaving here because they’re unhappy or they can’t be successful, but if they do leave it’s because there are opportunities that we can’t possibly provide them. We want cases like that to be few and far between. We want to make this a place where young people can thrive and grow and where senior faculty can sustain and grow as investigators and educators.

For students, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I would hope our students take advantage of every opportunity they can to be the best educated dentists they can be and to engage every aspect of the educational program and to take some responsibility on themselves for what they want to do with their lives. I would also urge them to explore all the opportunities offered, not only at the dental school, but the rest of this University. What makes this place great is not only the people who are here, but also what it’s surrounded by.

I hope staff would look at this place as a career, that they have opportunities for input, and that they have a voice in the decision making process that affects their lives.

Q: Wil l the Supreme Cour t’s rulings on

diversity in June have any impact on the

d ental sch ool ’s ad m ission p ol icies or

programs?

A: The School’s admissions policy more closely parallels that of the Law School. We don’t have quotas. What we do is we look for the best students that we can. Will it change? No. We will always go after the best students we can.

PERSONAL MENTORS

Q: Looking back at your career from where

you star ted to where you are today, has

there been any one particular person that

you’ve tried to emulate, a person whose

management style or life has inspired you?

A: There’s probably no one person. But certainly a number of people during my career that have played a big role as my mentors. One was Dr. Ramzi Cotran who recently passed away. He was the Frank Burr Mallory professor of pathology and chief of pathology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital of the Harvard Medical School in Boston. He was my graduate mentor and I was his first graduate student. Ramzi was very patient with me and really showed me that once you engaged in science it became a part of your life. Science was woven into the fabric of his life. His energy, his excitement and enthusiasm about science was something that really stuck with me. He spent the time nurturing me as a future faculty member. Along with him, Mike Gimbrone who was also, at the time when I was one of Ramsey’s graduate students, an assistant professor. Mike was one of the real superstars in the field of cardiovascular biology which was an area I worked in, vascular biology. Mike was someone who, very early in his career, took the time and was very patient with me. These two people, during my graduate studies, really did a lot to infuse the excitement of science and make it a journey that I would follow for the rest of my career. The other person was Jerry Shklar who was my mentor when I was in oral pathology. He was a person who infused the value of science as a practitioner of pathology and really demonstrated the value of integrating science into how I practiced dentistry then as a pathologist who saw patients and did diagnostic work.

“We can no longer continue to put the burden on the student’s shoulders. As an institution we have to look at other ways of raising revenue.”

“I want our faculty to make sure that this is a place where they continue to grow and thrive.”

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

DentalUM Fall 200310

He was that wonderful bridge between the clinical and diagnostic part and the basic research that I did. He did a lot to bridge that gap between the research and the practice of dentistry. He was a guy who would give you the shirt off his back. He treated me as much as a son as anything else. He treated all his graduate students that way. Another person I remember, as my department chair, was Dan Scarpelli, who was chair of pathology at Northwestern University. He was a guy who, when I was working hard to get promoted and things weren’t looking good, stuck with me. I was working very hard to get my grant. It was at the eleventh hour when I finally got my grant funding from NIH. All his hard work paid off. It was through him that I understood the value of investing in a faculty member, as he invested in me. Whereas others might not have wanted me to continue in the tenure track, he continually fought for me. As it turned out, I like to think that his investment paid off. Those are the people I look at academically. And of course, I can’t forget my wife because she’s put up with my travels and has fully supported whatever decision I’ve made. She and my children have been very supportive.

So all have a lot to do with where I am today, either because of the personal sacrifices they’ve made on my behalf, or the attention they gave me as I was growing up in the system, the real care they demonstrated, and their desire to want me to be successful. In the end, it really boils down to the big “M” word, “mentoring.” I was mentored by some of the very best.

Q: And what they passed on to you, you,

in turn, are trying to pass along to others?

A: You bet. The values they established in me are the same values I like to see in other people. I’ve been lucky, that the number of people who have come through my lab have all been successful. In fact, the first person I trained as a fellow is coming to University of Michigan as an endowed professor of rheumatology in the department of medicine. That’s Alisa Koch. So I can’t be much prouder than that. Let me conclude by saying I couldn’t be happier than to be back here at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. I’m excited about the opportunities and the potential this School has to be even better.

“We’re going to have to develop a curriculum that allows our students to be better self-learners, that better prepares them to be continuous learners, and forces them to take more responsibility for their education.”

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New Dental Students

New DeanWelcomes

Monday, August 25, was a day of firsts for Dean Peter Polverini and the Class of 2007. It was his first opportunity, as the School’s new dean, to welcome first-year dental students to the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. For the students, it was their first day at the School, their first opportunity to meet their colleagues, School administrators, and members of the faculty. In remarks to the 109 first-year students, Polverini acknowledged their excitement. “This is a unique and very special day for all of you,” he said. “You’re on your way to establishing new, long-term friendships with your classmates here today.” Referring to pictures of U-M graduates on the walls of a room in the Alumni Center, he encouraged the students to not only become leaders in their profession, but their communities too. He also encouraged the students to “take advantage of all the opportunities that are available to you, not just at this School, but across campus as well.”

Dr. William Costello, chairman of the School of Dentistry’s

Alumni Society Board of Governors, was among those attending orientation for the

first-year dental students. “I’m impressed with them,” he

said, “especially those who went the extra mile to take

science and other courses they needed, after earning

their undergraduate degrees, so they could gain admission

to our School.” Costello mentioned one student who

earned a degree in mechanical engineering but, after some

soul searching, wanted something more from a career.

“It was heart warming to see how many young people made

some significant decisions about their futures at this

stage of their lives.”

Keary Campbell

Class of 2007

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell


ust wonderful.” “Very honored that he was chosen.” “He would have been embarrassed because he was such a shy person.” Those were just a few of the comments voiced by some of the family

members of School of Dentistry legends who were inducted into the School’s Hall of Honor during inaugural ceremonies on September 4th. Deans of the School, a professor who persuaded leaders in many communities to add fluoride to their water supplies, a dental investigator who conducted long-term studies on the effectiveness of various periodontal treatments, were among the 18 in the first class inducted. The Hall recognizes and honors the achievements of dental profession legends, all deceased, who once were associated with the U-M School of Dentistry. “A school with such a long and distinguished history as ours has recognized the need to honor those who made significant contributions to this School, the profession of dentistry, and the oral health and well-being of millions of individuals in this country and around the world,” said Dean Peter Polverini.

18 Inducted in First Hall Family, Friends of the Honored Among Those Present

After the Hall of Honor was officially unveiled, family members of the inducted and guests took time to look at all the plaques on the wall outside the Continuing Dental Education office.

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Family Members AttendFamily members of the late Dr.

Dominic Dziewiatkowski, Dr. Kenneth Easlick, Dr. Paul Jeserich, Dr. Donald Kerr, Dr. Floyd Peyton, and a distant relative of the School’s founding dean, Dr. Jonathan Taft, were among those who were present for the ceremony.

When the name of their honored relative was called, they gathered near a podium to hear a past or current member of the School’s Alumni Society Board of Governors or a faculty member read the plaque’s inscription. Afterwards, the family received a replica of the plaque to take home. “The Hall of Honor is long overdue and is a perpetual remembrance of our dental heritage,” said Dr. Jay

of Honor CeremonyWerschky, past-chairman of the Board of Governors and chair of the Hall’s Selection Committee. He added the ceremony would now be an annual event that will be a part of fall homecoming activities.

Family Members Comment“It was just wonderful,” said Susan

Heinen, the granddaughter of the late Dr. Kenneth Easlick, who was among the 18 inducted. “He would have been so pleased to be recognized this way. But at the same time, I think he would have been a bit embarrassed because, at heart, he was a shy person.”

Similar comments were voiced by Alec Kerr, the youngest son of the late Dr. Donald Kerr. “He would have been amused and

gladdened by it, but he wouldn’t have shown any visible emotions because he was a very low-key person who never sought the limelight,” Kerr said of his father.

Sons of the late Dr. Floyd Peyton came from other parts of the country to attend.

Terry Peyton, who traveled from Florida, said, “My father would have been very honored to have been chosen, especially to be among those who were included in the first ceremony. However, I’m sure he would have given credit for his success to the School

Keith Peyton gives his brother Terry a closer look at the plaque honoring their father, Dr. Floyd Peyton.

Dr. Susan Carron, a member of the School’s Board of Governors (center) shares a light moment with Dr. Walter Niemann, Class of 1951 and stepson of Dr. Paul Jeserich, and his daughter, Lucy Niemann French, before the induction ceremony began.

“The Hall of Honor is long overdue and

is a perpetual remembrance of our dental

heritage.” Dr. Jay Werschky, chair,

Hall of HonorSelection Committee

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for giving him the opportunities to succeed.”

Keith Peyton, who traveled from Virginia, said, “As a family, we’re proud of what my father achieved and that he was recognized for those achievements, which included being the first to receive a doctorate in dental materials.” However, “I wish our 89-year-old mother could have attended. She really would have enjoyed it.”

Also receiving a copy of a plaque was Barbara Krueger, who described herself “as a distant relative of Dr. Jonathan Taft,” the School’s first dean.

Krueger attended following an interesting turn of events that began much earlier.

Several years ago, she was commissioned by the School of Dentistry to create artwork for the entrance to the dental school library. At that time, however, Krueger was unaware of her family ties to Dr. Jonathan Taft until she began talking to librarian Patricia Anderson about the history of the dental school.

Members of the family of Dr. Donald Kerr receive a replica of the plaque that honors him from Jay Werschky.

Sam Dziewiatkowski, and Jane Damren, the son and daughter of Dr. Dominic Dziewiatkowski listen to Dr. Gerald Charbeneau read from the plaque that cites some of their father’s achievements.

Susan Heinen, Dr. Kenneth Easlick’s granddaughter, receives a replica of the plaque honoring her grandfather from Dr. Thomas Pink.

As she learned more exploring the Taft family heritage, Jay Taft, the great-grandson of Dr. Jonathan Taft, sent Krueger an e-mail suggesting she contact Anderson to learn more about the Taft family lineage. But Jay Taft did not know that Krueger and Anderson had already met.

“I’m not going to keep the replica of the plaque that was given to me today,” Kruger said with a laugh after the induction ceremony. “Instead, I will send it to a family member who was much closer to Dr. Jonathan Taft.”

Dr. Richard Shick reads from the plaque as Barbara Krueger, a distant relative of the School’s first dean, Dr. Jonathan Taft, listens.

Nominees to have been a graduate of the dental, dental hygiene, master’s or doctoral (PhD) program and/or a faculty member, and/or a research staff member of the University of Michigan.

Nominees must be deceased.

Nominations solicited and reviewed annually. Nominees inducted as appropriate.

Nominations reviewed by the Review Committee of the School’s Alumni Society Board of Governors. Committee submits names to full Board for approval.

Hall of Honor Nomination Criteria

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A committee of the School of Dentistry’s Alumni

Society Board of Governors recommended the

names of 18 individuals as the first class that

was inducted into the School’s Hall of Honor

on September 4th.

Dr. Jay Werschky, past-chairman of the

Board of Governors, chaired the Selection

Committee. Other members included:

•Dr.WilliamBrown•Dr.GeraldCharbeneau•Dr.JamesHayward•Dr.LysleJohnston,Jr.•Dr.H.DeanMillard•Dr.ArnoldMorawa•Mrs.SusanPritzel•Dr.RichardShick•Dr.RayStevens,Jr.•Ms.DebbieMontague•Ms.TammySzatkowski-Reeves

U-M School of Dentistry alumni and faculty members introduced each of the 18 Hall of Honor inductees during ceremonies on September 4th. Listed in alphabetical order, by last name, are the inductees and the names of those who introduced them.

•Dr.RussellW.Bunting(by Dr. Eli Berger)•Dr.CyrenusG.Darling (by Dr. William Costello)•Dr.DominicD.Dziewiatkowski (by Dr. Gerald Charbeneau)•Dr.KennethA.Easlick(by Dr. Thomas Pink)•Dr.DorothyG.Hard(by Mrs. Susan Pritzel)•Dr.NelvilleS.Hoff(by Mrs. Anne Gwozdek)•Dr.PhilipJay(by Dr. William Brownscombe)•Dr.PaulH.Jeserich (by Dr. William Costello)•Dr.DonaldA.Kerr(by Dr. Jay Werschky)•Dr.PercivalLowery (by Dr. Susan Carron)•Dr.ChalmersJ.Lyons(by Dr. Thomas Osborn)•Dr.WilliamR.Mann (by Dr. Lysle Johnston, Jr.)•Dr.FloydO.Ostrander (by Mrs. Anne Gwozdek)•Dr.FloydA.Peyton (by Dr. Gerald Charbeneau)•Dr.SigurdP.Ramfjord(by Dr. Richard Shick)•Dr.RalphSommer(by Dr. Jay Werschky)•Dr.JonathanTaft (by Dr. Richard Shick)•Dr.MarcusL.Ward(by Dr. William Brown)

Ta ki n g a n i d e a … a h a l l o f h o n o r …a n d t r a n s f o r m i n g it into reality was the responsibility of Tammy S za t ko w s ki -R e e v e s , curator of the School of Dentistry ’s Gordon H. Sindecuse Museum. Drawing on her nine years experience, including four as museum curator at the School of Dentistry, it was a challenge she relished. “Basically, I was in charge of making the project happen,” she said. Working with Richard Fetchiet and Debbie Montague from the School’s office of alumni relations, Szatkowski-Reeves conducted extensive research on similar walls or halls of honor at other schools, at Michigan and elsewhere, before presenting her suggestions to the Board of Governors in the spring of 2001. Szatkowski-Reeves also had other responsibilities.She met with vendors to review samples of plaques; collaborated with the School’s designer, Chris Jung, to create a plaque that would be unique and distinguished; and actively worked with members of the School’s Alumni Society Board of Governors and kept them appraised on all aspects of the project. “When I talked to the plaque vendors, I told them we wanted a colors for the plaque that would reflect the University of Michigan, maize and blue,” she said. “Dr. Jay Werschky, who was president of the Board of Governors at the time, liked the idea but also suggested that since lavender is the official color of dentistry that we also add a touch of that color to the plaques. We did that and the results were outstanding.” Funding for the Hall of Honor project was provided by the Sindecuse Museum of Dentistry endowment.

Alumni and FacultyIntroduce Honorees

Hall of HonorSelection Committee

Impressive. That’s the best word to describe the Hall of Honor plaques on the wall outside the Continuing Dental Education office in the Kellogg Building.

Each plaque weighs 3.2 pounds, measures eight by twelve inches, and is made of glass one-half inch thick curving outward at the edges. Beneath the glass is an array of colors, mostly navy blue with touches of lighter blue and lavender, dentistry’s official color.

Etched on the glass is a gold image, similar to a photographic negative, of each individual. Also in gold are the names of each individual, when they lived, when and from what university they received their postgraduate degrees, and a 60- to 65-word narrative describing their achievement while at the U-M School of Dentistry.

The background for each plaque is a customized, hand-painted treatment, making the look of each plaque unique.

The plaques appear to “float.” Hidden mounting offsets each plaque at various depths of the wall to give the floating illusion.

Putting it all together…Tammy Szatkowski-Reeves, Sindecuse Museum Curator

The Plaque


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The Honored


DEVELOPMENTDEVELOPMENT

Class of ‘53 WelcomedA warm, friendly, “Hi, I’m Peter Polverini, dean of the

School of Dentistry, welcome,” greeted members of the Class of ’53 and their spouses as they arrived for the Emeritus Luncheon at the School of Dentistry.

The luncheon was one of several activities that were a part of the School’s Homecoming Weekend activities September 4-6.

In luncheon remarks to more than 80, Polverini said his three years away from Ann Arbor proved “there is something to be said about absence making the heart grow fonder.”

The luncheon was also the group’s opportunity to be the first to receive their emeritus pins at the School. In previous years, the pins were awarded by the U-M Alumni Association at their facilities. “However, we wanted to continue that tradition but at a new venue, the School of Dentistry,” Polverini said.

Following the luncheon, members of the dental and dental hygiene classes posed for a class picture at the south entrance of the School.

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The Dental Hygiene Class of ’53. Front row (left to right): Patricia Wright, Sally Page Clark, Maxime Cleary, Shirley Halas, and Darrell Duffiel; back row (left to right): Betty Carlson, Susan Garbarini, and Suzie Pederson.

The Dental Class of ’53.

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1. Casper Eberwein 2. Allan Ash 3. Irvin Fieber 4. Leonard Posner 5. Arthur Nolen 6. John Larder 7. Maurice Smith

8. Benjamin Brabb 9. John Glick 10. Thomas Russell 11. Allen Weiss 12. Darwin Weersing 13. James Aaronian 14. Donald Briggs

15. Robert Cording 16. Donald Draper 17. Leon Fogel 18. William Gregory 19. Vincent Greeson 20. William Daines 21. James Laidlaw

22. John Carson 23. Eugene Garbarino 24. Wilbert Fletke 25. James Schindler 26. James Reese 27. Charles Kelly 28. Leonard Veatch

29. Edward Martin 30. James Strikwerda 31. Leslie Sher 32. William Love 33. Robert Everett 34. James Currier

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

1819 20 21

22 2324

25 26 27 2829

30 31 32 33 34


More than 150 at2nd Annual Morawa Lecture

More than 150 oral health care professionals came to Ann Arbor on September 5th for the second annual Morawa Lecture. Among those attending were School of Dentistry alums who were in town to celebrate class reunions that evening and attend the Saturday tailgate and football game at the Big House. In welcoming remarks, Dean Peter Polverini thanked Dr. Arnold Morawa for his more than 30 years of service to the School of Dentistry. “Arnie built our alumni relations and continuing dental education programs into one of the most respected in the nation,” Polverini said. Morawa directed the graduate pediatric dentistry program from 1978 to 1988. The following year, he became assistant dean for alumni relations and continuing dental education, a position he held until he retired three years ago. “In light of these and other achievements during Arnie’s remarkable career, we thought it was appropriate that our annual homecoming continuing education program be called ‘The Morawa Lectureship,’” Polverini said. Dr. Robert Vogel, an internationally-known lecturer on implant dentistry, was this year’s Morawa lecturer. In a fast-moving program that focused on comprehensive implant prosthetics and predictable anterior esthetics, Vogel discussed an array of scientifically based techniques, tips, and tricks in implant dentistry. Topics covered included treatment planning, avoiding biomechanical failures, developing ideal soft tissue esthetics, and other topics.

Dean Peter Polverini, Dr. Robert Vogel, and Dr. Arnold Morawa prior to the start of this year’s Morawa Lecture during fall homecoming weekend.

Keary Campbell


2nd Annual Tailgate

For the second consecutive year, the School of Dentistry hosted a tailgate party as a part of its homecoming weekend activities.

This year’s event was held at the U-M Golf Course, just west of the club house, beginning at nine o’clock, three hours prior to the noon kickoff between U-M and the University of Houston. U-M beat Houston 50 to 3.

Jerry Mastey

Dean Peter Polverini and his wife, Carol, welcome Dr. David Kaminski (Class of 1984) and his family at the School’s tailgate party prior to the start of the Michigan-Houston football game on September 6.

Marty Bailey talks to Dr. Steve Dater (Class of 1988) and his wife, Mary, about activities in the office of alumni relations during the School of Dentistry’s tailgate.

Can’t tell the players without a scorecard. Dawn Ford places a name tag on Dr. Will Fletke (Class of 1953) as he gets ready to join colleagues at the School’s tailgate.

Diana Neering talks to Matt Kiisk (Class of 1968) who came from California to be at this fall’s homecoming weekend. With Kiisk are John Martin and his wife, Chris.

Jerry Mastey Jerry Mastey

Jerry Mastey


Cal Waisanen Aces 12th Hole at Golf OutingIt wasn’t his first-hole-in one. But it was probably his

most special.Cal Waisanen (Class of 1973) recorded his fourth ace on

the 12th hole during the School of Dentistry’s sixth annual golf outing in September at the U-M Golf Course.

“I’ve had three others, but I’ll always remember this one because I was with a great group of friends when it happened,” he said. Savoring the moment with Waisanen and giving him high-fives after his 228-yard drive were Drs. Terry Timm, Michael Dibble, and Gerry Eisenmann.

Dave Montague of Champion Chevrolet in Howell presented Waisanen with a two-year lease for a 2004 Chevy Trailblazer from the dealership.

Waisanen’s interest in golf began more than 40 years ago when his father coached Olivet College’s varsity golf team. Waisenen and his brother were the team’s bag boys.

1st place, 15 under: Team of Paul Elder, Mike Marderosian, Dave Heidenreich, and Tom Pinnavaia.

2nd place, 10 under: Team of Gary Lockwood, Suzanne Santoro, and Sean Sexton.

3rd place, 10 under: Team of Joanne Dawley, Larry Crawford, John Breza, and Robert Anthony.

For the teams that tied, their score on the highest handicapped holes were compared. The three toughest holes (highest handicapped) determined second and third place winners.

Jerry Mastey

2004 Golf Outing – Thursday, September 23, 2004

Team Winners

Among those giving Cal Waisanen (front, center) high-fives for his hole-in-one were teammates Terry Timm (left), Michael Dibble (center), and Gerald Eisenmann (right).

Dean Peter Polverini greeted golfers as they arrived at the 10th hole.

Jerry Mastey



West Preclinic Renovations Proceeding

West preclinic renovations…and those that will begin next April in the east preclinic… are entirely funded by gifts from alumni of the U-M School of Dentistry.

You can help ensure the education of dental students now and in the future. To learn more, contact:

• Diana Neering, director of development: at (734) 647-4394 or by e-mail: [email protected].

• Martin Bailey, assistant major gifts officer: (734) 615-2870 or by e-mail: [email protected].

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Before renovations to the west preclinic began this spring, second-year dental students paused for this picture for posterity.

Funded by AlumniDuring homecoming, School of Dentistry graduates,

members of their family, and others had an opportunity to take a peek at renovations to the west preclinic.

Renovations began just days after the academic year ended in late April. However, before that work began, last year’s first-year dental class paused for a farewell picture.

As detailed in the Spring & Summer issue of DentalUM (p. 45), the renovations to the facility are the first in more than 30 years. When work is completed next June, 110 new high-tech simulation units will replace the tables and countertops that were the mainstay of preclinical education.

A generous gift of $1 million from Dr. Roy Roberts and his wife, Natalie, and a $1 million allocation from a previous gift from the Roberts, helped launch the renovations. But help from more School of Dentistry alumni is needed.

Similar work will take place in the east preclinic beginning in April 2004.

Current facilities will be removed and 110 new high-tech simulation units will also be installed in that clinic.

Renovations to both west and east preclinics will cost about $7 million. Funds for the renovations are being raised with the help of alumni and friends of the School of Dentistry.


t the School of Dentistry we are sincerely grateful for the numerous programs that are made possible through the generosity of many benefactors. Student

scholarship support, faculty support, research funding, and updated equipment and facilities are among the many needs that are enhanced by gift income.

Today, perhaps even more than ever, private gift support is essential to the vitality of the School. If we relied solely on government support and tuition, we would not be the world-class dental school we are today. Our benefactors help make that possible and ensure the excellence that is expected at Michigan.

Maximizing BenefitsWhen you make a gift to the School

of Dentistry, it is in many ways similar to investing your financial resources. Rightly so, you expect a return on that investment.

Like any investment, the key to making the most of your charitable dollars is to carefully consider what you want to accomplish, which need at the School most resonates with you, and then plan your gift-giving strategy.

Before deciding how much to give, you need to seriously consider what to give, when to give, and how to give. It’s possible you can (or could) increase your charitable gift by taking advantage of various tax incentives.

Outright Gifts of Cash, Securities, PropertyWhile you may first think of giving cash (usually in the

form of a check), charitable gifts may be made using other types of assets.

Cash gifts allow you to eliminate tax on up to 50% of your adjusted gross income each year. Amounts not deducted the year your gift is made may be carried over for up to five years.

If you have recently sold securities or other investments, you may want to consider using a portion of the cash proceeds to make your gift to help reduce the capital gains taxes you might pay as a result of selling those assets.

If you are at an age when you are required to withdraw funds from qualified retirement accounts, you may find that withdrawing certain amounts to make charitable gifts can be an excellent way to minimize, or possibly eliminate, taxes on those withdrawals.

If you have securities or property that you have owned for at least a year that are not part of a retirement account and have appreciated, gifting them entitles you to an income tax deduction for the full value of the asset, not just the amount you paid for it. Consequently, you benefit from the exemption from tax on the gain. You may deduct gifts of appreciated assets each year in amounts totaling up to 30% of your adjusted gross income and you can use any excess deduction for up to five years in the future.

If the current value of your securities or other property is less than the original cost, it is usually best to sell the property and donate the cash proceeds. You may then be able to claim tax benefits for both the capital loss and the charitable gift, effectively deducting more than the current value of the asset.

Also consider a gift-in-kind (i.e. works of art, antiques, dental equipment, etc.). Special rules apply to the tax benefits for such gifts. In addition, they must be approved for acceptance by the School before gifting.

Wills, Retirement Plans, or TrustsAs part of your long-range financial planning, you may

want to consider a gift that will be received only after you and your loved ones no longer need the assets used to fund the gifts.

Giving through your will may be a convenient way to leave a lasting legacy at the School of Dentistry after providing for your loved ones. You may decide to leave a specific amount, a percentage of your estate, or all or part of what remains after family and friends have been considered. A bequest can often be arranged with a simple addition (codicil or amendment) to your existing will.

The Fundamentals ofEffective Gift Planning


Similarly, if you have created a living trust to provide for the management and eventual distribution of your assets while reducing the cost of probate and other estate settlement expenses, a simple amendment is all that’s needed to add a gift provision.

Using retirement plans to make gifts is gaining in popularity.

IRAs, pension and profit-sharing plans, and similar retirement plans may be sources of charitable gifts. If you have one or more retirement plans and discover that you have more than adequate resources for retirement, it may be wise to periodically use a portion of those funds to make your charitable gift to the School.

Amounts remaining in qualified retirement plans at death may be subject to both income and estate taxes when received by your heirs. For this reason, charitable gifts of retirement plan balances may well be your gift of choice from an income and estate tax planning perspective.

Use of a charitable remainder trust (CRT) or similar gift option makes it possible for you to make your gift now and retain income for your life or a period of time you choose. You can make a significant gift while providing for retirement, caring for older loved ones, or arranging for funds to meet educational expenses.

A CRT typically features income tax benefits in the year of the gift and can also offer a way for you to convert low-yielding assets to a source of additional income without incurring capital gains tax at the time of the gift.

Because the assets used to fund these types of gifts will ultimately be used for charitable purposes, they are generally not subject to gift and estate taxes. Your assets can be put to work earning income while you enjoy the satisfaction of knowing you are making a meaningful gift to the program or project you’ve chosen to fund at the School of Dentistry.

It is also possible for you to set aside assets in a charitable lead trust (CLT). Distributions from a CLT are designated for charitable purposes for the period of time you choose. Assets are then returned to you or others you designate.

A CLT can be used to fund your gift over a period of time while reducing or eliminating gift and estate taxes that might otherwise be due on assets given to loved ones at the end of

the trust term.If you wish to delay an inheritance while funding a

meaningful gift to the School, the CLT may be a good option to consider. It is especially attractive in times of lower interest rates.

Advice and CounselDo seek financial and/or legal counseling as you consider

gift options.The School’s development officers would be pleased to

discuss the many giving opportunities that are available at the School of Dentistry. For more information please contact:

Diana Neering Marty BaileyDirector of Development or Assistant Director (734) 647-4394 of Major [email protected] (734) 615-2870 [email protected]

Clayton ScholarshipAwarded

The graduate prostho-d o n t i c s p ro gr a m o f t h e Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences awarded the Joseph A. Clayton Scholar-ship Fund for the 2002-2003 academic year to Dr. Rob Schumacher. The $5,000 award was presented earlier to Schumacher, a second-year graduate prosthodontics student. The award is made possible from an endowment initiated by Dr. Joseph A. Clayton who, for 25 years, until his retirement in 1996, developed, directed, and taught in the graduate program in restorative dentistry. Schumacher, raised in White Pigeon, Michigan, graduated from the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry two years ago. After completing the prosthodontics program, he plans to earn his National Board Certification in Prosthodontics and become a missionary.

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Major Renovations

UNDERWAY

Turner is in charge of a staff of about 110 people with multiple responsibilities, including the smooth operation of all clinical facilities. They’re also responsible for ensuring that clinical faculty and students have the equipment they need in clinics to treat patients, and that patient records are secured yet available. [DentalUM, Fall 2001, pages 46-53.]

“The staff has adapted very well to an environment where, for the past year, things seem to have changed almost daily,” he said. “I can’t praise them enough for what they’ve done to make sure everything runs as smoothly as it has so that faculty, students, and patients are not affected.”

This May, one project ended when renovations to dispensing and sterilizing areas concluded a year after they began.

However, four other projects continue. They are:• Renovations to facilities between the Blue Clinic and the Green Clinic on

the second floor. • Renovations to facilities between the Blue Clinic and the Green Clinic on the third floor. • Relocation of Central Records. • Renovations to the west preclinic. These improvements, among the first comprehensive renovations at the School in three decades, follow a report presented in early 2002 from Rothman and Partners of Boston that outlined “a comprehensive vision” of facility improvements the School needed to make. [DentalUM, Fall 2002, page 20.] The projects proceeded based on revenues received and anticipated.

One Project Ends, Four Continue

A lot of work is going on at the School of Dentistry these days. No, not dental work, although a lot of that is also going on. The work is construction work.

“We’ve never had as many different venues being renovated at one time as we do now,” said Dr. Dennis Turner, assistant dean for patient services, as he talked about the various projects.


For the first time since the current School of Dentistry building opened more than 30 years ago, dispensing and sterilization facilities on the second and third floors have a new look.

Old equipment has been removed, state-of-the-art equipment has been installed, and facilities have been totally redesigned for ease of use and greater efficiency.

“We wanted to create a more ergonomically efficient workplace so we can better serve our customers, the students,” said Gary Sweier during a tour of the refurbished facilities. “Because those working here have been using these facilities and the equipment day-in and day-out for years and are familiar with their operations, they had a tremendous amount of input into the layout and design of everything here.”

Work on the project began in April 2002 and was completed in May 2003. “It’s a tribute to everyone that during this entire time we maintained all of our services flawlessly,” Turner said.

Lines Move QuickerThe biggest difference in the

dispensing facilities is that the unit is now self-contained. Previously, students lined up at one end of a desk and moved down to the other end until they had received all the equipment they needed for their clinical work.

That’s all changed. New dispensing facilities on both

the second and third floors contain three bays. Each is identical. Students can go to one of the three bays to pick up the equipment and supplies they need for their clinic work.

“This has cut their waiting time by about 10 minutes,” Sweier said. “Since the lines move quicker, the students are able to provide more efficient care.”

He attributed that success to Jane McDougall, supervisor of dental dispensing.

“She designed the bays with efficiency in mind,” Sweier said. “All the equipment is now within arm’s reach of the person dispensing it.” Beneath the countertop of each bay are 42 drawers – seven columns and six rows. Above the countertop, and slightly behind the person dispensing the equipment, are eight elevated bays for additional storage. Other equipment is available at an automated vertical file storage system a few feet away.

New Atmospheres, More Storage

Another major improvement is that a wall has been installed between the areas where clean instruments are dispensed and used instruments are returned.

“It’s not just a physical difference, it’s an atmospheric difference too,” Turner said. “On the clean side where instruments are dispensed, there’s positive atmospheric pressure where clean air moves out but dirty doesn’t come in. On the side, where used instruments are returned, negative a tmospher ic pressure prevents contaminated air from leaving.”

Storage capacity has also increased.New shelves on walls allow more

equipment to be stored and easily retrieved. “Basically, everything’s in one place,” Sweier said. “If something’s not easily accessible, a person walks only a few steps to retrieve it.”

Dispensing and Sterilization


New Autoclaves and Tunnel Washers

Each day, central sterilization receives and processes about 1,200 packages of instruments from 14 clinical departments within the School, including predoctoral and dental hygiene programs. The processing takes place between 7:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Although new technology is being used, the process of steam sterilizing hasn’t changed much during the past 50 years.

Three new 48-inch autoclaves and one new 16-inch autoclave sterilize instruments at temperatures up to 270 degrees Fahrenheit.

Two new fully automated tunnel washers pre-wash contaminated instruments at 180 degrees. Then the clean instruments are submerged in an ultrasonic bath to remove any remaining debris.

From there, the instruments are rinsed in hot water and a thin, anticorrosive material is applied before being sent to a tank to dry at 240 degrees for three minutes.

A conveyor belt then sends the instruments to a bagging station where they are packaged and placed onto carriages which are then loaded into the autoclaves for sterilization. “Workers don’t have to bend and lift instruments like they did before,” Sweier said.

No Equipment on Patient Elevators

No longer are the patient elevators used to transport clean and dirty instruments between the second and third floors.

Renovations also included installing a new dumbwaiter between the second and third floors. Contaminated and clean instruments are now delivered in a sealed “mini-elevator” between the two floors.

Jane McDougall is pictured in front of one of the dispensing bays she designed. Relying on her 30 years of experience, she designed the units so dental students could get their equipment and supplies much quicker. “Their wait times have declined by eight to twelve minutes, depending on the time of year,” she said. Supplies given to the dental students are within arm’s reach of each dispenser. At each bay, beneath the countertop, are 42 drawers – seven columns and six rows – for storage. Above the countertop, and slightly behind and above each dispenser, are eight elevated bays for additional storage. Four of those elevated bays are visible in this picture.

Instruments about to be sterilized are rolled on a cart by Tom Davis into a 48-inch autoclave.

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell


Better, more efficient use of existing space is also driving the renovations that have been underway since early May between clinics on the second and third floors.

The two clinics on the second floor and the two clinics on the third floor are not being reconstructed. What is affected is a total of nearly 2,700 square feet of space on both floors between the Blue Clinic and the Green Clinic.

“Once this work ends, there will be a noticeable difference in how clinical faculty, students, patients, and our patient care coordinators interact,” said Georgia Kasko, manager of clinical support services who’s coordinating the renovations.

When work is completed in January 2004, both second and third floors will have:

• New equipment including x-ray machines, chairs, and completely renovated laboratories providing support of daily patient care activity.

• A new consulting room, with up to eight chairs, for patients, faculty instructors, students, and patient care coordinators.

• A new scheduling room where students can privately converse with patients on a tele phone in one of four cubicles.Each cubicle will have a comput

er monitor so den tal records can be re

trieved electronically and students can schedule their patients directly in the system.

• New mini-lockers for mail and equipment storage.

Patient Care Coordinators will especially notice the changes.

As in termediar ies between patients and dental students, the four coordinators ensure that patients receive the care they need…and that students obtain the support they need to help the patients get that care.

Now located in cramped quarters on the first floor, two patient care coordinators will move to the second floor and the two others will move to the third floor once the renovations are finished.

In their new locations, patient care coordinators will be just a few steps away from patients or dental students needing help.

“This geographical closeness of the patient care coordinators to those with whom they’re interacting with will enable them to more quickly address any concerns or issues than they were able to before,” Kasko said. “So they’ll be in an even better position to serve patients and students.”

If there’s a need for one or more parties to discuss something in private, Kasko added, they’ll be able to do that too, which is something that was difficult, at best, to do previously.

A Message for the Future

You’ve got to hand it to Gary Sweier. He’s thinking

about the future.

Shortly after new autoclaves and ultrasonic

tunnel washers were moved onto the second floor

of the School of Dentistry building last November

[DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2003, page 46], he

created something for posterity – a time capsule.

The time capsule wasn’t big – an air-tight

plastic container about six inches long.

Inside the plastic tube was a sheet of paper that

contained information about the project, including

when construction began and ended, as well as the

date Sweier created the time capsule, November 22,

2002.

Also on the sheet of paper were the names of 33

people who played a role in seeing the project come

to fruition – Dean William Kotowicz; Dr. Dennis Turner,

assistant dean for patient services; Dorothy Smith-Fesl,

facilities manager; and others, including architects

and contractors.

Before the blocks of concrete were sealed, Sweier

said he put the time capsule into the west interior

corridor wall of the central sterilization unit on the

second floor.

At the bottom of the paper, Sweier wrote:

“Whoever finds this time capsule please take a

moment to see if any of the individuals involved

in this project are still around. My guess is if this

wall is being torn down, a major renovation of the

building is taking place or the building is being

torn down.”

Sweier said he wasn’t sure where he would be

in 30 or 40 years, so he couldn’t leave his forwarding

address.

2nd and 3rd Floors

Keary Campbell

Gary Sweier left a message for the future behind this wall on the second floor.


Debbie Lentz, central records supervisor, and George Vamvoudakis, night shift team leader, are seen with some of nearly 70,000 patient records. Between 600 to 800 patient records are retrieved each afternoon and evening to prepare for clinical activities the next day at the School of Dentistry.

Central Records

It was supposed to be a temporary facility.

In 1990, the School centralized all its patient records. “We were eager to provide both security and availability long before HIPAA and privacy rules came along a decade later,” Turner said.

More than a dozen years, the “temporary” faci l i ty wasn’t so temporary and storage space for records was at a premium.

“We’re stuffed to the gills,” said Debbie Lentz, central records supervisor.

Until this September, more than 70,000 patient dental records were stored in cramped facilities on the first floor.

In April, renovations began on nearly 1,700 square feet of space in the basement. When finished in late September, there will be ample room for records and staff.

It can’t happen quickly enough.“Space is so tight right now that

when someone tries to get from one

spot to another to retrieve a record, they have to do what I call ‘the records room watusi’,” Lentz said with a laugh.

Secure and Available RecordsIn addition, students or faculty who

pick up records now do so at one small door. The new facility will have a much larger area that will enable two people to dispense records. That, in turn, will reduce the time students or faculty wait at the window.

The new facilities will be both secure and will also offer quick access to dental records.

Lentz said it’s common for her staff to retrieve between 600 to 800 patient records each afternoon and evening to prepare for the next day’s clinical activities. “That number doesn’t even include patients who come in at the last minute as walk-ins to the Patient Admitting and Emergency Services Clinic,” she said.

Central Records, however, is not just involved with storing data.

“We’re more than a records room,” Lentz said. “We’re involved

with a lot of information verification and compliance, especially with the new HIPAA guidelines on patient privacy. We have to make sure all the information in every one of our patient files is both accurate and current.”

The length of time a patient’s file remains on “active” status depends on several factors, primarily when they were last treated.

If a patient is not treated for three years, his or her file is removed and

stored at an off-site location. However, if a patient keeps returning for oral health care at the School of Dentistry, his or her records remain in the active files for years , o r in some cases , decades. If a patient is over 21 years of age and has no t been treated for

10 years, then the record is shredded.With the relocation of Central

Records, paper records will continue to be maintained for most patients. However, more records will be maintained electronically in the future.

West Preclinic Almost as soon as the previous

academic year ended in late April, work began in the west preclinic.

More information about this work is on page 29, in the Development section, of this issue of DentalUM.

Per Kjeldsen


Faculty Profile

Dr. Jaques NörSuccessful researcher, clinician, teacher, and mentor

An old tool…and new ones. Dr. Jacques Nör holds forceps his grandfather used as a dentist in Brazil in the 1920s. By comparison, in the background is a relatively new tool that he uses extensively in his work as dentist/scientist – a computer monitor. On the monitor are electronic images of human blood vessels engineered in mice. “I think my grandfather would be amazed to see the new tools we’re using today, but at the same time, he would be sad to know the instrument he used as a dentist is still widely used now,” Nör said.

Per Kjeldsen

Family and dentistry are close to Dr. Jacques Nör’s heart. As he talked about growing up in Brazil, coming to the U.S., and his career and experiences at the U-M School of Dentistry, the 39-year-old associate professor opened one of his desk drawers and pulled out a nearly century-old pair of forceps his grandfather used when he was a dentist. “I never met him because he died long before I was born,” Nör said. “But looking back, I think that he, along with my parents and a cousin, all had a strong influence on me which ultimately led to my decision to become a dentist.”


Born in Porto Alegre, a city of about 3 million located approximately 500 miles south of São Paulo, Nör said his achievements would not have occurred without a strong foundation of core values and ethics his parents instilled.

“They, an older brother, and an older sister gave me much more than they themselves ever had or that I could ever give back to them,” he said. “My parents emphasized the basic principles of life – honesty, hard work, and not hurting anyone. They also worked hard to make sure we all received a good education.”

Nör’s parents received an elementary school education. His father, who celebrated his 90th birthday in July, was a sexton at a church in Porto Alegre. His mother was a housewife.

When his father retired after working 37 years at the same church, the family moved to Taquara, a town of about 50,000 located about 50 miles northwest of Porto Alegre.

At the time, Jacques was only 12. However, less than a decade later he would return to Taquara and open a dental clinic in that community.

From Chemistry to DentistryAs he discussed the Brazilian education system, Nör

said that unlike the U.S., after graduating from high school a Brazilian student could enter a professional school without going to college.

In 1981, Nör was admitted to the chemistry program at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre. While taking a physics course and another in organic chemistry, “I quickly realized that was not what I wanted to do with my life.”

Instead, his career path received a boost from a cousin who was also his roommate, Duarte Matzenbacker, who asked Nör to help him in his clinic. “I really enjoyed myself and thought maybe this was the path for me.”

The following year, 1982, Nör took another exam and was admitted to the dental program.

“The feelings in dentistry were totally opposite of what I experienced in chemistry,” he said. “I found myself at home.”

In addition to his studies, Nör spent his Saturdays and vacation days helping his cousin in his dental clinic. During

his fourth year of study, he worked Saturdays treating children at a local orphanage.

As he worked toward his dental degree, Nör said he “studied a lot.” He also mentored other students and worked in the school’s emergency clinic. “I was now doing what I liked,” he said. “I think my experiences in chemistry made me appreciate my good fortune even more.”

But Nör could also unwind when he had to.He played for a soccer team and was also musically

inclined. “I played guitar, wrote melodies for lyrics, and was a vocalist for a band that recorded a few songs, appeared on TV a few times, and played at festivals in southern Brazil,” he said. The year 1985 was an auspicious one.

Honor Seven Years Delayed Not only did Nör open his first practice in Taquara that year, he also recorded an achievement he wouldn’t learn about for another seven years. “Opening a practice in Brazil is different than it is here,” he said. “In Brazil, you don’t walk

into an existing practice to work with someone else. Instead, you do it on your own.”

During his first few months as a solo practitioner in 1986, Nör said his first patients were entirely members of his family. A niece, Mirian Sipert, was his dental assistant. The office had just enough room for a desk and a couple of chairs.

Although business was slow initially, word of his expertise spread. “By 1988, I was booked solid for two months in advance. I worked Monday through Friday from eight in the morning until seven at night and Saturday mornings,” he said.

Following an internship, Nör received a certificate in pediatric dentistry from the Brazilian Federal University in 1990.

He also took a closer look at his future.“I knew if I wanted to continue advancing as a dentist

that I would have to do it in the United States,” he said. While interviewing for the master’s program in pediatric dentistry at four dental schools across the U.S., including Michigan, Nör learned something that surprised him.


Seven years after earning his dental degree, he learned that he graduated with the highest grade point average among the 80 dental students who were in his class in Brazil. “I thought I did well, but I didn’t think I was at the top of my class,” he said.

A “Life-Changing” Decision“I gladly accepted the offer Dr. Paul Loos sent me to

study pediatric dentistry here at Michigan,” Nör said. “That decision to come to the U.S. to further my

career here at Michigan was a life-changing one for me,” he continued. “Although I enjoyed clinical dentistry enormously, I discovered there was another part of dentistry, research, that could help me with my clinic work.”

However, before he left Brazil in 1992 to come to Michigan, Nör’s mother gave him something – the forceps his grandfather used when he was a dentist in the 1920s.

In addition to discovering another aspect of the profession and adjusting to academic and cultural differences, Nör faced another challenge – becoming more proficient in English. Although he had taken several English courses in Brazil, he discovered it wasn’t enough.

“Improving my English and trying to grasp the content of some courses was difficult at times,” Nör said, “especially Dr. Lysle Johnston’s cephalometrics course. It was more of a challenge than usual because I also had to learn the meaning behind some of the subtleties of his humor.”

Although many helped him adapt to his new academic, professional, and cultural environment, Nör paid tribute to several.

“Dr. Robert Feigal, who was my mentor for my master’s thesis, had a significant impact helping me make the transition from clinician to researcher. Dr. Johnston gave me the academic background and the support that I needed to get into the doctoral program. Drs. Charlotte Mistretta, Brian Clarkson, and Peter Polverini all played major roles in the doctoral program that enabled me to succeed.”

Gravitating to ResearchNör also said he owned a debt of gratitude to Dr. James

McNamara.“When I was in his orthodontics techniques course, he

told me to look into the Oral Health Sciences program that was about to begin. He thought I would benefit. And he was right.” [See sidebar on Oral Health Sciences, page 41.]

As he worked for his PhD in Dr. Peter Polverini’s laboratory, Nör’s research focused on angiogenesis,

Blood Vessels andTumor Growth –

Angiogenesis Research

Dr. Jacques Nör is extensively involved in a new and increasingly important area of research that focuses on the formation and growth of new blood vessels (angiogenesis). His interest in this area of research began as he worked for his doctoral degree and hascontinued since. In 1998, Nör received the School of Dentistry’s Dziewiatkowski Memorial Award for his researchthat attempts to understand why diseases, such as oral cancer, need new blood vessels to develop and survive. The following year, Nör won both the prestigious Edward H. Hatton Award from the American Association for Dental Research and the International Association for Dental Research for his research on how blood vessel survival affects the growth of oral tumors. His research was mentored by Dr. Peter Polverini who, at the time, chaired the Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology. Nör conducted further angiogenesis research in the lab of Dr. Gabriel Nuñez, a professor of pathology at the U-M Medical School and a leading researcher in the field of cell death and inflammation. Currently, Nör is the principal investigator of a $1.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health that is seeking to understand how blood vessels grow, how they contribute to the growth of cancer, and what might be done to arrest their development.


Dr. Jacques Nör rented two rooms in this house in Taquara, Brazil and practiced dentistry here for eight years before coming to the University of Michigan.

Photo courtesy of Dr. Jacques Nör

the formation and growth of new blood vessels that is fundamental to physiological and pathological processes.

When asked why he chose this area, Nör said he wanted to learn about “a basic biological phenomenon that affects many aspects of oral health.” [See sidebar on angiogenesis research, page 39.]

Although he teaches first-year dental students in a preclinic and dentists in the School’s Advanced Education in General Dentistry clinic, Nör doesn’t treat as many patients as he used to when he first entered the profession.

“I love working in a clinic, but because of my research, I’m not as extensively involved with it as I was earlier in my career,” he said. “I have found that clinic work and research do, in fact, complement one another. It’s not a matter of either/or.”

When asked how he finds time to teach, be involved in six research projects, write about his research, mentor nearly a dozen students, serve as a thesis committee member for four others, and serve on the editorial board of three professional publications, Nör said it’s a matter of organizing and time management.

“I do spend many hours here, so when I go home, the time I spend with my wife is even more meaningful,” he said.

Two Coincidences, Five Wedding CeremoniesNör met his wife, Silvia, at a 1996 lecture in Lima, Peru.

She was studying in Connecticut at the time and returned to Peru to meet her father, Ramon Castillo. At the time, he was president of the Latin American Meeting of Pediatric Dentistry where Nör spoke.

“Silvia and I had a chance to talk at the opening ceremony and we immediately clicked,” he said. “It wasn’t until later that I realized who her father was.”

But there was an even more interesting coincidence Nör learned about when he returned to Ann Arbor.

“When I mentioned Silvia’s name to my academic advisor, Dr. Brian Clarkson, he smiled and said he and her father were roommates during the 1960s when they were students at the University of Rochester in New York,” Nör said.

In November 1997, Dr. Jacques Nör and Silvia were married in a civil ceremony in Ann Arbor. But they had to repeat the ceremony four more times.

The first time was a church wedding in the hometown of her parents in Lima, Peru. The second time was at another church wedding in the hometown of Nör’s parents in Brazil. The third and fourth times, about a year later, were at the Brazilian and Peruvian consulates in Chicago.

“Now tell me,” Nör said with a grin, “how many men can say they married the same woman five times?”

Silvia is a dentist who decided to start a second career about six years ago. After earning dual degrees (a bachelor’s and master’s) at Eastern Michigan University, she is an interior designer for a firm that specializes in health care and corporate design. “Her experiences in her first career have helped her to succeed in her second,” Nör said.

When he was in Brazil last Christmas, Nör visited his parents and returned to the small office where he had his first job as a private practitioner. As he passed the clinic, he couldn’t help but ponder what he has achieved.

“I thought if I didn’t make it here, my ‘Plan B’ would be to return to Brazil. Since my career is progressing, our decision is to remain here,” he said.

To reinforce that conviction in his own mind, Nör recently sold his two most prized Brazilian possessions – his former office and his automobile, a 1990 Chevy Monza.

A Desire to Make a Difference“It’s been an amazing journey that began with my parents

who taught me the basic principles of life, as well as being lucky to find the right people here at Michigan, that helped me to achieve all this good fortune,” Nör said. “To be here, in this environment, where so many people are not just good, but outstanding at what they do, is truly an inspiration.”

As for what he would ultimately like to achieve, Nör put it this way: “Because of my education and what I’ve learned here, I feel I’m doing cutting edge research that has the potential to have an impact on human beings suffering from oral cancer. If I can contribute even one small building block that improves the quality of life for patients suffering from oral cancer, I will have accomplished something.”


OHSOral Health Sciences PhD “changed my life”

Per Kjeldsen

“I feel very fortunate to work with such a talented group of people,” said Dr. Jacques Nör (center) about the people who work with him in his lab. Pictured with him are (left to right):

• Tatiana Botero, a faculty member in theendodontics program conducting laboratory research.

• Kathleen Neiva, a junior faculty membernow in the Oral Health Sciences doctoral program.

• Ryan Soden, a master’s student in theendodontics program.

• Matthew Pinsky a third-year dentalstudent who won the Grand Prize in Basic Science at this year’s Research Table Clinic Day program for his work on angiogenesis in oral cancers.

• Gabriela Mantellini, a faculty member inoperative dentistry conducting laboratory research.

• Wendy Song, a physician, PhD, andresearch associate who has been with the lab that was created almost three years ago.

• AureliaVanderburg, a second-year dentalstudent who was in a summer research program when this picture was taken.

• Elisabeta Karl, a candidate in the OralHealth Sciences doctoral program.

“Without them,” Nör said, “I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m now doing.”

Dr. Jacques Nör was the first person to defend his doctoral thesis and one of two individuals who received a doctoral degree in Oral Health Sciences from the U-M School of Dentistry during graduation ceremonies in May 1999. [DentalUM, Fall 1999, page 16.] “Receiving that degree changed my life,” Nör said. “It helped me realize the impact research can have on people’s lives, especially those who have oral cancer.” Noting that the life expectancy for patients with oral cancer hasn’t changed much in 30 years, Nör said the Oral Health Sciences PhD program “gave me the tools I need and now use in my work. I want to make a contribution, no matter how small it might be, to changing that record and making a difference in the lives of people suffering from this disease.” He praised both Drs. Charlotte Mistretta and Peter Polverini for their efforts. “As director of the doctoral program, Charlotte deserves so much credit for all her leadership that made the program possible,” Nör said. “And Peter Polverini was an excellent mentor who has always been there for me throughout my academic career at Michigan.” “The Oral Health Sciences program is another example of how lucky I’ve been since coming here to Michigan,” Nör said.

Valued Colleagues

Oral Health Sciences PhD “changed my life”


Education

• DoctorofPhilosophy,OralHealthSciences,UniversityofMichigan

School of Dentistry (1999)

• MasterofScience,pediatricdentistry,UniversityofMichigan

School of Dentistry (1994)

• Certificateinpediatricdentistry,FederalUniversityofRioGrande

do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil (1990)

• Internshipinpediatricdentistry,FederalUniversityofRioGrande

do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil (1986)

• DoctorofDentalScience,FederalUniversityofRioGrandedoSul,

Porto Alegre, Brazil (1985)

Academic Appointments and Professional

Experience

• Associateprofessorofdentistry,U-MSchoolofDentistry

(effective September 1)

• Assistantprofessorofdentistry(1999-2003)

• Adjunctlecturer(1995-1999)

• Clinicalinstructor(1994-1995)

Honors & Awards

• Dean’s Research Award, U-M School of Dentistry (2002)

• New Dentist Scientist Award, American Dental Association Health

Foundation (2001)

• Edward Hatton Award, International Association for Dental

Research (1999)

• Edward Hatton Award, American Association for Dental Research

(1999)

• Dziewiatkowski Memorial Award for excellence in student

research, U-M School of Dentistry, Department of Biologic and

Materials Sciences (1998)

• Pediatric Dentistry Alumni Memorial Award, Kenneth Easlick

Society, U-M School of Dentistry (1995)

• Graduate Student Research Award, American Academy of

Pediatric Dentistry (1995)

• Award of Recognition, highest grade point average among 80

dental students, School of Dentistry, Federal University of Rio

Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil (1985)

Memberships in Professional and Research

Societies

• AmericanAssociationfortheAdvancementofScience

(2002 to present)

• AmericanAssociationforCancerResearch(2000topresent)

• InternationalandAmericanAssociationforDentalResearch

(1992 to present); Member, AADR Fellowships Committee

(2001-2004)

• AmericanAcademyofPediatricDentistry(1992topresent)

Service

• Member,OralHealthSciencesPhDprogramcommittee,

U-M School of Dentistry (2003-present)

• Faculty,OralHealthSciencesPhDprogram(2000topresent)

• Member,FellowshipsCommittee,AmericanAssociationfor

Dental Research (2001-2004)

• Member,editorialboard,Pediatric Dentistry, the Journal of the

American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (2001-2005)

• Member,editorialboard,Operative Dentistry, the Journal of the

American Academy of Operative Dentistry (2001 to present)

• Adhocreviewer,American Journal of Pathology (2001 to present)

• Adhocreviewer,Journal of Dentistry for Children

(2003 to present)

• Adhocreviewer,Angiogenesis (2001 to present)

• Adhocreviewer,Journal of Dental Research (2001 to present)

• Member,editorialboard,Brazilian Journal of Pediatric Dentistry

(2002 to present)

• Member,ExperimentalTherapeuticsandCancerBiology

programs, U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center (2001 to present)

• Member,ResearchCommittee,U-MSchoolofDentistry

(2002 to present)

• Member,StudentResearchProgramCommittee,U-MSchoolof

Dentistry (2002 to present)

• Coordinator,ResearchSeminarSeries,U-MSchoolofDentistry,

Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics

(2002 to present)

Dr. Jacques NörProfessional Achievements

Selected Highlights


Faculty NEWS

This year is turning out to be a banner year for Dr. William Giannobile.

This summer, he was named to the new position of director of clinical research.

In July, he received a prestigious award for his work...just weeks after receiving another major award.

Director of Clinical Research“Will’s appointment to the

new position of director of clinical research reflects his stellar reputation as a scientist and educator,” said Dr. Peter Polverini, dean of the School of Dentistry. “During his career, he has established solid professional and personal bonds with scientists and academicians throughout the clinical research community that will enable our School to establish and sustain a broad-based, competitive clinical research program.”

Giannobile, an associate professor of dentistry in the Department of Per iodont ics , P reven t ion , and Geriatrics, will work with a clinical research center steering committee to define the center’s current and future programs. Polverini said he envisions the center serving as “a new opportunity to provide patient care, capitalizing on our existing strengths in basic and translational research and applying them in a patient centered environment.”

Earlier this year, Giannobile became the first School of Dentistry faculty member to receive U-M’s prestigious Henry Russel Award for his outstanding record of teaching and research. [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2003, page 70.] Last year he

received the A n t h o n y R i z z o Periodontal R e s e a r c h Award. This year, he also received, for t he s econd t i m e i n a s many years, the R. Earl R o b i n s o n Award.

In addi-t ion to h i s teaching and research responsibilities, Giannobile belongs to numerous professional and research societies, serves on the executive council of the Midwest Society of Periodontology, is an associate editor of the Journal of Periodontology, has served on numerous School committees, and has been an advisor to dental and graduate students.

Wins Major Award…for Second Time

For the second consecutive year, Giannobile won the R. Earl Robinson Award. Established to encourage research in periodontal regeneration, the award is presented to the author(s) of a peer-reviewed published paper that contributes the most to the knowledge of periodontal regeneration in a given calendar year.

He won for his paper published in the February 2003 issue of the Journal of Periodontology. The award was presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Periodontology

in San Francisco in September.Other contributors include: R.

Bruce Rutherford, former professor, Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, now chief scientific officer with a dental company in Seattle; Orasa Anusaksathien, PPG lecturer; Sarah Webb, research associate, PPG; and Qiming Jin, research associate, PPG.

Giannobile also won a clinical research award from Quintessence Publishing Company for publishing a scientific manuscript that has direct clinical relevance and application in periodontics.

In his article that appeared in the June 2002 issue of the International Journal of Periodontics and Restorative Dentistry, Giannobile, in collaboration with researchers at the Forsyth Institute and the Harvard School of Dental Medicine in Boston, reported on the significance of reservoirs of oral microorganisms that can be eradicated by surgical therapy to improve patient health.

Giannobile New Clinical Research Director


Faculty NEWS

A diagnostic kit being developed by an associate professor of dentistry may not only determine if a patient has periodontal disease. It may also serve as a “front line” test oral health care professionals might be able to use to determine if a patient has also been exposed to biological warfare agents.

With a $4.2 million grant from the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research, Dr. William Giannobile is developing the kit that would analyze small volumes of saliva to look for pathogens that cause periodontal disease and biological toxins.

By the end of next year, Giannobile hopes to begin using the diagnostic kit to test a small number of patients in School of Dentistry clinics. The following year, larger-scale clinical trials, perhaps involving more than 100 patients, could begin.

The device would simultaneously measure the presence of bacterial byproducts, immune response mediators, and bone breakdown products.

Sandia National Laboratories, which has major research and development responsibilities in national security, energy, and environmental technologies, is also working with Giannobile to develop the diagnostic test, dubbed “the microchem lab.”

Because other pathogens have features similar to those responsible for periodontal disease, Giannobile said the test could also determine if a patient has major systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis.

Collaborating with him are Dr. Charles Hasselbrink and Dr. Mark Burns, both with the U-M School of Chemical Engineering, and Drs. Dennis Lopatin and Charlie Shelburne with the U-M School of Dentistry.

Looking for Periodontal Disease...and Biotoxins

Another test Dr. William Giannobile i s d e ve l o p i n g m a y b e c l o s e t o commercialization. For the past two years he and a team of researchers have been developing a test that, in 15 minutes or less, would allow dentists to test patients in their office for active periodontal disease and peri-implant disease. [DentalUM, Fall 2001, page 73.] During a six-month study in 2000 of more than 70 patients with advanced periodontal disease, Giannobile and a team of researchers discovered that a molecule known as ICTP is released into a patient’s bloodstream as bone dissolves. The molecule is present in patients with active periodontal disease and those with osteoporosis and bone cancer. “We hope to give dentists a non-invasive tool that they can use in their office to determine if a patient has periodontal disease,” Giannobile said. “Much like a rapid-pregnancy test that a woman can use to determine if she is or is not pregnant, this tool would look for certain chemical markers to quickly verify the presence of periodontal or peri-implant disease.” Funded with a small business innovation grant from the NIH, the test is being developed with Biomimetic Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a small biotech firm that has licensed Giannobile’s device, and Assay Designs, Inc., an Ann Arbor firm that is working to develop the rapid chairside use of the test.

Rapid Test Moving Closer to Commercialization

44


Bradley Receives Major Award Clewell Earns Major Award from U-M Medical SchoolDr. Robert Bradley, chair of the Department

of Biologic and Materials Sciences, recently received the highest honor bestowed by the Association for Chemoreception Sciences.

The award, the Maxwell M. Mozell Award for Achievement in the Chemical Senses, was presented at the group’s 25th anniversary meeting in April.

Bradley was honored for his 25 years of research contributions that seek to understand how neural connections for taste sensation are formed and how taste neurons in the brain function. Using animal models, Bradley has developed techniques to record taste neurons in a rodent’s brainstem to learn more about how the

brain processes neurotransmissions focusing on taste.Combining pharmacology and neurophysiology, Bradley’s laboratory has

made new discoveries about the nature of the interactions between neurons to form synapses and pathways for taste sensation. His lab has been using infrared videomicroscopy to study special sets of neurons that regulate salivary secretion under stimulus control from the taste system.

Bradley’s work on the taste system highlights the major sensory system of the oral cavity, specifically, the sense of taste which is crucial in directing nutrient intake, rejecting poisons, and providing quality of life pleasures associated with the social- and life-sustaining function of eating.

In addition, Bradley’s laboratory is working to develop a neural implant to make long-term recordings from single sensory fibers that innervate the tongue. The implant consists of a sieve-like array of small holes which are surrounded by electrodes. The electrodes are connected to recording equipment that allow recordings to be made from one sensory fiber to determine how taste buds react to changing conditions in the mouth over an extended period of time.

Dr. George Taylor, an associate professor in the Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, is one of 21 fellows selected for the American Dental Education Association’s Leadership Institute.

The Institute is a year-long program designed to develop the nation’s most promising dental faculty to become future leaders in dental and higher education. During the June-to-June program, fellows pursue a project addressing a key issue

It’s been quite a year for Dr. Donald Clewell , professor in the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences and professor of microbiology and immunology at the Medical School. This summer, Clewell received the Distinguished Faculty Leadership Award in Biomedical Research from the U-M Medical School’s Biomedical Research Council. The award, the highest honor bestowed by the Medical School, recognizes a faculty member in biomedical sciences who makes outstanding contributions in research, teaching, and student mentoring. Last year Clewell became the first faculty member from the School of Dentistry to receive the prestigious Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award from the University of Michigan Horace Rackham School of Graduate Studies. Clewell’s research was featured in the Spring & Summer 2003 issue of DentalUM (pages 79-81).

Taylor and Kotowicz: ADEA Leadership Institute

in dental education. They will also work in groups with others in the program,

including fellows and advisors, who share similar interests and aspirations.

One of three Leadership Institute advisors is former School of Dentistry Dean, Dr. William Kotowicz. He and the other two other dental leaders from across the country will advise Taylor and 20 other members of the Class of 2004.


Per Kjeldsen

Dr. Robert Feigal Returns to Minnesota

Dr. Sharon Brooks has been named editor of Dentomaxillofacial Radiology, the official journal of the International Association of Dentomaxillofacial Radiology. Published six times annually, the journal is the only one dedicated to this major field of interest. At its May meeting, the association agreed to fund an online subscription to the journal for the 66 poorest countries in the world, so that their faculty and researchers could obtain access to the journal.

and Hospital Dentistry, promoted to professor of dentistry, with tenure.

• Dr. Mary Ellen McLean, Depart- ment of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, promoted to clinical associate professor.

• Dr. Michael Ignelzi, Department of Orthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry, promoted to associate professor of dentistry, with tenure.

• Dr. Jacques Nör, Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, promoted to associate professor of dentistry, with tenure.

Dr. David Kohn, associate professor in the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences, was named associate editor for Journal for Dental Research.

Dr. Russell Taichman, associate professor in the Department of Per iodont ics , P reven t ion , and Geriatrics, received the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program’s Recognition Award for Outstanding Research Mentorship. The award recognized his mentoring contributions and developing future researchers and academic leaders.

Dr. Barbara Smith, an assistant professor in the Department of Periodontics, Prevention, and Geriatrics, and director of the School of Dentistry’s geriatric dental programs, was elected secretary of the Geronotology and Geriatrics Education Section during the annual meeting of the American Dental Education Association in San Antonio.

Dr. Bud Straffon talks about Dr. Robert Feigal’s achievements during a farewell party for Feigal (left) prior to his return to Minnesota.

The School of Dentistry recently said farewell to Dr. Robert Feigal. He returned to the University of Minnesota to become chair of the dental school’s Department of Preventive Sciences in mid-June.

Feigal earned degrees in dentistry, pediatric dentistry, and completed his doctoral training at the University of Minnesota in the 1970s.

During his 11 years at Michigan, Feigal was the director of the graduate program in pediatric dentistry and head of the division of pediatric dentistry in the School’s Department of Orthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry. He was also the Samuel D. Harris Professor of Pediatric Dentistry and served as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and Facilities.

Dr. Charlotte Mistretta, professor of dentistry and the director of the School of Dentistry’s Oral Health Sciences PhD program, was recently named the William R. Mann Professor of Dentistry by U-M Regents.

On September 1, the following faculty members were awarded promotions:

• Dr. Stephen Feinberg, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery

Also of Interest...


INTERESTING INTERESTS

Talk to faculty and staff at the School of Dentistry, or visit them at their office or at a clinic, and sooner or later you learn of an interesting hobby or pursuit that they have. In some instances, the activity parallels a career. Others, however, are engaged in activities away from the School that have no connection to their professional roles. On the following pages are examples of individuals with a range of “interesting interests.”

Dr. Russell S. TaichmanAssociate Professor, Department of Periodontics, Prevention, GeriatricsArctic Hiker

Every summer since 1991, Taichman and about 10 others each take a 70-pound backpack with two weeks of food, clothing, fuel, and emergency supplies – but no cell phones or radios. They’re oblivious to the news. To navigate, they rely on a Global Positioning Satellite system. “The trips combine my interests inhistory, natural history, and exploration,” he said. Hiking and occasionally kayaking, sometimes up to 80 degrees north latitude (the North Pole is 90 degrees north latitude), Taichman sees breathtaking and barren landscapes few have seen. Recently, he found a dog skull he later learned were the remains of the dog that belonged to Admiral Robert E. Perry, the first to explore the area. On another trip Taichman discovered a waterfall that park rangers were unaware of. A map of the Arctic on his office wall sports dozens of red, blue, green, and yellow push pins showing a particular trip and areas visited. Sometimes his wife, Susan, accompanies him. “But not this year,” he said. “She wanted furniture for the house instead.”

This picture of Dr. Russell Taichman was taken in 2001 at Pangnitrung Fjord on Baffin Island at 66 degrees north latitude. “We just crossed the Arctic Circle following a 16-day hike in nearby Auyuittuq National Park,” he said. The park is often referred to as “the Switzerland of the Arctic.”

Vacationing “up north” means something totally different to Dr. Russell S. Taichman. To him, “up north” is WAY north – the Arctic Circle.


Photo courtesy of Dr. Russell Taichman


Dr. David JacobsonDirector, Patient Admitting and Emergency Services ClinicSelf-taught Musician & Instrument Repairman

He plays throughout the day, as time permits. “I’m uncomfortable if I’m away from a musical instrument too long,” he said. A self-taught musician, Jacobson first learned to play the piano growing up in New York City. “Music intuitively came to me as naturally as language,” he said. Jacobson also repairs and builds instruments. Following a luthiery apprentice-ship last summer, he began designing “the better jazz guitar.” Collecting musical instruments is also in Jacobson’s repertoire – guitars, basses, keyboards, drums, and other stringed instruments such as the bouzouki, mandolin, banjo, and sitar. So too is recording. Two of his compositions were released on an independently-produced CD entit led Technicolor Motorhome 2000. Although a picture of Frank Zappa is pinned to a bulletin board in his office, Jacobson especially admires the work of Larry Carlton, a prolific guitarist who has recorded numerous commercial soundtracks.

Tucked in a corner of Dr. David Jacobson’s office is “a cheap rock and roll guitar,” as he described it, that he often plays.

Sylvia BowmanAdministrative Assistant, School of Dentistry Personnel OfficeDog Walker

It’s volunteers like Sylvia Bowman. Four times a week, including five or six hours on weekends, she walks dogs, of all sizes, at the Humane Society of Huron Valley just outside Ann Arbor. “I take them outdoors and walk them, play ball with them, and give them an opportunity to stretch their legs,” she said. “I also try to make some of them more sociable so people want to adopt them.” Bowman’s interest in the program began two years ago when she and her husband wanted to adopt a dog. “I learned more about the program and thought this would be a fun opportunity to volunteer. It’s great exercise, plus, I get paid in kisses!” The best part of the program, she said, “is seeing a dog go home with its new family.” Oh yes, the Bowmans did find the dog they wanted – a beagle, named “Snoopy.”

48 DentalUM Fall 2003

Ever wonder who walks the animals that are cared for by your local humane society?

Per Kjeldsen

Jerry Mastey


Jane FolskeDepartment Secretary, Orthodontics and Pediatric DentistryArcher

Just ask Jane Folske. She didn’t learn to use a bow and arrow…until after she was married. For the past 22 years, Folske has joined her husband, Bruce, deer hunting nearly every weekend between early October and late December. Other times, she’s practicing or competing in archery leagues or three-dimensional animal targets. “During deer hunting season, I climb a tree or hide in a camouflage blind. But even if nothing happens,” she said, “I enjoy being outdoors at daybreak, watching the sun rise, and hearing and seeing the animals awaken.” It took her three or four years to bag her first deer with a bow. Folske uses a 42-pound compound bow and a 28-pound longbow. (“Pound” describes how much force is used to pull the string.) Two years ago, Folske was asked by the Michigan Bow Hunters Association to participate in a 21-arrow salute memorial service, honoring an archery legend. “Each of us fired an arrow simultaneously. It was impressive and an honor to be involved.”

Debbie MontagueAlumni Officer, Office of Alumni RelationsBasket Maker

For more than seven years she has been making baskets of all kinds – flower, pumpkin, and recently, a fishing tackle basket that was a gift to former Dean William Kotowicz.

Although Montague said she wasn’t sure she would enjoy basket making when a friend first suggested it, “I fell in love with it,” she said. “I’ve always enjoyed working with my hands. I think it started when I was seven and took piano lessons for 10 years.” Later, Montague made clothes for her daughter, Melissa, when she was growing up.

In addition to weekly classes, Montague and six friends get together every other week to discuss and show their creations. She also attends an annual convention in Grand Rapids.

Montague estimates she’s made more than 150 baskets, all of them practical…and durable. Depending on their size and strength of the reeds that are used, her baskets can hold between 20 to 40 pounds of goods or supplies.

“This is my way of unwinding at the end of a day,” she said. “Everyone needs some kind of release from work at the end of the day. And this is it for me.”

“I’m a basket case!” Debbie Montague exclaims in jest as she talks about her passion – making baskets.

Sometimes a hobby or interest is acquired during childhood. Other times, it’s later in life.

DentalUM Fall 2003

Photo courtesy of Jane Folske

Per Kjeldsen

49


Christine KlausnerClinical Assistant Professor, Department of Periodontics, Prevention, and GeriatricsFashion Eyeglass Aficionado

She’s usually wearing fashion eyeglasses whose frames have an assortment of colors – reds, blues, greens, or orange. “It’s my menopausal jewelry,” she said with a laugh. “I don’t collect diamonds or gold, so I wear these instead.” Recalling the first pair of eyeglasses she wore as a fifth-grader – ones with thick, black frames – Klausner said, “I hated them. So when contacts first came out when I was a high school senior, I bought those.” Although she still wears contacts, Klausner began searching for fashion eye wear about four years ago. “I wanted something with a splash. After favorable response to the first pair from patients, students, and faculty, I looked for another set. Now I have about eight pairs. Since they cost only ten or twenty dollars a pair, they’re affordable,” she said. Klausner said her husband also keeps an eye out for new glasses she might want to wear. “Fashion doesn’t always have to be clothes. It can be other things, like eyeglasses. And that works for me.”

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

John DrachProfessor of Dentistry, Department of Biologic and Materials SciencesMug Collector

“Don Clewell suggested I put others up, otherwise the shelf would fill with books and papers and look cluttered,” Drach said. Drach took Clewell’s advice. Now he has 20 mugs on his shelf. His favorites include one from one of his daughters about dads, one from his granddaughter, another from Glacier National Park, and another from Wheaton College. “The one in my hand is also a favorite, from the College of Pharmacy. My dad was a pharmacist, my wife was a pharmacist, and I was too,” he said. Since 1966, Drach has been involved in drug research, a professor at the College of Pharmacy, and teaches pharmacology to dental and dental hygiene students. “So drugs really have been a part of my life, or at least a significant part of it,” he said.

If you’re looking for Chris Klausner at the dental school, it’s easy to find her.

When John Drach moved into his office in 1986 after becoming chair of the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences, he put a coffee mug on his shelf.



Live a Life of Real Meaning and Significance, G raduates Advised

Graduation DayMay 10, 2003

Live a Life of Real Meaning and Significance, G raduates Advised

Dr. Charles Bertolami, Dean of the UCSF School of Dentistry

Keary Campbell Can three words make a difference in a person’s professional and private life? The speaker at this spring’s School of Dentistry commencement is convinced they can. Dr. Charles Bertolami, dean of the University of California School of Dentistry in San Francisco, told graduates they have succeeded in acquiring a considerable amount of information and transforming it into knowledge. But he cautioned knowledge and wisdom are not identical. “Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom,” he said. Bertolami’s challenge to graduates was to advance to the next level and “take that knowledge and transform it, if you can, into wisdom.” He said that’s possible by remembering what he called “the three magic words – discernment, feeling, and faith.” All are interrelated. Describing discernment as the ability to see the truth that is acquired by living, Bertolami told graduates, “If you’re going to be an effective practitioner, you have to accept that all people are incredibly discerning…especially patients (who) are exquisitely effective in figuring out everything they need to know about you and doing it with unbelievable speed.”


Because of renovations to Hill Auditorium, the

School of Dentistry’s graduation was held at

the Power Center for the Performing Arts. Hill

Auditorium is scheduled to reopen in January

following nearly $39 million of renovations

during the past two years.

Bertolami added that earning a degree is more than possessing a body of knowledge. “People also see you as caring, compassionate, honest, fair, and good.” If that’s not the case, he said, “this will be discovered and rediscovered about you hundreds and thousands of times by patients and colleagues alike.”

Physical and emotional responses to perceptions, he said, create feelings. Suppressing feelings is sometimes necessary, Bertolami said. But doing

so continuously, he cautioned, “is an extremely dangerous game. Once we get comfortable hardening ourselves in one context, it can get out of control…and diminish our humanity.”

Finally, he advised students to have faith, or confidence, not just in themselves or in others, but in something greater. “Everything depends on you being a part of something and a part of something big,” he said. For those who were unsure, Bertolami advised them to “believe in the excellence and superiority of truth over untruth. That’s a start.”

Discernment, feeling, and faith, he said will help students make a successful transition from dental school and “will lead you to a life of real meaning and significance.”

You can hear Dr. Charles Bertolami’s commencement remarks in their entirety on the U-M School of Dentistry’s Web site: www.dent.umich.edu.

On the homepage, click the text that reads, “Graduation 2003.” Headlines and photographs of each speaker will then appear as will the time of each speaker’s remarks.

You can listen to his remarks and those of other speakers in any order you choose.

Knowing that Dr. William Kotowicz would soon be stepping down as dean of the U-M School of Dentistry three weeks after graduation (but remaining a member of the faculty), Dr. Charles Bertolami took a moment in his address to praise his friend.

“For the graduates of this institution, the University of Michigan, you should feel especially grateful because you’re graduating from a dental school that is inarguably, one of the finest in the entire world,” Bertolami said.

“There is no one who knows dental education anywhere in the world who, if asked to name the top three dental institutions in the world, would not include the University of Michigan,” he said. “You can’t appreciate this if the only dental school you know is Michigan. But go someplace else for a change and you’ll come back feeling extremely grateful.”

“I’m saying this,” he joked, “as a person who himself graduated from The Ohio State University.”

Bertolami said Kotowicz “has devoted his entire career to this institution and along, with the faculty, has brought it to the eminence it now enjoys.”

Kotowicz Praised by UCSF Dental School Dean

Graduation DayDr.Bertolami’sRemarks

onSchoolWebsite

Keary Campbell


“I loved teaching students…and I also want to thank them for using some of my textbooks,” Dr. James Avery joked after receiving the Distinguished Service Award.

A professor of dentistry, Avery retired from active faculty status in 1991 after an illustrious 37-year career that began at the School of Dentistry in 1954 as an assistant professor.

During his career he contributed to teaching, service, and research at the School of Dentistry and the Medical School. He also held important administrative positions, including chair of the Department of Oral Biology (1977-1986), was a member of the executive committee (1962-1965), and served as president of the International Association for Dental Research from 1974 to 1975.

As he thanked those who contributed to his success, Avery paid tribute to Dody, his wife of 53 years. “She told me I ought to stand up and smile, shut up, and sit down,” he said. After laughter and affectionate applause from the crowded auditorium subsided, he continued, “Dody, I’m going to do just that.”

In addition to winning many honors and awards, Avery wrote more than 130 articles for publication, wrote and edited three textbooks, served on the editorial advisory board for the Journal of Dental Research, and was a scientific reviewer for several dental and oral health care publications.

The Classof 200396 DDS degrees

32 Bachelor of Science degrees in dental hygiene

11 Master’s degrees

1 PhD

Distinguished Service Awardto Dr. James Avery

Graduation Day

Dr. James Avery

Teaching Awards toRichards, Kerschbaum, and Dowson

You’ve undoubtedly heard the remark, “Records were meant to be broken.”In one case, that may not be true.Dr. Philip Richards received the Paul Gibbons Award for the 10th consecutive

year…a feat that may never be equaled, much less surpassed.The annual award from dental students recognizes a teacher for his or her

outstanding teaching during the four years they, as students, were in the predoctoral program.

Richards, a clinical associate professor in the Department of Periodontics, Prevention, and Geriatrics, talked about his life and success in detail in the Fall 2002 DentalUM (pages 36-41).

Professor Wendy Kerschbaum, director of the dental hygiene programs, and Deborah Dowson, adjunct clinical instructor, were co-recipients of the Outstanding Instructor of the Year Award presented by graduating dental hygiene students.

More information about the award presented to Kerschbaum and Dowson appears in the Dental Hygiene section of this issue (page 58).

The remarks of all three and their advice to students can be heard on the School’s Web site www.dent.umich.edu.

Keary Campbell


Graduation Day

In their farewell address, it’s customary for dental senior class presidents to say “goodbye” to their classmates.

Not this year.Instead, dental senior class president Aleco Tujios, concluded his remarks

with one word, “Aloha,” and slowly walked away from the podium. Saying “aloha” is the Hawaiian word for “hello” and “until we meet again,”

the Hawaiian-raised Tujios said, “As the ancient Hawaiians didn’t believe in saying goodbye, I will not say goodbye to my class. Aloha.”

Before he concluded his remarks, Tujios, told classmates that “in moving out of the protective confines of the dental school…the future care of our patients lies solely in our own hands….It’s time for us to move on and take on new responsibilities.”

Tujios enters the U-M pediatric dentistry program this fall.His remarks can be heard on the School’s Web site: www.dent.umich.edu.

Dental Class President:

“Aloha”

Dental senior class president Aleco Tujios.

O ver the past decade, the Norman Mette Foundation has provided $385,000 in scholarships to U-M dental students. The Mette Foundation also supports s c h o l a r s h i p s a t t h e U - M Medical School. Dean William Kotowicz publicly thanked Karl Schetten-helm, a member of the Foundation’s board of directors, for their support of the School of Dentistry and the University at this spring’s commencement. Several weeks earlier, the Foundation received the Univers i t y of Michigan’s James B. Angell Presidential Society Recognition Award for gifts totaling more than $1.6 million.

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell

54

Karl Schettenhelm


Graduation Day

Prior to receiving their dental degrees, brothers Robert and William Stevenson began commencement ceremonies singing the National Anthem.

A proud moment for Dr. Thomas Pink, a member of the School’s Alumni Society Board of Governors, as he robes his son, Michael, just prior to being awarded his dental degree.

With his seven-month-old son, Sammy, in his arms, dental student Stephen Sterlitz is about to receive his dental degree. Also wanting to participate in the ceremony, to the surprise of Dr. Marilyn Woolfolk (left) and Dr. Dennis Turner (right), are Sterlitz’s two other sons, 3-1/2-year-old Stephen (left) and 1-1/2-year-old Mitchell (back to camera).

Oral Health Sciences doctoral student Christopher Kazor is robed by Drs. Walter Loesche and Charlotte Mistretta.

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell



May graduation ceremonies were doubly sweet for the Class of 2003.

Not only did dental students walk off stage with a DDS degree, they also knew the results of their NERB scores earlier than they had before.

The benefit? Graduates were able to begin their careers months earlier than in the past.

BeforeSince 1969, the Northeast

Regional Board (NERB) has developed, administered, scored, and reported the results of tests taken by dental students.

Tests were given on two consecutive days, typically in late April. Both days, students might spend a total of 12 or 13 hours on the tests, not only taking them, but also setting up for the test and cleaning up.

They would not learn the results until late June or early July. If a retake of one or both sections of the test was necessary, the earliest that could be done was in mid-August.

Beginning in the fall of 2002, the U-M School of Dentistry participated in a pilot program that changed all that.

New ChangesU-M was one of five of 22 dental schools in NERB’s

jurisdiction that took advantage of the program that allowed students to take the first part of their NERB exam in September and the second part this past March. Opportunities to retake the exam were also available.

NERB launched the pilot project following approval of a resolution by the ADA’s House of Delegates that urged NERB and other testing organizations to work with dental school educators to see if there was a way to improve the process. “We participated because we thought the new timetable would benefit our students,” said Dr. Dennis Turner, assistant dean for patient services. His office worked closely with NERB to schedule and administer the exam at the U-M School of Dentistry.

NERB Changes Benefit Dental StudentsEligible for Licensing by Graduation

Under the old schedule, Turner noted, if a student learned they had to re-take one or more sections of the test, they couldn’t do so until mid-August. “By then, they might be enrolled in a graduate program, or AEGD program, or even in the military which could make rescheduling impossible until nearly a year after they graduated.” In addition, candidates who were entering private practice would have to put their lives on “hold” for months.

Now a Degree and a License to Practice“This new schedule gives students peace of mind and

allows them to begin their careers much earlier,” he said. For the School of Dentistry, this meant that 100 percent of the graduates who took the exam were eligible for licensure by commencement ceremonies in May.

Turner praised his staff for their efforts.“This success did not come without a great deal of effort

and dedication on the part of staff members in the office of patient services,” he said. “The exam was given on the weekend and many of our staff worked the evening before the exam and then put in 15 hour days on both Saturday and Sunday. They took a real personal interest in the success of our students.”


2003Graduation DENTAL HYGIENE

Anne Gwozdek, a member of the School of Dentistry’s Alumni Society Board of Governors who earned her dental hygiene degree at U-M in 1973, was the recipient of this year’s Outstanding Alumnae Award at spring graduation.

Presented by the U-M Dental Hygienists’ Alumnae Association, the award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to the dental hygiene profession.

Jemma Allor, president of the organization, said that “anyone who meets Anne is instantly drawn to her positive outlook, vibrant energy, and winning attitude.”

Gwozdek, as president of the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association (1999-2000), helped to expand the number of seats on the state’s Board of Dentistry to include two members of the dental hygiene profession, Allor said.

Working in private practice and as an adjunct clinical instructor at the School of Dentistry, Allor said Gwozdek was also involved with a task force that led to legislation that allows dental hygienists to administer local anesthesia following 15 hours of classroom instruction and 14 hours of clinical training. [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2003, pages 48-49.]

“I’m honored and humbled to receive this award,” Gwozdek said. Recalling donning cap and gown to participate in her own

graduation ceremonies 30 years ago, she added, “little did I know at that time what an impact my years here would have on my personal and professional life.”

She said the education she received at the School of Dentistry “opened the doors of employment opportunities and career advancement, enhanced my love of lifelong learning, and provided me with unprecedented respect among my patients and peers.”

Gwozdek encouraged graduates to remain involved with the School after graduating.

Anne Gwozdek (right) receives the Outstanding Alumnae Award from U-M Dental Hygienists’ Alumnae Association president Jemma Allor.

AnneGwozdekReceivesOutstanding Alumnae Award


Call for Members…The Dental Hygienists’ Alumnae Association is looking for members who would like to serve on its Executive Board beginning in 2005. I n a d d i t i o n t o a r r a n g i n g homecoming activities, the DHAA stays current on dental hygiene issues at the School and sponsors various functions for DH students. It also selects a recipient of the Outstanding Alumnae Award that is presented each year at commencement. D H A A m e e t i n g s a re h e l d quarterly, generally at the School of Dentistry. For more information, please contact Debbie Montague in the School of Dentistry’s Office of Alumni Relations at (734) 764-6856.

Outstanding Instructor AwardtoKerschbaumandDowson

The Dental Hygiene Class of 2003 presented its Outstanding Instructor of the Year Award to Wendy Kerschbaum and Deborah Dowson at spring commencement ceremonies.

Senior dental hygiene class president Richelle Pipski said “it was so difficult to decide on a single candidate that my classmates and I chose to bestow it upon two instructors.”

Pipski said Kerschbaum was not only “an integral part of our dental hygiene careers as an instructor, but also a guidance counselor, sounding board, and, most of all, our friend.”

Dowson was “ever so patient, she has taught us to be patient with ourselves,” Pipski said.

The remarks of Pipski, Kerschbaum, and Dowson can be heard in their entirety on the School’s Web site www.dent.umich.edu.

Deborah Dowson thanks dental hygiene graduates for the award they presented to her.

Dental hygiene senior class president Richelle Pipski (right) and Professor Wendy Kerschbaum.

DENTAL HYGIENE


S U R V E Y

In order to better serve our dental hygiene community we would appreciate receiving your input about dental hygiene continuing education. Please take a moment to complete this survey and either mail it to the Office of Continuing Dental Education or fax it to us at (734) 936-3065.

1. Please list topics that you are interested in learning more about.

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

2. Speaker suggestions:

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

3. Location preferences (cities/hotels):

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

4. Would you prefer to attend a CE course held on or off the U-M campus?

On campus Off campus

5. Best day of the week for you to attend a CE course:

__________________________________________________________________ 6. Do you prefer an all-day course or a half-day course? All-day Half-day

Please tear out this page, place it in an envelope and mail to:University of MichiganSchool of Dentistry1011 N. UniversityRoom G508Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078

or, you may fax this to our office at (734) 936-3065.

Pleaseclip

and

mail


Alumnus Profile

s president of the dental class of 1973, William Maas challenged classmates in his farewell address.He urged them to develop a personal or professional

statement of purpose, or identify with a personal mission, so that they eventually would find themselves providing oral health care in a system that was shaped with their personal input.

Since leaving the School of Dentistry, Dr. William Maas has helped to shape the direction of oral health care.

Today, Maas directs the Division of Oral Health in the National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.

The division’s programs extend the use of proven strategies to prevent oral diseases, assist state oral health programs, and build the evidence base for preventive strategies through research and program evaluation. Division programs also strengthen state and national abilities to

monitor oral health and establish guidelines for infection control in clinical dental settings.

Two years ago he retired as an Assistant Surgeon General after 28 years of service as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service.

He also played a major role in shaping the groundbreaking report focusing on the state of oral health in America issued three years ago by the U.S. Surgeon General.

Change of DirectionSo how did the Detroit-area native wind up in an

influential policy shaping role?“When I entered the University of Michigan School of

Dentistry in 1969, I wanted to become a solo practitioner in the Detroit area after earning my dental degree,” Maas said during a telephone interview from his Atlanta office.

But by the time he actually received his DDS in 1973, his plans were beginning to change.

Director, Division of Oral Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Assistant Surgeon General, U.S. Public Health Service (retired)

In this photo, taken in the spring of 2001, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher presented Dr. William Maas with the Surgeon General’s medallion for his work as the chief dental officer of the U.S. Public Health Service. The medallion is the highest award bestowed by the U.S. Surgeon General.

Playing an important role in shaping the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Oral Health

Photo courtesy of ADA News. © 2001 American Dental Association

Dr.William Maas



“I wasn’t ready to settle down,” he said with a chuckle, “so I joined the Indian Health Service, in part, as an adventure, but mostly to provide oral health care to a community of individuals who needed it, in this case at the Public Health Service’s Indian Hospital in Pine Ridge, South Dakota.”

For three years he provided clinical services in hospitals and remote field clinics, directed a team of four dentists and seven assistants, provided a broad scope of services in five clinics to a large population on a vast, medically isolated reservation, evaluated community needs, and planned and implemented innovative school- and community-based prevention programs that were later used as models for Indian Health Service policies.

By 1978, Maas was director of dental services for the Indian Health Service in Aberdeen, South Dakota.

There he directed a dental program providing clinical care and community health services for 57,000 persons in nine hospitals and 17 ambulatory care sites. He was also responsible for strategic planning, resource allocation, maintaining clinical data bases for program evaluation, and transferring scientific knowledge to interdisciplinary health workers to use in community clinics.

Ypsilanti Head Start MemoriesHis response to challenges while working in South

Dakota, and even more recently in his national leadership roles, were strongly influenced by memories of his dental school days.

“I remember Bob Bagramian, Emerson Robinson, myself, and several others screening four- and five-year-olds who were in the Head Start program on the outskirts of Ypsilanti. I was struck by how much dental disease this group of children had compared to others we had seen in the city,” he said.

The reason for the disparities, he learned, was due to the fluoridation of the city’s water supply.

It was during his second year at Pine Ridge that Maas’s experiences in Ypsilanti resurfaced.

“I didn’t really forget them,” he said, “but I don’t think I appreciated them as much until I was in South Dakota where I saw high levels of dental disease.”

“That motivated me even more to see what policy changes could be made at local, state, or national levels in how oral

health care is administered so that people could get the proper preventive services and dental care they needed,” Maas continued. “It also broadened my perspective. I was not just responsible for treating individuals, I also had responsibility for treating a community of patients.”

During these assignments, Maas determined that there was not a solid evidence base to answer many of the questions that he had while making clinical treatment decisions or determining clinic and program policies. He sought advance training in health policy and management.

Advancing ProfessionallyIn 1982, Maas earned a Master of Public Health degree

from Harvard’s School of Public Health and, a year later, another master’s degree from Harvard, this time in Health Policy and Management.

From 1983 to 1984, he was a dental public health resident in the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General and subsequently became board-certified in dental public health.

By 1987, Maas became assistant chief in the dental services branch of the Indian Health Service. He was now responsible for developing and evaluating IHS dental programs, allocating resources, and guiding nearly 300 dentists and more than 400 other personnel who served nearly 1 million patients in 27 states.

In 1989, Maas became the first dentist to be assigned to the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality. He served in several positions, including acting chief of the scientific review branch and deputy director of the extramural program that addressed issues of cost, quality, and access.

In his roles, Maas was the principal advisor to staff and agency leaders about developing and disseminating scientific, policy-relevant information needed by patients, clinicians,

purchasers, health plans, and policy makers so they could make better oral health care decisions.

“These three issues – cost, quality, and access – these are the three issues we all face in the oral health delivery system,” Maas said. “But there are a lot of tradeoffs that have to be made in these areas in moving the system forward, which can be better understood by research.”

Maas’s experiences were setting the stage for something even bigger.

More than three years after the Surgeon General’s Report on Oral Health was issued, Maas said its findings “are as robust now as they were then.”



Surgeon General’s Report on Oral HealthIn May 1997, he was selected as Chief Dental Officer

of the Public Health Service and was promoted to the rank of Assistant Surgeon General. In this role, he provided leadership for, and coordination of, Public Health Service dental programs and professional affairs for the Office of the Surgeon General and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

A short time later, Maas became a member of the project team that prepared the first report from the Surgeon General about the state of oral health care in America.

“When I first became involved with this report, I was a one of three individuals responsible for developing an outline and providing context and structure,” he said. The other two members were Dr. Caswell Evans, projector director and executive editor, and Dr. Dushanka Kleinman, co-executive editor and deputy director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

“The last three months before the report was issued, we worked almost night and day to determine the best way to sequence the contents of the report, how much detail we would include, and other factors,” Maas said.

“We had Surgeon General, Dr. David Satcher, reviewing copy and giving us feedback, as well as public health agencies and many others.” As chief dental officer, Maas oversaw the Department’s review and final editing of the report.

The report was issued May 25, 2000.

Report’s Themes Still Valid“This report is about oral health, not dentistry. It’s a

report about a health issue, not a professional issue. That distinction merits mention,” Maas said.

“While the dental profession does have the most interest in oral health, there are others who are involved in oral health including program administrators, policymakers, physicians,

other health care providers, and others. We hope this report is an opportunity for everyone involved in providing oral health care to improve cross-collaboration so that, in the end, the public receives the oral health care it deserves.”

More than three years after the report was issued, Maas said its findings “are as robust now as they were then.”

Among the report’s major conclusions: oral health means much more than healthy teeth, oral health is a component of overall health, and that safe and effective measures exist to prevent the most common dental diseases (caries and periodontal disease), but these have not been applied as widely as possible which, in turn, has resulted in profound oral health disparities in the U.S. today.

Maas said now that the detailed report has been public for more than three years he is pleased that organized dentistry “is using it as a vehicle to advocate to local, state, and national policymakers what needs to be done to achieve the goal of appropriate oral health care for everyone.”

Two years ago, Maas received the Distinguished Service Medal, the U.S. Public Health Service’s highest award, for his “distinguished career and his dedication to improving the oral health of the nation and reducing health disparities.”

In citing his achievements as director of the Division of Oral Health with the Centers for Disease Control, the commendation said, “Dr. Maas is concluding his remarkable career with a strong finish. His management of a major health program and contributions to dental public health leave behind a large legacy.”

Looking back on a 30-year career, it’s safe to say Dr. William Maas has, indeed, practiced what he advocated.

“When I first became involved with this report (the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Oral Health),

I was a one of three individuals responsible for developing an

outline and providing context and structure.”

Dr. William Maas (center) was among those at the School of Dentistry’s Homecoming tailgate at the U-M golf course prior to the Michigan-Houston game on Saturday, Sept. 6. With him are Dean Peter Polverini (left) and Maas’ father, Larry.


Jerry Mastey


Education• MasterofScience,HarvardUniversity(1983)• MasterofPublicHealth,HarvardUniversity(1982)• GeneralPracticeResidency,IndianHealthService(1978)• DoctorofDentalSurgery,UniversityofMichigan(1973)

Professional• Director,DivisionofOralHealth,CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention (1998-present)• ChiefDentalOfficer,U.S.PublicHealthService(1997-2001)• SeniorDentalAdvisor(ChiefDentalOfficer),AgencyforHealthCarePolicyand Research (1989-1998)• AssistantChief,DentalServicesBranch,IndianHealthService(1987-1989)• Chief,AreaDentalServicesBranch,Aberdeenarea(SouthDakota)IndianHealthService (1978-1981)

Honors and Awards• DistinguishedServiceMedal,U.S.PublicHealthService(2001)• President’sAward,AmericanDentalAssociation(2001)• SurgeonGeneral’sMedallion,OfficeoftheU.S.SurgeonGeneral(2001)• CarlA.SchlackAward,AssociationofMilitarySurgeonsoftheU.S.(1998)• JackD.RobertsonAward,PublicHealthService“DentistoftheYear”(1994)• MeritoriousServiceAward,U.S.PublicHealthService(1989)

Professional Affiliations• AmericanAssociationofPublicHealthDentistry(1976-present)• AmericanAssociationofPublicHealthDentistry,VicePresident,President-elect, President, Past president (2000-2003)• AmericanDentalAssociation(1969-present)• AmericanDentalAssociation,Consultant,CouncilonGovernmentalAffairs;Councilon Access,Prevention,andInterprofessionalRelations;Delegate,4thDistrict,Houseof Delegates (1997-2001)• AmericanCollegeofDentists(1994-present)• AmericanPublicHealthAssociation(1978-present)• CommissionedOfficersAssociationoftheUSPHS,Member,NationalBoardofDirectors (1989-1994)• Reviewer,JournaloftheAmericanDentalAssociationandotherjournals


William Maas, DDS, MPH, MSSelected Highlights


“It’s just one piece of the oral health care puzzle. We’re trying to give dentists a new tool they can use in their daily quest of providing quality oral health care to patients. This tool will summarize all the scientific evidence pertaining to clinical problems they face on a daily basis.”

That’s how Dr. Amid Ismail describes the work of the ADA’s Interagency Task Force on Evidence-Based Dentistry.

Ismail, a professor in the Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, is a consultant to the committee.

For about two years, committee members have discussed ways to develop the concept of evidence-based dentistry (EBD) as a roadmap of useful procedures ADA members might want to consider and possibly use in their daily work.

Although evidence-based dentistry is relatively new in the U.S., it’s frequently used in medicine and nursing and commonly used in some European countries.

Ismail’s earlier experiences and insights are helping the committee develop a possible roadmap.

“I had major EBD experience working with the Canadian Task Force on the Periodic Health Examination and also helped develop the concept of evidence-based dentistry prior to coming to Michigan,” he said. “I understand the logistics that make a dental practice work and what goes on daily in a dental practice.”

What It Is…What It Is NotIn a nutshell, Ismail said that evidence-based dentistry

is about the scientific basis behind clinical practices.

“It’s an extension of the ADA’s policy that empowers dentists to make decisions that take into account several factors – the preferences of their patients, the medical and dental histories of each patient,

and the clinical expertise of the dentist,” he said. However,

Ismail also emphasized what evidence-based dentistry is not.

“It is not about reimbursement or deciding what procedures should be

covered by dental insurance companies. It is not a ‘cookbook’ approach to dentistry. It is not designed to replace the way dentists now practice,” he said.

According to the ADA, evidence-based dentistry “requires the judicious integration of systematic assessments of clinically relevant scientific evidence.”

Put another way, EBD examines scientific evidence pertaining to oral health care and dentistry in a disciplined, methodical, unbiased manner. Information, or evidence, that appears in journal publications is summarized and presented in a way that mitigates biases inherent in that information. That will be achieved by following a set of predetermined protocols about how to extract the information. The reader will also be informed about other aspects of the evidence including how it is evaluated and the number of reliable evaluators that were used to extract the information.

For example, a recent systematic review on treating oral mucositis after chemotherapy found that current evidence favors using ice chips rather than medication, such as chlorehexidine, to reduce the risk of developing inflammation and ulcers. Dentists might then advise patients that a cup of ice during chemotherapy might prevent potential problems later.

A New Tool for Dentists?U-MProfessorHelpingADADevelop

Evidence-BasedDentistry


In short, in evidence-based dentistry, a question is defined, information about a question is gathered, organized, and evaluated. Possible outcomes are assessed and then that information would be made accessible to dentists online. “Each practitioner can then decide what to do with that information in a given situation by also taking into account other important factors – their education, experiences, and patient preferences,” he said.

The Role of TechnologyTechnology will play an important role in shaping

evidence-based dentistry.Already information is available to dentists and patients

on the Internet, World Wide Web, and from print publications. But the sheer volume of that information presents challenges.

A patient with a specific condition may use the Internet and the Web to investigate and collect numerous articles, reports, and data about that situation. However, a dentist might not be able to read and digest all the information that is published monthly because of other responsibilities including running an office and providing oral health care to hundreds or thousands of patients.

Evidence-based dentistry could be a dentist’s “edge.”“A practitioner could go online, type a phrase about

a procedure or condition, ask a question, and then get a summary of unbiased information from a Web site that we’re planning to develop,” Ismail said.

As information is retrieved, dentists could “discuss” it online using message boards, provide commentary, and share their insights and experiences with one another.

What’s NextIn the months ahead, Ismail said the EBD committee will

develop lists of credible, authoritative sources of information dentists can rely on, summarize clinical and scientific

“It’s just one piece of the oral health care puzzle. We’re

trying to give dentists a new tool they can use in their daily quest of providing quality oral health care

to patients. This tool will summarize all the scientific

evidence pertaining to clinical problems they face

on a daily basis.”

Dr. Amid Ismail, professor of dentistryand consultant to ADA’s Interagency

Task Force on Evidence-Based Dentistry.

information, and invite dentists to submit questions on an array of topics. That, in turn, will help the group identify major oral health care issues.

“The ADA policy on evidence-based dentistry is a prudent and thorough approach to serving dentists and their patients which, I believe, will be a model for others to follow,” Ismail said. “It’s an exciting venture. I’m glad to be a part of it and working with so many great people through an organization of the ADA’s stature.”


arlier this year I was appointed chair of the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences (BMS) after Dr.

Christian Stohler left to become Dean of the University of Maryland School of Dentistry. In addition to his many achievements here, Dr. Stohler was well-known internationally for his investigations of oral-facial pain disorders. In fact his work, described in the Spring & Summer 2002 issue of DentalUM (page 67), was featured in the May 23, 2003 issue of Newsweek magazine.

As I read the article, it was interesting to note that one quote from Dr. Stohler that was highlighted in that issue of Newsweek was a remark similar to one he delivered at the first Roberts Professorship in Dentistry lecture last fall here at our School.

At that time, he said that in about 10 or 15 years patients would be taking “predictive tests that will show what will or will not work” based on the genetic makeup of each individual and that drugs will be custom-designed for individuals based on their genetic composition. [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2003, page 44.]

Obviously, all of us wish him well in his new venture in life. With this change in department leadership, I would like to use this opportunity to outline some of my plans.

DEPARTMENT REPORTBiologic and Materials Sciences

Robert Bradley,Chair

GoalsOur immediate plan is to recruit

new faculty members to replace several individuals who are retiring. Searches are currently underway for a microbiologist as well as two clinical track faculty. In the near future, a national search will be launched to recruit a new department chair.

A second goal is to increase opportunities for clinical faculty to have access to research in the department that will result in greater interaction among basic scientists and clinicians. By taking advantage of the broad expertise possessed by our basic science and clinical faculty members, I anticipate we will be able to develop new opportunities for clinical research.

These goals will be important in strengthening an already outstanding department with expertise in several areas of biologic and materials sciences and enhancing the reputation of this department. My hope is that this will bolster our competitive edge in recruiting excellent faculty and sustaining our exceptional funding record, which I will describe a bit later in this report.

Prior to leaving, Dr. Stohler recruited Dr. James Simmer to our department as an associate professor of prosthodontics. Dr. Simmer, who earned his dental degree from the University of Michigan in 1980, later obtained his doctorate in 1990 from Wayne State University School of Medicine.

Before arriving at Michigan to begin

Keary Campbell


teaching, Dr. Simmer was an associate professor in pediatric dentistry at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. His research interests focus on tooth development, enamel and dentin formation, and the molecular genetics of developmental abnormalities of tooth development such as amelogenesis imperfecta.

Department Awards and Honors During the past year, several members of our department have been honored for their achievements. Dr. Don Clewell received the Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award from the Horace Rackham School of Graduate Studies [see DentalUM, Fall 2002, page 33] as well as the Distinguished Faculty Lectureship Award in Biomedical Research [see this issue, page 45]. Dr. John Drach was inducted as President of the International Society for Antiviral Research [see DentalUM, Fall 2002, page 32] and was also elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Josef Kolling was elected vice president of the Michigan Dental Association. Next year, he will become president-elect and, in 2005, president of the organization. Dr. David Mooney was named in the February issue of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Review as among people to watch in 10 emerging technologies that the magazine predicts will change the world.

Drs. Mooney and Cun-Yu Wang received the William J. Gies Award during the 2003 meeting of the American Association for Dental Research [see DentalUM, Fall 2002, page 70]. This award is presented for the best paper published in the Journal of Dental Research during the preceeding year. Yours truly received the Max Mozell Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Chemical Senses presented at the Association for Chemoreception Sciences in April 2003 [see this issue of DentalUM, page 45, for more details]. Dr. Charlotte Mistretta was named the William R. Mann Professor of Dentistry for her outstanding leadership and nationally recognized achievement in research, teaching, and service. At the annual Faculty Awards Banquet this spring, dental students honored prosthodontic faculty. Dr. Geoffrey Gerstner, Dr. Maira Rodriguez, Dr. Jose Delgado and Dr. Alessandra Macedo were recognized for their teaching. Dr. Kenneth May and Dr. William Godwin were recognized for their volunteer work during the annual summer mouth guard clinic. Several prosthodontic faculty members participated in the Nobel Biocare World Conference entitled, “Today’s Standard for Patient Care,” this spring. Dr. Brien Lang was a member of the Scientific Committee that designed the educational program which included more than 50 speakers from around the world. His lecture also highlighted research from many members of the

department. Other Prosthodontic faculty featured included Dr. Michael Razzoog, and Dr. Dong-Ho Lee. Dr. Rob Schumacher a second-year prosthodontic graduate student presented a poster on “Custom Designed Zirconium Crowns for Implant-Retained Restorations.” Last October, the department hosted an open house to show what the students in the Graduate Prosthodontic Clinic are doing. It was also a time to re-establish connections with alumni and friends and tour the facility to see what exciting things are occurring. Participants also attended a seminar that featured presentations by two of our graduate students. A presentation by Dr. Nicholas Tselios was entitled “Introduction of the Maxillofacial Prosthodontist.” Dr. Maha Al-Reyahi spoke on “Implant Complications.”

Research This has been a banner year for research funding for the department. During the past three years faculty have been very successful in obtaining funding from a number of agencies (see Figure 1 on the next page). The total amount received is at a record level for us, about $7 million as of press time, and has been steadily increasing during the past four years (see Figure 2 on the next page). While about 50% of the funding comes from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), other institutes at the National Institutes of Health are the


source of 31% of the funding. The rest comes from other sources, both national and local.

This diversity of funding sources reflects the wide area of expertise members of our faculty possess. Interestingly many investigators have been successfully funded for a number of years with successive competing renewals of the same grant proposal.

For example, Drs. Clewell, Mistretta, and myself have obtained funds for the same basic project for 18, 15 and 17 years, respectively, representing long-term commitments to research in the dental school. Because of the wide range of scientific expertise of the department faculty, research is being conducted on a number of subjects. Some examples of these different interests are described on the next two pages.

I’ve asked some members of our faculty to provide information about the research they’re conducting here at the School of Dentistry. Their descriptions are provided.

Christopher Nosrat My research involves working with a family of

related proteins known as neurotrophic factors. They play major roles in the survival, development, maturation and regeneration of nerve cells in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Members of our team have shown that different classes of neurotrophic factors are important for connectivity and development of teeth and the peripheral taste system in both rodents and humans.

We have also established culture-dish and in vivo models for tooth innervation to understand how teeth become innervated and how we can develop therapies for idiopathic dental pain. We are also using transgenic mouse technology to generate new animal models to study target tissue-nerve interactions and to possibly generate mice with supertasting capabilities. We also use microarray technology to find out what genes are important for the structural integrity of the peripheral taste system.

A second project in the lab utilizes cells derived from the dental pulp to develop repair strategies for spinal cord injury and neurodegenerative diseases (such as Parkinson’s disease). Specific cells from the dental pulp produce an array of neurotrophic factors. We have shown that grafting such cells into spinal cord injury models improves the condition and rescues the motoneurons (nerve cells that control movement) from death. Work with cell culture and animal models of Parkinson’s disease is ongoing. We aim to develop an autologous grafting technique in which cells from the dental pulp could be utilized for transplantation into the brain of the same patient.

Charlotte Mistretta My lab is interested in learning how sensory nerves find their way to particular regions of the tongue during development. Specifically, we want to know how nerves that innervate taste

Selected Faculty and

DentalUM Fall 2003


organs and nerves that innervate touch and pain receptors can initially grow into the tongue in a common bundle, and then find their way to neighboring but separate lingual sense organs. We’re conducting experiments to answer this question: What aspects of the developing tongue might attract specific nerves to specific regions in the tongue?

Goals are to test hypotheses about how the family of neurotrophin molecules modifies neurophysiology of the neurons in sensory ganglia, to discern molecules that regulate papilla development, and to determine effects of regulatory molecules and target tissues on functional differentiation of innervating ganglia. In vitro approaches are used, including a compartment culture system for embryonic ganglion explants to permit separate molecular maintenance of the neuron cell body, or soma, versus the neurites that grow from the soma, and subsequent electrophysiological recording, and organ cultures of the entire embryonic rat tongue. These in vitro systems make possible study of molecular affects on cell function in the developing taste system. Such studies are essential for a full understanding of how neural circuits form in the sense of taste, which motivates our food choices and thereby mediates healthy or unhealthy diet patterns.

James P. Simmer

My principal research goal is to understand the genetic and biochemical mechanisms of tooth development, particularly dental enamel formation. Working with colleagues at Michigan State University, we extract developing teeth from pigs, isolate developing pig enamel teeth to characterize proteins important for normal tooth development, and then identify the cDNAs and genes that encode them.

Our most notable achievements were to clone the genes for kallikrein 4 (KLK4) and enamelin (ENAM), which are important for dental enamel formation. We also recruit

families with inherited tooth defects, such as amelogenesis imperfecta, dentinogenesis imperfecta, and familial tooth agenesis, and characterize the genetic mutations that are the source of their tooth defects. We are currently making knockout mice for enamelin and kallikrein-4, which will give us a better understanding of the functions of these proteins during tooth formation. The term “knockout” refers to the fact that a particular gene is removed or knocked out of the genome to then see what happens.

Dennis Lopatin

My laboratory studies the interrelationships between infection and immunity. Studies have included evaluations of host immunity during periodontal therapy, relationships between oral and systemic health, and interactions between oral pathogens and the host that define disease outcomes. Current investigations are good examples of what’s known as a “clinic to bench to clinic approach.”

Clinical studies revealed that healthy subjects had higher levels of antibodies to bacterial stress proteins than patients with periodontal disease. With the assistance of Allison Combs, laboratory investigations revealed that these proteins modified inflammatory responses, apparently making patients more susceptible to disease. As part of her doctoral work in our laboratory, Dr. Domenica Sweier is now studying the nature of the protective antibodies in patients. These findings will lead to new tests to identify patients at risk for developing disease, as well as therapeutics for intervention.

In related studies, Dr. Charles E. Shelburne is studying the response of microbial pathogens to host anti-microbial proteins. It is anticipated that these studies will lead to a better understanding of how bacteria resist our immune defense mechanisms and the development of drugs to make bacteria more susceptible to our innate defenses.

Biologic and Materials Sciences

Their Research



RESEARCHRESEARCH

Dental Students Win 40% of AADR Research Fellowships

It’s about as rare as a major league baseball player with a .400 batting average.Collectively, U-M School of Dentistry students batted an astounding .409 at

this year’s American Association for Dental Research conference. Nine dental students were among a group of 22 who received fellowships for

their research projects. The fellowships give students an opportunity to continue their research and travel to AADR and IADR meetings.

In addition, dental student Azadeh Yavari won second place in the AADR Pfizer Hatton Awards Competition, Junior Division. The award is presented to a student who demonstrates potential for a productive career in dental research. Competition for this award is limited to students who have conducted their research as part of their professional training or undergraduate studies.

Dr. Renny Franceschi, associate dean for research, said “the success of our students in obtaining these competitive fellowships and awards is a tribute to their dedication to dental research and the quality of our faculty mentors.”

All 10 winners, their faculty advisors, and projects are featured on this and the following pages.

Student: Swati Shah

Mentors: Drs. Lloyd Straffon, Marita Inglehart

ProjectTitle: Behavioral Management of Pediatric

Dental Patients – The Parent Perspective

WhattheProject’sAbout: Does the past affect

the future? Shah’s project looks at the experiences

parents had with dentists when they were

children and how those experiences now affect

the types of oral health care that they as parents

allow their children to receive.

Student: Miranda Attia

Mentor: Dr. Dennis Fasbinder

ProjectTitle: The Influence of Preparation Design

Features on the Fit of CAD/CAM-generated

Ceramic Crowns

WhattheProject’sAbout: Technology plays a

major role in dentistry. Using computer aided

design and computer aided manufacturing

techniques, this research project looks at new

ways to design and prepare tooth-colored crowns

with the CEREC 3-D system (Sirona) so that once a

crown is placed on a patient’s tooth it comfortably

adapts to the unique contours of the mouth and

also maintains margin integrity.

Student: Maura Stanchak

Mentor: Dr. Stephen Eklund

ProjectTitle: Effects of Payment Changes on Cost

and Patterns of Dental Care

WhattheProject’sAbout: This project involves

using anonymous dental claims data to study how

access to dental care and patterns of treatment

change with the switch from traditional Medicaid

to the new Healthy Kids Dental program. Healthy

Kids Dental, administered by Delta Dental Plan

of Michigan, has replaced traditional Medicaid

coverage in 37 of Michigan’s 83 counties.

Recent data from the federal government shows the U-M School of Dentistry ranked sixth among the nation’s dental schools in total awards from the National Institutes of Health during federal fiscal year 2002. The statistics were released in early June. Total awards to the U-M School of Dentistry surpassed more than $8.6 million for 35 projects during federal fiscal year 2002 (October 1, 2001 to September 30, 2002).

School of Dentistry #6

Keary Campbell

Keary CampbellKeary Campbell


Student: Matthew Pinsky

Mentor: Dr. Jacques Nör

ProjectTitle: iCapase-9-mediated Ablation of

Oral Cancer Microvascular Network and Tumor Cell

Necrosis

WhattheProject’sAbout: This research is

evaluating if disrupting blood vessels that feed

oral cancers can lead to the death of cancerous

tumor cells. A gene (iCaspase-9) is induced to kill

cells exposed to a drug and also induced into cells

that are responsible for the growth of blood vessel

tumors. When the gene is activated, tumors are

observed to determine if they regress, and if so, to

what degree.

Student: Anne Lin

Mentor: Dr. Michael Ignelzi

ProjectTitle: Genomic Approaches to Study Craniosynostosis

WhattheProject’sAbout: Craniosynostosis, the premature

fusion of skull bones, is the second most common human

birth defect in the face and skull. Working with Dr. Michael

Ignelzi and his collaborators in the Musculoskeletal Diseases

Core Center at the Medical School, Lin is using gene chips

(more than 1,500 spotted onto glass slides), to compare

gene expression in normal skulls against those undergoing

craniosynostosis.

Student: Jeffrey Wessel

Mentor: Dr. George Taylor

ProjectTitle: C-reactive Protein: A Systemic

Connection between Periodontal Disease and

Cardiovascular Disease

WhattheProject’sAbout: This study investigates

the relationship(s) between periodontal

disease, cardiovascular disease, and C-reative

protein (CRP), a plasma protein that responds to

inflammatory stimuli. It will evaluate whether

CRP levels are higher in individuals with both

periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease

than in persons with only periodontal disease or

cardiovascular disease alone or neither disease.

Student: Curtis Godfrey

Mentor: Dr. Peter Yaman

ProjectTitle: Fit and Shear Bond Strength of

Indirect Inlays Cemented by Pre- and Post-cure of

Dentin Adhesive

WhattheProject’sAbout: Manufacturers

of dental adhesives have recently specified

polymerization of the dentin adhesive agent prior

to cementation of the restoration. This study

is testing the shear bond strength of ceramic

bonded inlays using the pre-cured dentin bonding

agent technique as well as a simultaneously-cured

bonding agent. The marginal fit of the ceramic

inlays and the effect of pre- and post-curing is also

being assessed.

Included in those numbers were 31 research grants totaling more than $8 million, two training grants of more than $455,000, and two fellowships of more than $79,000. The rankings of other dental schools and the awards they received can be found on the Web at: http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/award/trends/dhedent02.htm.

Nationally in NIH Awards

Keary CampbellKeary CampbellKeary Campbell

Keary Campbell


Sara Kellogg wasn’t even a student at the U-M School of Dentistry when she won first place for her dental research this spring.

Now a first-year dental student, Kellogg competed against 200 others and won the top award from the American Dental Education Association/Dentsply for her poster presentation, Hypertensive Patients in a Dental School Patient Population.

It was the first time in about ten years a U-M School of Dentistry student captured the top honor.

Reviewing Dental RecordsThe poster presentation was the result

of a thesis project Kellogg was required to complete prior to receiving her bachelor’s degree at Kalamazoo College.

For nearly a year, Kellogg, under the supervision of Dr. Jack Gobetti, reviewed the charts of nearly 1,000 patients for incidents of hypertension. All patients were treated in U-M School of Dentistry clinics.

“I investigated incidents of hypertension among patients treated at the dental school, how many patients were unaware of their condition until they were treated here, the accuracy of the records, and how these results compared with national results,” she said.

From what Gobetti told her, Kellogg said no research had been conducted on the topic. “As far as Dr. Gobetti and I could determine, no research of this kind has been conducted at any U.S. dental school, despite the increased rates of hypertension which prompt the need for these screenings,” she said.

Her findings were an eye-opener.

Student: Azadeh Yavari (2nd place, AADR Pfizer Hatton Awards

Competition, Junior Division)

Mentor: Dr. Michael Ignelzi

ProjectTitle: Msx2 Is Required for the Down-Regulation of

Alx4 by FGF2

WhattheProject’sAbout: This study focuses on cranio-

synostosis, an early fusion of the cranial sutures, that is the

second most common birth defect affecting the face and skull.

We studied specific candidate genes that, when mutated, are

known to cause early fusion in attempts to better understand

the molecular mechanisms of craniosynostosis.

Student: Brent Accurso

Mentor: Dr. Paul Krebsbach

ProjectTitle: Effects of Parathyroid Hormone on

Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Grafts in Irradiated

Craniofacial Defects

WhattheProject’sAbout: Because radiation

is a common postoperative treatment for head

and neck cancers, it’s critical to determine if new

approaches to bone regeneration are effective for

healing craniofacial defects that may result from

cancer surgery and subsequent radiation therapy.

This study seeks to determine if the adverse

effects of radiotherapy can be overcome by

combining mesenchymal stem cell transplantation

with anabolic parathyroid hormone therapy. If

successful, this combined approach may lead to

new strategies for craniofacial reconstruction for

patients with head and neck cancers.

Student: Matthew Artley

Mentor: Dr. G. Rex Holland

ProjectTitle: Neuropeptides & Inflammatory

Mediators in Symptomatic Human Dental Pulps

WhattheProject’sAbout: Teeth with dental

caries are sometimes painful. This leads

to difficulties in diagnosing and selecting

appropriate treatments. This project examines the

possibility that cells in the dental pulp produce

pain reducing substances, known to be active in

the central nervous system (such as endorphins)

in response to bacterial toxins and that these

may be responsible for the varying degrees of

pain experienced. Understanding the process of

pain generation will lead to more appropriate

treatment, reduce tooth loss, and lead to more

effective restoration of damaged teeth.

First-Year Dental Student

Photo by Jeremy Bayer Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell


Hypertension CommonMore than 30 percent of the

patients who were treated were hypertensive. Of that number, nearly half, 48 percent, were unaware they had high blood pressure prior to their visit to a dental provider.

In addition, nearly 9 percent of the patients recorded blood pressures that were so high that they had to get medical approval from a physician prior to receiving oral health care.

What the Findings Mean to Dentists“Because hypertension is the most prevalent health problem among adult patients,

recognizing it and treating it before a patient comes to a dental clinic is important,” Kellogg said. “Dentists have a unique opportunity to screen for hypertension since many patients often visit their dentist on a more regular basis than their primary care physicians.”

Hypertension screening offers dentists an opportunity to establish baseline blood pressures of their patients, Kellogg added, which, in turn, means they can regularly monitor a patient’s change in blood pressure over extended periods of time. “Sadly, though, this opportunity is rarely taken advantage of,” she said. “And since a dental setting can be stressful for many patients, not recognizing hypertension and dealing with it beforehand can have serious consequences for patients with elevated blood pressure.”

Kellogg thought that both the ADA and the American Dental Education Association should reevaluate their guidelines and strengthen them, if necessary.

Two Reactions to Winning Top PrizeWhen she learned she had won the top prize, Kellogg said “Dr. Gobetti jumped out

of his chair while I just sat in mine, stunned.”The abstract of Kellogg’s work has already been published in the February issue

of the Journal of Dental Education. She plans to work with Gobetti on publishing the research in more detail and plans to become involved as the U-M School of Dentistry’s representative to the ADEA.

A student in the School of Dentistry’s Oral Health Sciences PhD program is conducting research that’s trying to determine why prostate cancer cells grow and survive.

Dr. Abraham Schneider, this year’s recipient of the Dziewiatkowski Award, says that despite advances in diagnosis and patient care, it is still not fully understood why advanced prostate cancer cells are prone to metastasize to the skeleton and, in turn, stimulate the formation of abnormal bone which, ultimately, affects a patient’s quality of life.

Prostate cancer is estimated to cause approximately 31,000 deaths annually in the U.S.

“It appears that bone is an ideal place for prostate cancer cells to grow and survive,” Schneider said. “A variety of bone-specific factors provide a fertile environment that enable prostate cancer cells to thrive in the skeleton and cause abnormal bone formation.”

Using novel experimental models, his research is attempting to learn why that occurs.

Schneider said he’s determined that when cancer cells are injected into mice,

Do Bones Supportand Spread OneType of Cancer?

School of Dentistry Researcher Seeking

Answers

Takes Top Prize - Hypertension Affects Dental Treatment

Photo courtesy of Sara Kellogg


Dr. Moon Bina Park, a graduate of the School of Dentistry’s orthodontic training program, recently was awarded the Harry Sicher First Research Essay Award by the American Association of Orthodontics. The annual award is given by AAO for an individual’s meritorious first research effort. Park, who worked in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Ignelzi, examined genes that control new bone formation in her project, A Profile of Gene Expression During Mandibular Distraction Osteogenesis. Distraction osteogenesis is the formation of new bone (osteogenesis) triggered by the gradual separation (distraction) of a bone that has been cut. If a bone is cut and gradually distracted, new bone grows between the two cut ends. Ignelzi said Park’s work is significant for two reasons. “First, mandibular deficiency is the third most common human birth defect affecting the face and skull. Although distraction osteogenesis has quickly become state of the art to correct human mandibular deficiency, we have little insight into the genes that control the formation of new bones,” he said. Ignelzi said Park’s work also has implications for tissue engineering. “By applying force to the mandible to stimulate the growth of new bone, we avoid a major problem, the rejection of artificial materials by the body.” Park’s project was a part of a larger collaboration Ignelzi and his research team has with a group at Stanford University. U-M School of Dentistry students have won five of the past seven Sicher First Research Essay awards.

they frequently metastasize to joints of the lower limb and to the craniofacial region. In a novel noninvasive procedure Schneider and researchers use a bioluminescence molecular imaging system at the U-M Center for Molecular Imaging to track tumors in real-time.

The cancer cells are marked with a gene that generates light, similar to the way fireflies generate light. That light is captured electronically by a camera and displayed on a monitor that enables researchers to view the results of their work immediately and pinpoint the location and the progression of the cancer cells over time.

As to how dentists and their patients might one day benefit from his

Dr. Bina Park Wins AAO Research Essay Award

research, Schneider said that although it doesn’t happen often, dentists need to be aware that prostate cancer cells also metastasize in the craniofacial region.

In addit ion, the knowledge gained from these models about bone remodeling and how tumor-derived factors can modify the bone may help inform practitioners of ways to treat localized bone loss, including cases of periodontal disease.

Presented annually since 1989, the Dziewiatkowski Award honors the memory of Dr. Dominic Dziewiat-kowski, director of the Dental Research Institute from 1967 to 1972 and chair of the Department of Oral Biology from 1967 to 1977.

Dr. Abraham Schneider (left) is presented the Dziewiatkowski Award by Dr. Robert Bradley, Chair of the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences.

Keary Campbell


2 Grad Students Win Major Perio Awards

Talk about an impressive achievement!This spring, two students in the U-M School of

Dentistry’s graduate periodontics program won both major awards from the American Academy of Peridontology.

The residents, Ricardo Gapski and Yong-Hee Chun, each won a $15,000 Abram and Sylvia Chasens Teaching and Research Fellowship from the AAP.

Created two years ago, the annual $30,000 fellowships help graduate students launch their careers in periodontal education. To be considered for the award, candidates must be third-year students enrolled in an accredited periodontal program in the U.S. or Canada. They must also express a desire to pursue a career in periodontal education.

Both Gapski and Chun received a Master of Science degree in periodontics during commencement ceremonies this spring.

Ricardo GapskiGapski said his desire to teach periodontics was

influenced by his clinical and volunteer experiences both during and after earning his dental degree from the Federal University of Parana State in Curitiba, Brazil.

Michigan, he said, “changed me professionally and personally, making me enthusiastic toward a new path, investigating and teaching.”

Reflecting on his experiences in Brazil and at Michigan, Gapski said he has enjoyed teaching and would like to use his experiences in clinics and classrooms to enhance the quality of life for all patients. “Since teaching is a two-way street,” he said, “I am confident that I have the skills as an instructor to share my knowledge with students, while enhancing my own.”

Yong-Hee ChunChun came to U-M School of Dentistry after earning

her dental degree and Doctor of Dental Medicine degree at the University of Goettingen, Germany. She then worked as a clinical assistant professor in operative dentistry and

endodontics at the Charite, Humboldt University in Germany.As she worked for her DMD degree she realized “that restoring a tooth and preventing it from caries was one thing, but when confronted with periodontal disease, even a perfect tooth-colored state-of-the-art restoration cannot prevent a tooth from being lost.”

Studying periodontics at U-M and hearing lectures by scientists “has been an eye opening experience for me,” Chun said. “I’m fascinated by the fact that clinical events are simulated and tested at the molecular level.”

Reflecting on her laboratory experiences, Chun said conventional periodontal therapy alone is not entirely sufficient to correct or prevent periodontal disease. That realization has led to a greater interest in periodontal regeneration.

Chun said she hopes to work toward better understanding the processes of developing periodontal tissues.

Dr. Laurie McCauley, chair of the Department of Periodontics, Prevention, and Geriatrics said, “The fact that two of our students won this award is a great testimonial to the quality of our graduate periodontics program.”

Per Kjeldsen

Yong-Hee Chun and Ricardo Gapski both won a $15,000 from the American Academy of Periodontology to help them launch their careers in periodontal education.

School News


They came from Detroit, Ann Arbor, Dexter, Ypsilanti, South Lyon, and other parts of Michigan. One parent and her son arrived as early as 7:30 a.m., an hour-and-a-half prior to the start of the program.

More than 100 student athletes were at the School of Dentistry July 26 to receive free customized mouth guards made by dental students who were supervised by faculty members.

The young athletes who were fitted for the mouth guards said they would use their new piece of protective equipment in sports including football, ice hockey, soccer, and wrestling.

The annual clinic, now in its 16th year, is organized by the dental school’s Student Council which invited all dental students to participate. It’s an opportunity for them and faculty members to serve the community and a way for the students and faculty to interact in a less formal, more relaxed environment.

Dental Students Enthused“I really enjoyed doing this for the first time last

year, so that’s why I participated again this year,” said fourth-year dental student Reneelyn Salud.

Paris Vaughn, a third-year dental student, said this was the first time he participated in the mouth guard clinic. “I saw pictures of previous clinics and it looked like fun, so I decided to join in,” he said.

Third-year dental student and dental student council president Susie Sandstrom, said, “this year’s clinic was great. We had a lot of student and faculty participation and more than 100 kids and adults from many different communities who were fitted. I can’t wait to do it again next summer.”

As the young athletes waited in the lobby, Joan McGowan, associate professor of dental hygiene, talked to them and provided information about the dangers of spit tobacco.

School News

Jerry Mastey

Student Dentists Make CustomizedMouth Guards for Young Athletes

Dr. Sharon Brooks discusses the importance of mouth guards with a reporter from Ann Arbor Community TV.

Dr. Ken May checks the mouth guard

made for 13-year-old Anthony

Rossetto of South Lyon to ensure a proper fit. Since

he plays football, Anthony asked for

and received a strap on his mouth guard.

Third-year dental student Paris

Vaughn explains to a young athlete what

happens after his oral impression has

been taken.

Jerry Mastey

Jerry Mastey


There’s nothing like having a front-row seat in observing and having a hand in shaping policy. That’s what fourth-year dental student Claudia Cotca will tell you. Two years ago, she was selected by the American Student Dental Association to be the ADA’s Washington National Policy extern [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2002, pages 79-80.] Since then, she has returned monthly to the nation’s capitol to participate in the dynamics of the policy-making process. She shared some of her recent experiences and observations.

March 11 & 12: Invited by Richard Green, director of communications for the ADA’s Congressional office in Washington to attend the ADA Washington Leadership Conference. Legislative briefings, Capitol Hill hearings, meetings with legislators and staff kept the session intense and relevant for active grassroots leaders from around the nation. Ergonomics, amalgam, Medicare and Medicaid coverage, children’s health, and oral health disparities were among the topics discussed.

March 28: Invited by Julie Allen Scott, ADA health care consultant and project manager, to attend the Bioterrorism Conference co-sponsored by the ADA and the Department of Health and Human Services. I was extremely pleased to witness the White House’s recognition of the dental profession as a leader in supporting new programs of the Office of Homeland Security. The government is counting on dentists and physicians to play a major role in using their professional expertise to help the public cope with biological and/or chemical weapons emergencies. As the oral health care profession has assumed more responsibility, the government has appropriated funding for Universities to participate in preparing education/information programs to help with this new role. [Editor’s Note: See page 44 for story about Dr. William Giannobile’s efforts to develop kit to analyze saliva for periodontal disease and potential biological toxins.]

May 8: I attended the House Wellness and Human Rights Subcommittee Hearing in Government Reform on Amalgam chaired by Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN) and led by Rep. Diane E. Watson (D-CA). The ADA testified against the claims of amalgam-related mercury hypersensitivity and toxicity. The committee heard evidence from sources including research supported by the FDA, ADA, CDC, and World Health Organization. I am working to arrange showing a videotape of this important hearing at the School of Dentistry. There are more complications to this issue than meet the eye. These include the government taking a leading role in supporting the removal of amalgam from the marketplace, assuming some financial responsibility for this action, and maintaining the integrity of the profession. Another complicating factor involves the rules and regulations dentists must follow, especially limited fees associated with Medicare and

A Front-Row Seat in Policy MakingDental Student Claudia Cotca Shares Her Experiences


Medicaid coverage of composite restorations. The bottom line from this hearing seems to be that as composites improve and policy is enacted that supports the use of new materials being developed, amalgam may no longer be used.

May 21: President’s dinner. I was invited by Dorothy Moss, director of the ADA’s Government Affairs Office in Washington, D.C, and attended with ADA Executive Director, Dr. James Bramson; ADA lobbyists Judy Sherman, Mike Graham, and Bill Prentice; ADA Political Action Committee (ADPAC) director Frank McLaughlin; Dr. Ed Vigna, ADPAC treasurer; and School of Dentistry alumna Dr. Jane Grover (DDS, 1979), ADPAC chair. I was impressed at how effective the dental profession is in leading and adapting to numerous economic and political changes. Unappreciated by many, this flexibility has led to thorough reviews and recommendations on the best ways to practice dentistry which are significant, both nationally and internationally. I’m especially interested in how these changes and recommendations can help to improve oral health care in countries whose economies are in transition.

May 27: Lobbied with the Global Health Council at the Capitol. Attended meetings with officials in the offices of Senators Elizabeth Dole and Carl Levin, and Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Livonia, MI) to discuss the Millennium Challenge Account. This White House-initiated proposal of $1.3 billion would help countries whose economies are in transition provide health care services. Also discussed was the Children’s Dental Health Improvement Act (SB 1142) which provides funds to states to administer oral health care services to children.

May 30 & 31: Guest of ADA Council on Governmental Affairs. ADA is informed by NIDCR of emphasis on oral health disparities by NIDCR director Dr. Lawrence Tabak and Dr. Dushanka Kleinman, chief dental officer of the U.S. Public Health Service. I was delighted to hear Dr. Kleinman praise, in particular, the School of Dentistry’s Dr. Amid Ismail for his work investigating oral health disparities in Detroit. At this time, the ADA is informed by members of the National Governors Association that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are proposing a change that would result in canceling funding for about 3,000 dental residency programs at dental schools around the country. The reasons for this proposal are unknown presently. Since then, the ADA has met with Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson and other officials on Capitol Hill seeking to halt the proposed move. Other topics discussed include women’s health, oral health and disability, and children’s health.

Following the President’s dinner in Washington, D.C., fourth-year dental student Claudia Cotca (right); School of Dentistry alumna and ADA Political Action Committee chair, Jane Grover (second from right); and Dr. Ed Vigna, ADPAC treasurer get together for a picture with Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, Orrin Hatch (R-Utah).

Photo by Reflections Photography, Washington D.C.


Patricia Schultz, admin-istrative associate in the Office of Research at the School of Dentistry, recently received a major award for her work from the University’s Office of Vice President for Research. She was one of three from across the U-M campus to receive the Distinguished Research Administrator Award.

The annual award honors individuals “from any unit at the University who have demonstrated over a number of years d i s t ingu ished service exemplifying the goals of professional research administration.”

Prior to presenting the award, Fawwaz Ulaby, U-M vice president for research, described Schultz as “a person who goes about doing her job without fanfare or calling attention to her efforts.”

Schultz joined the School’s Office of Research as its first administrator in the summer of 1995. In addition to serving as the School’s primary research administrator, Schultz also administers the School’s Oral Health Sciences doctoral program and supports the School’s Center for Craniofacial Regeneration, formerly known as the Center for the Biorestoration of Oral Health.

One nominator characterized Schultz as “a cherished resource who has been essential for the success of our research activities.”

In addition to her activities at the School, Schultz has also made contributions to research administration across campus. She has served on committees developing electronic administrative systems and has worked to develop the Research Administrators Instructional Network.

Schultz is a member of the American Association for Dental Research and the Society of Research Administrators.

SchultzWinsDistinguishedResearch Administrator Award

The School of Dentistry recently hosted its fifth annual awards program for staff members with more than 10 years of continuous service.

13HonoredforLong-TermService

Keary Campbell

Honored for 10 years of service were: Front row (left to right): Chris Strayhorn, Ed Steinman, Pattie Katcher, and Nancy von Hofe. Back row: Judy Schmidt, Pamela Horvath, Marie Navarre, Coral Adas, and Amy Reyes. Also receiving a 10-year award but not pictured was Doreen Fitzgerald.

Kumud Danak, administrator in the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences, was recognized for 20 years of service.

Honored for 30 years of service were Bobby Newton (left), and Bonnie Loepke, Department of Periodontics, Prevention, and Geriatrics.

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell

Keary Campbell


his October 16th marked the 100th anniversary of the death of the founder of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Dr. Jonathan Taft. Dr.Taft

was also a leader in the dental profession – locally, nationally, and internationally. Born in 1820 in Russellville, Ohio (a town of about 500 approximately 42 miles southeast of Cincinnati and 15 miles north of the Ohio River), Taft began studying dentistry in 1841. Two years later he entered private practice and published his first article as a dental professional in 1847. (The first dental school in the nation, Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, was founded in 1840, followed by the Ohio College of Dental Surgery in 1845. So at the time Dr. Taft began

Dr. Jonathan Taft

to practice, dental degrees were uncommon and difficult to obtain.) In 1850, Dr. Taft earned his DDS degree from the Ohio College of Dental Surgery. In 1854, he joined the College’s faculty and became its dean in 1858. Dr. Taft continued to publish actively for over 60 years. Several articles were slated for publication at the time of his death in 1903. In 1858, he was already the editor of the nationally-regarded journal, Dental Register of the West, which he later co-edited with his friend, George Watt, DDS, until Watt died in 1893. Following Watt’s death, Dr. Taft was the publication’s editor until relinquishing the role to Dr. Nelville Hoff in 1900.

Noted Author and Prominent Leader In 1859, Dr. Taft published the first edition of the textbook, Taft’s Operative Dentistry, which, through several editions, remained the definitive work on this topic until his death. During his professional career, Dr. Taft held a number of leadership positions in dental organizations including: • President, American Dental Association (1868-1869). • Co-founder, National Association of Dental Examiners (1883). • First President, National Association of Dental Examiners (1883; reelected in 1884, 1885, and 1886). • Co-founder, National Association of Dental Faculty (1884). • President, International Medical Congress, Section XVII: Dental and Oral Surgery (1887).

A Centennial Review of the Achievements of By Patricia Anderson, U-M School of Dentistry Librarian

Dr. Jonathan Taft (1820-1903)

This photo of Dr. Jonathan Taft, which appeared in the School of Dentistry’s Alumni Bulletin in 1971, is believed to have been taken when the dental department was located in a building which was on the site of the current Chemistry Building on North University Avenue. The photo was acquired from Arthur Forbes, assistant professor of English. His son, Robert Norman Forbes, was valedictorian of the Dental Class of 1898.

DentalUM Fall 2003 81DentalDentalUM Fall 2003UM Fall 2003DentalDentalUM Fall 2003DentalDental 8181

• President, National Association of Dental Faculty (1899-1900).

• Chairman, American Medical Association, Section of Oral and Dental Surgery (1892). • Executive Committee, World’s Columbian Dental Congress (1892-1894).

Building the U-M College of Dental Surgery

The Michigan State Dental Association aggressively recruited Dr. Taft for the deanship of the U-M College of Dental Surgery (as it was called at the time of the College’s creation in 1875).

Two years later, Dr. Taft was inducted into the Michigan Dental Association and in 1881 received the honorary degree of Doctor of Medicine from U-M.

Dr. Taft successfully shepherded the College of Dental Surgery through its early years, defining goals and standards for the College, lobbying for improved facilities, and refining the curriculum. That effort culminated in 1900 with the adoption of the first four-year program leading to a dental degree.

It was no coincidence that the first significant discussions of professional ethics in dentistry involved Dr. Taft and George Watt in the late 1850s. The first national code of dental professional ethics was adopted by the American Dental Association in 1866. Dr. Watt chaired the committee that drafted the code of ethics.

In an editorial endorsing the new code of ethics, Dr. Taft stated it covered the same ground as a similar code in Ohio. Ohio adopted the national code in 1866 and Michigan followed suit in 1877, shortly after Dr. Taft became dean at Michigan.

Dr. Taft was also recognized as a leading supporter of women in the dental profession, serving as a mentor to both Lucy Beaman Hobbs Taylor and Ida Gray. Taylor was the first woman in the nation to receive a degree in dentistry, from the Ohio College of Dental Surgery in 1866. Gray was the first African-American woman to earn a dental degree, in 1890, from the University of Michigan College of Dentistry. In another pioneering endeavor, Dr. Taft was the first dentist to testify in an American court using bitemarks as evidence. Truly an innovator and leader, it was only fitting that upon his death, obituaries and tributes were published in over 20 of the leading dental journals of the time. One of those tributes was from the Faculty of the College of Dental Surgery of the University of Michigan adopted October 23, 1903. It read, in part:

He labored to make this a leading school for training men to the highest ideals of professional culture, that through its alumni, professional standard might be upheld and public service of the highest grade be secured.

His personal efforts have ceased forever, but his spirit remains to complete the work he designed.

Additional information about Dr. Taft can be found on the University of Michigan Dentistry Library Web site: www.lib.umich.edu/denlib/about/exhibits/taft. Or you can visit the new exhibit about Dr. Taft at the School of Dentistry’s Sindecuse Museum.

the 1st Dean of the U-M School of Dentistry



Alumni News

School of Dentistry Alums in MDA Leadership Roles

Adam Hogan (DDS 2003) is now doing his general practice residency with the U.S. Navy in Portsmouth, Virginia. Before graduating, he was awarded the prestigious Delta Dental Fund Student Leadership Award for his outstanding leadership, volunteerism, and activities in the dental profession and the community. The award, which included a cash gift of $2,500, recognized Hogan for his leadership and potential to contribute to the profession. Hogan was student council president and vice president and directed the 2001 mouth guard clinic.

Paula Sweeney (DH 1994), who is working as a regional practice manager for Dental Care Partners overseeing the operations of five Detroit area offices, recently earned a master’s degree in Health Services Administration from the University of Detroit. She also received the Dean’s Scholastic Achievement Award and the American College of Health Care Executives Achievement Award.

Carol A. Lefebvre (DDS 1983; MS, prosthodontics 1986) is the new editor of The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. A professor of oral rehabilitation at the Medical College of Georgia School of Dentistry, Lefebvre is a diplomate of the American Board of Prosthodontics and a fellow of the

Class Notes

Six graduates of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry were recently elected to leadership positions with the Michigan Dental Association for 2003-2004. They are:

• Dr. Raymond Gist, Class of 1966: new MDA president [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2003, pages 29-31].

• Dr. George Goodis, Class of 1964: president-elect.• Dr. Josef Kolling Class of 1981: elected to the newly-

created position of vice president.• Dr. Joanne Dawley, Class of 1980: secretary.• Dr. Steve Dater, Class of 1988: treasurer.• Dr. Wayne Colquitt, Class of 1968, joined the MDA’s

Board of Trustees representing the Washtenaw District.

Academy of Prosthodontics. In 1996, she received the Medical College of Georgia’s Teaching Excellence Award. Six years later, her department received a Department Award for Teaching Excellence from the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

Gary Berman (DDS 1981), has been elected president of the American Society of Forensic Odontology. The organization, with more than 1,100 members in 26 countries, is the largest organization dedicated to the pursuit of forensic dentistry. Berman, who has more than 10 years experience identifying the remains of individuals from disasters, was called to Ground Zero hours after two jets slammed into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. [DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2002, pages 51-53.]

Scott Arbit (MS orthodontics, 1978) was recently elected president of the Wisconsin Society of Orthodontists for a one-year term. He has served as president of the Wisconsin Society of Dentistry for Children and has lectured for the

New MDA OfficeKolling, MDA secretary from 2002-2003, is the first person

to be elected to the new position of vice president. This is the first step in a three-year succession that leads to

the presidency of the organization. Kolling’s one-year term as president of the 6,100 member organization will begin in mid-May in 2005.

“This is a new office for me and one that’s been re-established by the MDA,” Kolling said. The MDA abolished the office of vice president in 1979 and in its place established the Board of Trustees and House of Delegates.

Kolling served a maximum of two consecutive three-year terms as a member of the Board of Trustees representing the Washtenaw District.



Wisconsin Dental Association on temporo-mandibular joint diagnosis and treatment as well as on leading edge retainer techniques. Arbit, who has served on numerous professional and community boards and is involved in philanthropy, has also written articles on TMJ and cleft palate.

Capt. Kimon Rumanes (DDS 1978) has moved to a new job at the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery where he is working with the staff of the Chief of the Navy Dental Corps in Washington, D.C. For the past three years he was commanding officer of the Naval Dental Center Southeast, based in Jacksonville, Florida. In his new role, Rumanes will work on homeland defense coordination, HIPPA issues, implementing digital radiography throughout all Navy clinics, dental office design on ships, and other matters.

Jack B ates (DDS 1941) [DentalUM, Fall 2001, pages 20-25] seems to be enjoying using his computer and learning how to use his new scanner. “I’m turning a lot of photographic negatives and slides into prints. My father left me 30 slides he made up years ago showing early scenes of my home town of Ovid, Michigan, and I was able to get those into prints. …I’m now starting to print many negatives of pictures I took ever since 1935 in my hometown. That should keep me out of mischief for most of the summer. It’s fun and exciting.”

’71 Dr. James G. PagonisMay 3, 2003

’71 Dr. Gary J. GarwoodGlastonbury, Connecticut April 27, 2003

‘75 Dr. Stephen L. Miller Fenton, Michigan

July 20, 2003

In Memoriam


Dr. Herschel S. Horowitz

Dr. Herschel S. Horowitz (DDS, 1956), died at his home in Bethesda, Maryland, Aug. 10. He was 71.

After earning a master’s degree in public health in 1960, he spent his career as an advocate of community water fluoridation, both nationally and internationally.

Among the awards he received included the International Association for Dental Research’s H. Trendly Dean Award for distinguished accomplishments in research and development in behavioral science, epidemiology, and public health; the Association of Public Health Dentistry’s Distinguished Service Award, and the American Public Health Association’s John Knutson Distinguished Service Award in Dental Public Health.

“I worked with Dr. Horowitz,” said Dr. William Maas, Director, Division of Oral Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and retired Assistant Surgeon General, U.S. Public Health Service. “He received the highest awards his specialty can bestow and contributed to the oral health of hundreds of millions of people throughout the world.”


What’s New with You?Your Classmates Want to Know!

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mailSend news about your latest personal or professional achievement, award, or honor, along with a picture (black and white or color) to: Jerry Mastey, editor DentalUM, University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, 1011 N. University Avenue, Room 1209, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078.

The Ties That BindA new pedestrian bridge connecting the University’s Central Campus and the U-M Medical Center officially opened near the new Life Sciences Institute on September 15.

From opposite sides of the bridge that spans Washtenaw Avenue near Zina Pitcher Drive, deans from several schools and colleges unwound a 100-yard spool of ribbon. When both groups met at the center of the walkway, they tied the two ribbons together under an arch of maize and blue balloons.

Among the deans from Central Campus participating in the ceremony included Dr. Peter Polverini (right), dean of the School of Dentistry; George Kenyon, dean of the College of Pharmacy (center); and Liz Barry (right), managing director of the Life Sciences Institute.

They joined Dean Allen Lichter of School of Medicine and Dean Noreen Clark from the School of Public Health.

Several offices in the Life Sciences Institute, the physical focal point of the Life Sciences Initiative, also opened that day. The 230,000 square foot facility is one of three new buildings that are part of the life sciences initiative.

Per Kjeldsen

Per Kjeldsen

Upcoming Continuing Dental Education Courses

December 15-17, 2003 (Monday-Wednesday)Local Anesthesia for Dental HygienistsInstructors: Prof. Wendy Kerschbaum, Karen Ridley, Christine Klausner

This course, which includes 15 hours of classroom instruction and 14 hours of clinical training, introduces dental hygienists to the essential skills and knowledge for safe and effective administration of local anesthesia. Participants work in groups of three and will administer local anesthesia on each other.

January 14, 2004 (Wednesday)Kenneth J. Ryan, DDS Memorial Seminar: Maximizing Your Artistic Talent in Esthetic Dentistry and the Interdisciplinary ApproachInstructor: Ronald Goldstein, DDS

The morning section of this two-part course will focus on perfecting the artistic side of dentistry. This presentation will deal with visualization, one of the important elements in improving esthetic restorations. The afternoon section will offer guidelines on ways to obtain the best esthetic results, including profile considerations.

February 7, 2004 (Saturday)Associateships and Practice Buy-Ins: A Course for Established and New DentistsInstructor: Darrell W. Cain, CPA

Whether you’re an established dentist considering hiring an associate or thinking about selling your practice…or if you’re a new dentist who’s thinking about becoming an associate or purchasing a practice…this course is for you. Darrell W. Cain, president of a certified public accounting firm who has negotiated the sale of over 400 dental practices, will describe the advantages and disadvantages of associateships vs. buy-ins and also provide practical advice on how to minimize the tax burden for both buyer and seller.

For more information about these and other continuing dental education courses, contact:

University of MichiganSchool of Dentistry

Office of ContinuingDental Education

1011 N. UniversityRoom G508Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078Phone: (734) 763-5070Fax: (734) 936-3065www.dent.umich.edu

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