College of Dentistry and Dental Clinics

Dean's Message

Our work matters. It matters to our patients, our students, to Iowa, and to one another. October is National Dental Hygienist Month. Our dental hygienists, along with our dental assistants, office staff, maintenance teams, business office, and other support staff, make us who we are. Your support, conscientiousness, and dedication ensures that we meet the needs of each and every patient that comes in our door, and that, in turn, improves the oral health across the State of Iowa. The work that you do is vitally important for us to accomplish our mission and vision. You are the face that people see, the hands that serve others, and feet that move us forward. Thank you for your on-going efforts to use your time, gifts, and talents to make us what we are. It matters! Cheers! ~Clark Stanford

Updates for October 13, 2023–October 19, 2023

Azeez Butali

Azeez Butali named as endowed professor

Azeez Butali was named the Gilbert E. Lilly Professor of Diagnostic Sciences at the University of Iowa. Butali is a global leader in cleft lip and palate research and the world’s foremost expert in the genetics of these conditions in African populations.

Zach Graham

Third-year dental student Zach Graham profiled

The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier profiled third-year dental Zach Graham, who served in the U.S. Army and was named a 2023 Pat Tillman Scholar. You can read more about Graham's story in The Courier

Dan Caplan receiving his Educator of the Year award

Dan Caplan ('88 DDS) named 2023 Educator of the Year

Professor Dan Caplan, a 1988 graduate of the College of Dentistry and head of the college’s Department of Preventive and Community Dentistry from 2007- 2022, is named 2023 Educator of the Year. For Dan, who grew up in Iowa City in a family that valued education, the opportunity to shape future dentists and the school that teaches them has been a gratifying experience.

Leo Marchini

Iowa expert featured on Art of Aging podcast

Professor and chair of Preventive and Community Dentistry Leo Marchini, professor and chair of preventive and community dentistry, was featured in two episodes of The Art of Aging podcast. In the first podcast episode, first published last week, Marchini discussed oral health among older adults, the importance of dental care on oral health, and much more. In the second podcast episode, he discussed ageism in dental care. 

Sandra Guzman-Armstrong

Iowa plays prominent role in AAC Annual Meeting

Sandra Guzman-Armstrong, clinical professor of operative dentistry and president of the American Academy of Cariology (AAC), presided over the AAC's Annual Meeting in San Diego. Guzman-Armstrong was a founding member of the organization and served in various other roles prior to assuming the presidency. Iowa had several faculty, graduate students, and post-doctoral researchers in attendance. Teresa Marshall, professor of preventive and community dentistry, attended the conference and said that it was fantastic. 

Mary Tandon

Mary Tandon serves as fellow for AIDPH

Mary Tandon ('10 DDS, '23 DPH) is an associate at the University of Iowa who works with fourth-year dental students. Previously, she worked as a dentist for Federally Qualified Health Centers in Arizona and California and served as an adjunct faculty member at A.T. Still University in Mesa, Arizona. For her summer fellowship for the American Institute of Dental Public Health, Tandon worked on the healthcare infrastructure in Iowa, highlighting the VHA, University/Hospital, and FQHC resources.

McAllister Castelaz

Dental public health graduate student updates issue brief for ASTDD

McAllister Castelaz, a second-year dental public health graduate student in the Department of Preventive and Community Dentistry, worked with the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) to update their issue brief on mobile and portable school-based oral health programs. The issue brief discusses why school-based oral health initiatives are needed, identifies challenges for such programs, and outlined resources and structures that can help meet those challenges.  The ASTDD is a national non-profit organization representing the directors and staff of state/territorial public health agency programs for oral health.

Dental students and dentists are the IDA social event

Dentist-Dental Student Social Event

A great crowd of dentists, dental graduate students, residents, and dental students kicked off Iowa's Homecoming weekend on Friday, October 6. The event, sponsored by the Iowa Dental Association's New Dentist Committee, IASDA, and Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust, gave everyone an opportunity to network and gear up for a homecoming victory. The Iowa Dental Association's Facebook page has additional photos from the event.

IMOM

IMOM starts today!

The Iowa Mission of Mercy IMOM provides free dental care to underserved populations. Since 2008, it is has served over 16,000 patients from all over the state. Iowa Dentistry has played an influential role in supporting IMOM, especially on Saturday. The 2023 IMOM is being held in Waterloo on October 13-14.
 
Tigerhawk flag at an Iowa football game

Pediatric Dentistry CE Course

On October 20, the Nowak Professorship – Pediatric Dentistry CE course will be offered. This course is always well-received, and this year, it has been structured to bring together health care experts and providers from multiple disciplines and to increase the understanding of attendees regarding oral manifestations of systemic disease, allergic reactions, immunocompromised patients, anti-neoplastic therapies, common pediatric oral pathologies, oral biopsy techniques, and treatment regimens for painful oral conditions. 

Events

October 13-14, IMOM, Waterloo Convention Center, Sullivan Brothers Plaza, 200 W Fourth Street, Waterloo, IA.

October 20, Nowak Professorship: Pediatric Dentistry Course, 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

October 20, Prospective DDS Student Interview Day

October 21, Pregame Professional Program: "Oral Pathology Patients that Taught Me the Most" by Dr. Steve Vincent; "Infection Control: What's Trending Now" by Dr. Carrie McKnight, 8:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m.

November 3, Prospective DDS Student Interview Day

November 9, Prospective DDS Student Interview Day

November 14, Research Seminar, Jamie Nichols, School of Dental Medicine, University of Colorado–AMC, "Buffering craniofacial variation," hosted by Eric Van Otterloo, Galagan B, 12:00–1:00 p.m.

November 15, Virtual Prospective DDS Student Interview Day

November 30, Research Seminar, Ronald Strauss, Adams School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, "Blessings in Disguise: Finding Wisdom from Facial Difference", hosted by Steve Levy, Galagan B, 12:00–1:00 p.m.

Notes and Resources 

Filling Station Menu

Hours: M-R: 7:30 a.m.–4:00 p.m.; F: 7:30 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

The Hawkeye Smile banner image shows Dean Clark Stanford with Jin Xie, associate dean for research, with Herky along with several others during the Iowa Section of the AADOCR in 2022.

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