DentalUM Spring/Summer 2004

DentalUM
Spring & Summer 2004 Volume 20, Number 1
DentalUM magazine is published twice a year by the

University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Office of Saluting the
Alumni Relations and Continuing Dental Education.
Mail letters and updates to: Jerry Mastey, Editor, School

“Unsung Heroes”
of Dentistry, Room 1205, 1011 N. University Ave., Ann
Arbor, MI 48109-1078. Or you may send your letters and
updates via email to: jmastey@umich.edu.
The faces of the people who appear on the cover of this issue of
Dean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Peter Polverini DentalUM may not be familiar to many of you.
Director of External Relations and
Continuing Dental Education . . . . . Richard Fetchiet These individuals, and others like them, are some of our “unsung
Writer & Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jerry Mastey heroes” who perform the vital tasks that ensure the smooth operation
Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chris Jung
Photography . . . . . . Per H. Kjeldsen, Keary Campbell of this School day-in and day-out.
Our unsung heroes include individuals like John Squires who
Member publication of the American
Association of Dental Editors makes sure all audio/visual equipment is running properly before
The Regents of the University:
administrators and faculty make presentations.
David A. Brandon, Laurence B. Deitch, Olivia P. Maynard, Others, like Rob Berg and Jon Sniderman, repair and maintain
Rebecca McGowan, Andrea Fischer Newman, Andrew C.
Richner, S. Martin Taylor, Katherine E. White, Mary Sue
dental equipment valued at more than $6 million.
Coleman, ex officio. Nancy Gee provides useful information to patients and prospective
University of Michigan School of Dentistry patients seeking to schedule appointments in our clinics.
Alumni Society Board of Governors Diane Nixon is a crucial link to the School’s clinics, information
Terms Expire 2004: desks, telephone switchboard operators, patients, insurance
William J. Costello, ‘70, East Lansing, MI (Chair)
Susan Carron, ‘77, ‘79, Farmington Hills, MI companies, and vendors.
Anne Diederich Gwozdek, ‘73 DH, Dexter, MI Mary Gaynor reviews the records of hundreds of students and
Richard L. Pascoe, ‘70, Traverse City, MI
Terry Timm, ‘71, Saline, MI advises them about their potential eligibility for financial aid.
Terms Expire 2005: Ed Steinman manages and secures huge amounts of data
Joseph T. Barss ‘80, Chicago, IL
Eli Berger, ‘57, ‘61, West Bloomfield, MI (Vice chair) generated by students, faculty, and staff.
William E. Brownscombe, ‘74, St. Clair Shores, MI Tim Deventer delivers important packages and supplies
Janet Cook, ‘81 DH, Whitmore Lake, MI
Thomas P. Osborn, ‘68, Bloomfield Hills, MI throughout the School.
Terms Expire 2006: Jeremy Towler ships and tracks commercial lab work for patients
Danield L. Edwards, ‘97, Ann Arbor, MI of dental students.
Gerald L. Howe, ‘61, Monroe, MI
Gary R. Hubbard, ‘78, Okemos, MI Kimberly Smith answers questions patients have at one of our
Michel S. Nasif, ‘72, Lansing, MI
Janet Souder Wilson, ‘73 DH, Northville, MI
information desks.
Student Representative: Julian (J.P.) Miller (D3) Two others also featured, Dorothy Smith-Fesl and Georgia Kasko,
Ex Officio Members: have been responsible for some of the School’s major renovation
Peter Polverini, Dean projects.
Dr. Thomas C. Pink, ‘69, ‘72, Alumni Association Liaison
Steve C. Grafton , Executive Director, Alumni Assoc. I hope you’ll take time to read their stories. They and the other
Richard R. Fetchiet, Director of External Relations and unsung heroes who work behind the scenes help those of us who are
Continuing Dental Education
administrators and members of the faculty succeed in many of our
The University of Michigan, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action
employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding ventures.
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 Sincerely,
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.
Peter Polverini, Dean
DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 1

In This Issue . . .
COVER STORY
30
Unsung Heroes
Every organization has individuals who, without fanfare, work
behind the scenes to ensure the smooth operation of that
enterprise. The U-M School of Dentistry is no exception. This issue
of DentalUM features some of our many “unsung heroes” and how
their efforts contribute to the School’s success.
Design by Chris Jung. Photos by Per Kjeldsen and Keary Campbell.
FEATURES
4 New Fundraising Campaign, The Michigan Difference, Begins

4 – Special Committee Completes Campaign Planning
7 – School’s Goal: $35 Million for Top Priorities
11 Up and Running! The Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic (west wing)

A new era in dental education is underway at the U-M School of
Dentistry. Because of a generous $2 million dollar commitment
from Dr. Roy Roberts (DDS 1932) and his wife, Natalie, students
11

are now using the latest technology that brings dentistry directly
to their desktops.
19 Alumnus Profile – Dr. William Costello

In high school, he thought about becoming an architect or an
engineer. But after observing how his family dentist treated his
brother, William Costello decided to pursue a career in dentistry.
In the mid-1970s, he improved a product dentists were using and
built a multimillion dollar company that now has customers in all 50
states, Canada, and Europe; employs 300; and has sales offices in 13
U.S. cities.
19 26

Students Give Kids a Smile
About 100 dental and dental hygiene students, several predental
students, faculty, and staff responded enthusiastically to the Give
Kids a Smile program in February.
28 Margaret Gingrich: Fifth Family Member to Receive DDS from

U-M School of Dentistry
May was not the first time members of the Gingrich family have
attended a U-M School of Dentistry graduation ceremony. It was
the fifth. Before Margaret Gingrich received her dental degree in
May, four other members of her family preceded her.
26
2 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004
Spring & Summer 2004
48 Preparing for the Worst, Hoping for the Best

Whether it’s a SARS outbreak, an influenza pandemic, or bioterrorism, Dr.
Dennis Lopatin is working with officials throughout Michigan to ensure
that the skills and expertise dental professionals have acquired can help
public authorities and the public at large in a widespread emergency.
50 Ignelzi Recommendation to ADA Draws Comment

Dr. Michael Ignelzi’s recommendation to the American Dental Association

that parents take their children to see a dentist when they’re 1 year old has
drawn comment, including one letter from an anguished parent.
52
52 Faculty Profile: Dr. George Taylor
Tenacious. An achiever. Focused. These are a few words that can be used
to describe Dr. George Taylor. But after talking to him and getting to know
him, other words come to mind: realist, adaptable, grateful.
65 2nd Annual Coating Ceremony
69 Then and Now...Serving Near and Far

Dr. Dick Nieusma (DDS 1956), Dr. Barbara Emerick (DDS 1980), and third-
year dental student Paul Orley vividly demonstrate one person can make

a difference in the lives of many and, in the process, gain profesional and
personal satisfaction.
65
DEPARTMENTS
57 Faculty News
60 Dental Hygiene
60 – DH Class of ’04 Completes First-Ever Senior Class Pledge Drive
61 – Leading on the Ice – Julie Pitel
62 – Expanding a Great Tradition – Community Service
63 – Fall Homecoming, McGowan Award, Sutton receives Scholarships
69
81 Department Report:
Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology
85 Research News
88 Alumni News
91 In Memoriam: Robert Lorey, Richard Reed, Lireka Joseph, Richard Elias,

Kenneth McClatchey, Leon Herschfus, Marvin “Bud” Kanouse,
Robert Ellison
85
New Fundraising Campaign,
The Michigan
Per Kjeldsen
Special Committee
I

t was an extraordinary meeting.
Led by the chair of the School of Dentistry’s
Campaign Planning Committee, Dr. William Costello,
more than a dozen officials from the University and the
School of Dentistry met at the School last fall to discuss
development, and Jo Rahaim, director of gift planning.
School of Dentistry faculty, including Dean Peter
Polverini, staff, and alumni, discussed a number of
initiatives the School is launching as a part of the
campaign and the funds that will be needed in three
the University’s new fundraising campaign and the role major areas — student scholarships, faculty recruiting
the School would play in that effort. and retention, and new facilities and renovations.
As this issue of DentalUM was being printed, both the “The fall meeting was the culmination of some very
University’s and the School’s campaigns were officially intense work that was done during the preceding months
launched. by Diana Neering, our director of development, and Marty
The committee discussed a fundraising goal ranging Bailey, our assistant director of major gifts,” said Rich
from $25 million to $45 million. [More detailed information Fetchiet, director of external relations.
about both campaigns was recently mailed.] “We also involved our alumni to a greater degree
Among those present from the University who than ever,” he added. “Their insights, experiences, and
provided some insights into the new campaign during questions were all crucial in helping us set the stage for
the day-long meeting were Jerry May, vice president for the new campaign.”

Difference, Begins
U-M Vice President for Development, Jerry May, said the
School of Dentistry has great academic and fundraising
leadership to help make the new fundraising campaign a
success.
Per Kjeldsen
School’s Efforts Lauded

In addition to reviewing the University’s previous
campaign and how the new campaign might shape up,
May praised the School of Dentistry’s efforts.
“One element that will be very important in this
new campaign is having great academic and fundraising
leadership,” he said. “Rich, Diana, and Marty are a strong
professional team. And you’re also very fortunate to have
great academic leadership with Peter Polverini as your
new dean.” May praised the work already underway.
Noting the key role the dental school played in the
University’s previous campaign (1990-1997), May said it
would do so again. “This School is one we like to cite as
Completes Campaign Planning

Per Kjeldsen
a model throughout the University to show others how

effective leadership and programs can help,” he said.
Although May did not announce the University’s
fundraising goal during his meeting with the School’s
campaign committee, he did say “we want to far exceed
what we did during the last campaign.” During the last
campaign, the University raised more than $1.4 billion.
The public phase of the new campaign will be conducted
over the next four-and-a-half years, from May 2004
through December 2008.
Volunteers Needed
The success of the new fundraising initiative,
May said, will, in part, be based on “finding as many
volunteers as possible.” Campaign committee members Karl Schettenhelm of the
Mette Foundation (left), Dr. Gary Dwight (center), and Dr. Jay
Citing former President Gerald Ford (Class of 1935) Werschky (right) were among those listening to the remarks
as an example, May said most times volunteers become of Jerry May, U-M vice-president for development.
even more effective after giving.

Per Kjeldsen
U-M Director of Gift
Planning Jo Rahaim
“After he gifted $200,000 to the University, advises members
of the School of
President Ford has been busy calling many Dentistry’s campaign
other people to get involved. What a difference planning committee
to ask potential
he’s made. Because he made his gift, he’s an donors: Have you
even more effective volunteer,” May said. considered putting
the University of
Michigan in your
Goal Setting estate plan?
Citing estimates of $20- to $30-trillion
in wealth being passed from one generation
to another during the next 50 years, Rahaim
Per Kjeldsen
urged volunteers to ask an important question
when meeting with colleagues to solicit gifts:
Have you considered putting the University of
Michigan in your estate plan?
“Increasing numbers of our alumni are
Rich Fetchiet,
including Michigan in their estate plans,” she director of external
said, “and the School of Dentistry has done relations, explains
quite well in planting that seed among its several campaign
fundraising
graduates to do likewise.” goal options
Rahaim told the campaign planning to committee
members.
committee that bequests can be “a very
significant source” of gifts to the University.
“On average, 25 percent of the gifts we now
receive are bequests,” she said.
Although no campaign goal was set
during the fall meeting, Richard Fetchiet,
director of external relations did tell the group
that the School of Dentistry is interested
Per Kjeldsen
in setting “an aggressive, yet realistic and

Campaign
appropriate fundraising goal.” During the committee
previous campaign, the School set a goal of member
raising $10 million. With a generous gift Dr. Darnell
Kaigler, Sr. and
from Dr. Roy Roberts and his wife, Natalie, Diana Neering,
the actual amount of gifts and pledges director of
development,
approached $30 million. enjoy a lighter
moment during
the day-long
meeting.

School’s Goal:
$35 Million for Top Priorities
• Faculty Support
• Student Scholarships
• New and Renovated Facilities
“These are the major priorities and what will be Faculty Support
needed to get the job done.” A major way of attracting and retaining top-quality
So said Richard Fetchiet, director of external relations, faculty members to the School of Dentistry is through
during a day-long meeting last fall to discuss the School endowed professorships.
of Dentistry’s priorities and fundraising goals for the Neering presented the campaign committee with
campaign that officially began in mid-May. information describing the minimum amounts needed
He said the priorities and the dollars needed to meet to establish endowed faculty positions, including
those priorities were developed following months of department chair positions. These professorships and
intensive discussion and planning with administrators the minimum amounts needed to endow the positions
and faculty members in all departments throughout the include:
School as well as alumni. “These plans are aggressive, but • Deanship ($5 million)
we believe they’re realistic and appropriate,” he said. • Professorship or Chair ($2 million)
Fetchiet said Diana Neering, the School’s director of • Visiting Professorship ($1.5 million)
development, and Marty Bailey, assistant director of major • Research Professorship ($1 million)
gifts, have spent hundreds of hours meeting with alumni • Faculty Development Professorship ($1 million)
and faculty to learn more about the School’s pressing • Collegiate Professorship ($500,000)
needs and to organize the campaign’s priorities. With some reports estimating approximately 400
Three major priorities emerged from those discussions. open faculty positions in dental schools across the
They are: country, educators can, in many cases, be highly selective
• Faculty support. about where they want to continue teaching. “Were it not
• Student scholarships. for the endowed faculty positions, it would be impossible
• New and renovated facilities. to keep some of our key faculty members here,” Fetchiet
said.

Student Scholarships New and Renovated Facilities
Most recent U-M School of Dentistry graduates have Facilities in the School of Dentistry building are more
significant levels of debt. than 30 years old and need major renovations to keep
Members of the campaign committee were advised pace with changes in education and technology.
that members of the Class of 2003 had debt levels that Although renovations to the west wing of the Dr.
averaged more than $97,000. Roy Roberts Preclinic Laboratory have been completed,
With costs rising for tuition, instruments, books, funds to begin renovations to the east wing are also
and supplies, today’s dental students have several major needed. Marty Bailey said between $3.5 million and
obstacles their predecessors did not have. $4 million will be needed to renovate that facility
One is that the curriculum is now a full-year program. alone.
By comparison, dental students in the past worked three Dean Peter Polverini also said funds will be needed
months during the summer so they could meet some of for the clinical research initiative designed to accelerate
their expenses. the transfer of research from School laboratories to the
In addition, financial aid packages today are typically chairside. “This is a role we have to take if we are to
70 percent loans and 30 percent grants, the opposite of a remain competitive and one that we will take,” he said.
generation ago. “It will enable us to directly apply to patients in clinics
With in-state costs (tuition, instruments, lab and what is being learned and discovered in laboratories.”
other fees) for first-year dental students now around
$22,750…and the costs for out-of-state students now Scenarios Presented
approximately $36,900…a sustained effort is needed to As the meeting concluded, Fetchiet presented several
help dental students meet their expenses. possible fundraising goals for the new campaign.
Dr. Marilyn Lantz, associate dean for academic Although a final goal was not set at the fall meeting,
affairs, said “the rising cost of dental education is taking a each option the committee reviewed would surpass the
toll and we’re losing good people to other schools because amount raised during the 1990-1997 campaign.
of costs.” Funds would be raised from individuals, corporations,
Dr. Marilyn Woolfolk, assistant dean for student foundations, and also include trusts and bequests.
services, agreed. “The biggest thing I’m hearing is Per Kjeldsen
that students are deciding whether to attend based on

pocketbook issues. So it’s come down to an issue of
affordability,” she said. Campaign
She said between $15,000 and $20,000 in annual committee
scholarship support could help convince a student to member Bruce
attend the U-M School of Dentistry. Foote reviews
a document
outlining some
Dr. William Costello,
Per Kjeldsen
chair of the of the School’s

campaign planning needs.
committee and Dr.
Sondra Gunn, listen
to remarks about
how financial aid
packages to dental
students have
changed during the
past two decades.

Dental Scholarships
Helping U.P. Students
It’s making a difference in the lives of dental students who are
residents of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
That’s the feeling of U-M School of Dentistry dental students who
are the recipients of the Upper Peninsula Dental Student Endowed
Scholarships.
Established in 1995, the scholarships were created to encourage
U.P. students interested in dentistry to pursue their studies and then
return to communities there to practice.
Thirteen individuals have received scholarships. Many have
later returned to the U.P. to practice dentistry.
By now, all DentalUM readers
should have received a copy Criteria
of the School of Dentistry’s To be considered for the scholarship, candidates must meet
new case statement. several qualifications.
It explains in detail the They must: be dental or dental hygiene students at U-M,
School’s fundraising plans for maintain at least a 2.5 grade point average, be graduates of a high
the new campaign known as school in the Upper Peninsula or be a current U.P. resident, and must
The Michigan Difference and have applied and become eligible to receive financial aid.
the many ways you can make a Each student receives $1,000 annually for four years as long as
difference. they remain in good academic standing. The scholarship is awarded
It also contains an by the U-M School of Dentistry’s Office of Academic Affairs.
accounting of how funds On the next page are comments of six students who were
were used during the pre- recipients of the scholarship during the 2003-2004 academic year.
vious fundraising campaign.
If you haven’t received
a copy, or would like extra Previous Recipients
copies to pass along to
other interested individuals,
& Current Hometowns
please contact Dawn Ford • Steven Ouwinga (1998), Escanaba
at (734) 763-3315, or e- • Jason Cook (2002), Ann Arbor
mail your request to her: • Theodore Fornetii (2000), Norway, Wisconsin
fordawn@umich.edu. • Bradley Henson (2000), Marquette
• Benjamin Larrabee (2001), Chicago
• Kristopher Pfotenhauer (2002), Escanaba
• Anthony Sarazin (2003), Escanaba

Angela Abernathy
A second-year dental student, Abernathy, said she chose dentistry as a career because “I love helping and working with people of all
ages, enjoy working with my hands, and enjoy the challenges dentistry presents.”
The scholarship, she said, has enabled her to buy textbooks for her courses. After graduating from U-M, the Marquette native said
she would like “to work for a dentist for a couple of years and then have my own dental practice.” Undecided about where she would
like to practice, Abernathy said she “would possibly like to move back to the U.P. because I love the outdoor activities there.”
Gwen Buck
First-year dental student Gwen Buck said she chose dentistry as a career “because I’ve always wanted to be a scientist, a doctor, and a
person who puts smiles on people’s faces.”
A 2003 graduate of Northern Michigan University, Buck said that after earning her dental degree she plans to practice general
dentistry. “I’d like to be involved in educating children about oral hygiene and occasionally traveling to third world countries providing
dental care to those who cannot afford it.”
Jacqueline Coleman
“Dental school has been a very good experience and I would like to thank those who have contributed to this scholarship. It’s made a
difference in our lives, and we really appreciate it,” said Jacqueline Coleman, a third-year dental student from Negaunee.
She said she chose dentistry because it’s challenging and rewarding. “I love working in a team setting and contributing to make
a difference in someone’s life,” she said. “I also enjoy working with my hands and felt that dentistry was a good fit for me.”
AU.P. resident nearly her entire life, Coleman said she enjoys fishing with her father, hiking, and winter sports.
Angela Santini
Athird-year dental student, Santini decided to pursue a career in dentistry while living in Iron Mountain and working at her father’s dental
practice. “I found the work interesting and the interaction with different members of the community to be rewarding,” she said.
“I want to thank everyone who contributed to this scholarship,” she said. “It’s definitely appreciated and its availability reinforces
the camaraderie of professionals in our area.” Santini said that after three years of dental education, “I’m happy to say that my initial
instincts were correct. The work is fascinating and interacting with my patients keeps me smiling,” she added.
When she graduates next May, Santini said she plans to practice in the Upper Peninsula.
K ristina Santini
“I became interested in dentistry after assisting my father, who has been practicing as a general dentist for thirty years,” said first-year
dental student Kristina Santini. “He was a great teacher and allowed me to see how fascinating dentistry truly is. Watching him made
me decide that this would be a great career for me.” Like her sister, Angela, Kristina graduated from Central Michigan University with
a degree in biology and a minor in chemistry.
“I could not have chosen a better school than the U-M School of Dentistry,” she said. “All of my classmates and professors are
extremely helpful and friendly. The work is intense, but I have found time to fit in the activities I enjoy.” They include exercising,
playing the piano, reading, and watching movies with friends.
K rista Ison
“Even in high school, I knew I wanted to go to dental school,” said Krista Ison, who will earn her dental degree in May. Afterwards, she
hopes to work for the National Health Service Corps for several years.
Born in northern Wisconsin, Ison moved to Escanaba while she was in grade school. “My future husband is also from Escanaba, so
it is important to both of us to return to the U.P.,” she said. With plans to start and raise a family in the Escanaba area, Ison said she’s
“looking forward to providing dental services, either in private practice or public health, to Upper Peninsula community residents for
many years.”

DEVELOPMENT
Up and Running!
The Dr. Roberts Preclinical Laboratory
A new era in preclinical dental education is underway at the
University of Michigan School of Dentistry.
Per Kjeldsen
With renovations they need to practice

to the west wing of their technical skills.
the Dr. Roy Roberts Beneath each
Preclinical Laboratory desktop, in a cabinet on
completed, faculty the lower left hand side
m e m b e r s re c e n t l y of each workstation is
began using the new a mannequin head
equipment while attached to a platform
students were eager that can be pulled out.
to begin their work The mannequin head
in the state-of-the-art pivots right and left
facility. to simulate a patient’s
There are 110 workstations in the west position for any type of dental procedure. This
preclinic, basically, one for each student. equipment helps dental students learn correct
Each workstation measures 49 inches in ergonomic positioning to maximize their dexterity
height, from the ground to an elevated platform skills.
that holds both a flat-screen monitor and a When they’re finished, students can stow
light. The monitor allows students to watch their instruments, close a hinged door, and lock
clinical instructors demonstrate various dental their units.
procedures using the Internet, the World Wide The units are connected to a central suction
Web, DVDs, 35 mm slides, and other media. supply and have a water spray to provide for
“With the technology that’s here, this room preparation of ivorine teeth using water.
will be used a lot, and not just by first- and second- Lab benches have a self-contained dry suction
year dental students,” said Dr. Merle Jaarda. “This system to collect dust and filter out noxious odors,
room has more audio/visual capabilities than any such as acrylic monomer.
other room in the School.” Along the wall in the back of the room are 220
The desktop for each unit, measuring 48 inches small lockers students can use for storage.
by 30 inches, gives the students the elbow room

Work in Progress: the Dr. Roy Rober ts
Jerry Mastey Per Kjeldsen
As last summer ended, overhead lights and acoustical ceiling tiles were being
installed.
Per Kjeldsen
Adental student at work in the old preclinic. Many workstations had been partially installed by early November.
Per Kjeldsen Per Kjeldsen
This is how the west preclinic looked in early July 2003after all tables, By December, television monitors and lights had been installed .
benches, and equipment were removed.

Preclinical Laboratory
Per Kjeldsen
An Instructor’s Perspective
“NFL commentator John Madden better watch out.

One of us may want to compete for his job,” Dr. Merle
Jaarda joked as he drew sketches on a telestrator in the
new west wing of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic.
The telestrator (television-based illustrator) is one of
many new technical tools that Jaarda and other preclinical
instructors can now use.
An elevated platform gives an instructor a bird’s eye
view of the 110 workstations in the 3,300 square foot
AJanuary 2004bird’s eye view of the new preclinic. facility.
On the platform is a desktop that allows instructors to
Keary Campbell
use computers (desktop or laptop), the Internet or World
Wide Web, DVDs, 35 mm slides, videotapes, an intraoral
camera, and a device resembling a flatbed scanner to
demonstrate various dental procedures to first- and
second-year dental students.
“Each student now has a front row seat to observe
these procedures on their own television monitor,”Jaarda
said.
Live Demonstrations = Instant Credibility

An instructor can use the desktop as a demonstration
area for dental models, typodonts, and other items.
Nearby, a flat-screen monitor can be used as a chalk board
or telestrator to emphasize a particular point.
Also nearby are small television cameras that zoom in
and out and rotate 360 degrees. The cameras can televise
live demonstrations of instructors using mannequin
heads to illustrate procedures, such as preparing teeth for
restorations, or crown preparation. While one instructor
performs the live demonstration, another can use the
telestrator to emphasize major points.
“As an instructor, this will open up a whole new
era for teaching hands-on procedures,” Jaarda said.
“Live demonstrations give instant credibility. But even
if problems occur, students realize that even for skilled
clinicians, nothing is always perfect.” Jaarda said “as we
work through these problems, students see we’re real
people and, in the process, are better able to relate to
us.”
Dr. David Traynor (seated) and Dr. Merle Jaarda showcase some of the
features of the School’s new state-of-the-art workstations. On the monitor is
an example of image an instructor can send to each dental student.

Dr. Roy Roberts Thrilled to See
Pictures of Renovations
Dr. Roy Roberts and his wife, Natalie.
Roy Roberts Dr. William Kotowicz, the new Roy Roberts Professor of
(1907-2004) Dentistry and the former dean of the School of Dentistry, and
Diana Neering, director of development, visited Dr. Roberts
Editor’s note: at his Florida home in late January to show him pictures of
As this issue of renovations to one of the preclinics bearing his name.
DentalUM was going “He was real pleased to see the progress that was being
to press, we received made and seeing how different things would be,” Kotowicz
word that Dr. Roy said. “As he looked at the pictures, Roy talked about some of
Roberts passed away his experiences as a dental student at Michigan.” K o t o w i c z
June 14. He was said he explained some of the major differences in the approach
97. More detailed to preclinic education that would be taking place. “Roy thought
information about that the ability to use high-speed handpiece with water and
Dr. Roberts will be mirrors, while learning cavity and abutment preparation
published in the fall procedures, would be a distinct educational advantage.”
issue of DentalUM. “He was especially pleased to know,” Kotowicz continued,
“that students would no longer have to crowd around one
another and strain to see an instructor demonstrate a particular
procedure as they did when he was a student at Michigan.”
[Dr. Roberts earned his DDS in 1932.]
Neering said “Dr. Roberts was excited to know that his gift
to the School of Dentistry would be making a major difference
in the lives of so many students for years to come.”

Homecoming Weekend
October 7, 8, 9
For the second time in as many years, U-M School This year’s ceremony begins at 2:00 p.m., several
of Dentistry Homecoming Weekend activities will be a hours earlier than last year’s.
three-day event. “Since fewer individuals are being inducted this
However, unlike previous years when the School’s year compared to last year, we thought we could better
events occurred in early September, this year’s activities serve our alumni by scheduling all of Thursday’s events
will take place the second weekend of October – the same relatively close together,” Fetchiet said. “Once the
weekend as the University’s Homecoming. ceremony ends, our alumni will still have plenty of time
“This is a break in recent tradition for us,” said to visit and enjoy other parts of the campus if they want
Richard Fetchiet, director of external relations and to.”
continuing dental education. “For the past few years,
the School’s Homecoming Weekend activities were held Morawa Lecture
separately from the University’s. Based on feedback from The speaker at the
our alumni, we thought having our activities coincide third annual Morawa
with the University’s this year would give them an Lecture will be Dr. Terry
opportunity to visit former classmates from other schools Donovan, an associate
and colleges.” professor and executive
Fetchiet also said that in recent years many School associate dean at the
of Dentistry alums have expressed a desire to see the University of Southern
Michigan football team play a Big Ten opponent. California School of
Homecoming Weekend festivities begin on Thursday, Dentistry.
October 7, with an emeritus pinning ceremony and Donovan, who spoke
luncheon followed by the Hall of Honor induction at the Delta Dental-School
ceremony. of Dentistry Symposium
On Friday, October 8, the Morawa Lecture and class in Januar y 1999, has
Dr. Terry Donovan
reunions will be held. published extensively
Saturday, October 9, there will be a tailgate party and has lectured worldwide on restorative dentistry and
and the football game. Dental school alums will gather materials science. He is a past chair of the ADA’s Council
at Elbel Field for the tailgate. on Dental Materials, Instruments, and Equipment.
His presentation, Update on Esthetic Restorative
Dentistry, will analyze successful and unsuccessful cases
Hall of Honor Induction Ceremony to define what procedures are essential for success in
The School will hold its second ceremony inducting restorative dentistry.
new members into its Hall of Honor. The Morawa Lecture is an opportunity for dentists
At last year’s inaugural ceremony, 18 men and and dental hygienists to receive six hours of continuing
women were inducted. This year, eight will be. dental education credit.

At-a-Glance: Homecoming Activities
Thursday, October 7 Per Kjeldsen
• Emeritus Pinning Ceremony – 11:30 a.m., G390.

• Emeritus Class Picture – 12:30 p.m.
• Emeritus/Hall of Honor Induction Luncheon
1:00 p.m. – Sindecuse Atrium
• Hall of Honor Induction Ceremony
2:30 p.m. – G390.
Friday, October 8
• Morawa Lecture. Speaker: Dr. Terry
Donovan, associate professor and executive
associate dean, University of Southern
California School of Dentistry.
- Location – Ypsilanti Marriott at Eagle Crest
1275 S. Huron Street, Ypsilanti, Michigan.
- Registration – 8:00 a.m.
- Course – 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Class Reunions: 1954, 1959, 1964, 1969,
1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994.
• Dental Hygiene All-Class Reunion:
Classes ending in 4 and 9.
Class reunions at Kensington Court (formerly
Crowne Plaza), 610 Hilton Blvd., Ann Arbor.
Saturday, October 9
• Tailgate Party – 3 hours before kick-off.
Elbel Field.
• Football Game – University of Michigan vs.
University of Minnesota. Kick-off time to
be announced.
Keary Campbell
CORRECTION
The photo caption on p. 14, column 1, of the Fall 2003
issue of DentalUM was incorrect. It should have read:
Samuel C. Damren (center) and Jane Dziewiatkowski
Damren (right), listen to Dr. Gerald Charbeneau read
from the plaque that cites some of the achievements
of Mrs. Damren’s father, Dr. Dominic Dziewiatkowski.
Also on stage in the picture is the Damren’s daughter,
Samantha, Dr. Dziewiatkowski’s oldest grandchild.

Dr. Ronald Goldstein Tells Dentists
“You Are Artists” at Annual Delta Dental Program
“There is artistry in all professions. It’s not limited to cooking or making

jewelry or painting or glass making. We, as dentists, are artists too. And this
is our artistry,” said Dr. Ronald Goldstein as he displayed pictures on a screen
of patients following esthetic dental procedures during the Kenneth J. Ryan
Memorial Seminar.
The annual program, presented by the Delta Dental Fund in conjunction
with the U-M School of Dentistry, attracted nearly 1,300 dentists from all
across Michigan to the Power Center on the U-M campus in January.
Goldstein, a co-founder and past president of the American Academy of
Esthetic Dentistry, said that while dentists spend most of their time studying
the science of dentistry, they should also try to perfect the artistic side of the
profession because,
“in the end, it’s not what we Per Kjeldsen
think, it’s what our patients think about

what makes them look good that matters.”
While advances in technology play an
important role in esthetic dentistry, he said
dentists need to focus on how they can use new
technology to help their patients.
Talking about his experiences on the U-M
campus in 1953, Goldstein said “what Michigan
did for me was amazing. It opened my mind
about the world – meeting new people, learning
new concepts, and it hasn’t stopped.”
Goldstein praised “the high caliber of
dentistry that is typical of this School and
practiced in this area.”
The annual seminar, now in its 23rd year, is
perhaps the largest single-day continuing dental
education program in the U.S. It helps dentists
fulfill their CDE requirements by offering six
hours of continuing education credit.
Dr. Ronald Goldstein, a co-founder

and past president of the American
Academy of Esthetic Dentistry, urged
dentists to try to perfect the artistic
side of the profession for the benefit
of their patients.

BAL LOT Ms. Susan Pritzel (U-M School of Dentistry, DH
1967; MA) teaches full time at the School and also
School of Dentistry’s Alumni Society Board of Governors practices one day a week. Amember of the State
Board of Dentistry, she is also past president
of the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Alumnae
It’s time to vote for new candidates to serve on the School of Dentistry’s Alumni Society Board Association and board member who served
four three-year terms. She was DHAApresident
of Governors. Using the ballot below, please choose four dentists and one dental hygienist (1980-1982) and committee chair; member of
to serve a three-year term. Ballots must be postmarked by August 1, 2004. the Board of Trustees and committee chair of
the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association;
and past delegate (1976) of the American Dental
Hygienists’ Association.
Dr. Samuel T. Bander (U-M School of Dentistry,
DDS 1981) is a member of the MDA, ADA, West Dr. William A. Shortt (U-M School of Dentistry,
BALLOT Michigan District Dental Society, Vedder Crown
and Bridge Society, and the Bunting Periodontics
DDS 1987) was an instructor at the U-M School
of Dentistry, has served on the MDAPeer Review
Study Club. He is president of St. Nicholas Committee, and was a member of Flight 255
Orthodox Church and past president of the forensic team. He currently works for the U-M
Vote for four dentists: Grand Rapids Jaycees. Dr. Bander resides in Sports Information Department. A member of
Grand Rapids, Michigan with his wife and two the ADA, Dr. Shortt and his wife, Therese, run a
Samuel T. Bander children. private practice in South Lyon. He is a general
partner of Moose Ridge Golf Course in South
Dr. Susan H. Carron* (U-M School of Dentistry, Lyon, Michigan.
Susan H. Carron*
DDS 1977, MS 1979) is a former clinical professor
who maintains a private practice in Novi, Dr. Terry A. Timm* (U-Tennessee School of
Richard Pascoe Michigan. A Diplomate of the American Board Dentistry, DDS 1968) earned a bachelor’s degree
of Pediatric Dentistry, she is a past president of from the University of Michigan in 1964 and a
William A. Shortt the Michigan Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, master’s degree in orthodontics from the U-M
western component of the Detroit District Dental School of Dentistry in 1971. After graduation he
Terry A. Timm* Society and the Detroit Alumni Chapter of the immediately began teaching in the Department
Alpha Omega fraternity. Dr. Carron recently of Orthodontics. In May 1988 he accepted a
Josephine C. Weeden served on the board of the Delta Dental Plan of position to teach graduate orthodontics students.
Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana and as 1988 MDA Acurrent member of the Alumni Society Board of
Vote for one hygienist: annual session chairperson. She is currently on Governors, Dr. Timm retired from teaching two
the board of the MDA Foundation and the PRAC years ago to devote more time to his family. He
Committee for Delta. She is a member of the resides in Saline, Michigan.
Anne Diederich Gwozdek* Alumni Society Board of Governors, and resides
in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Dr. Josephine C. Weeden (U-M School of
Susan Pritzel Dentistry, DDS 1996, MS 1999), practices in Ann
Dr. Richard Pascoe (U-M School of Dentistry, Arbor and Adrian, Michigan. She is a member of
* Incumbent DDS 1970) practices periodontics in Cadillac, the ADA, Washtenaw and Jackson District Dental
Michigan. He completed a twelve month Societies, American Association of Orthodontics,
rotating dental internship at the VA Hospital Great Lakes Association of Orthodontists and
Envelope with ballot must be the Michigan Association of Orthodontics. Dr.
in Leavenworth, Kansas, and after being a staff
postmarked by August 1, 2004. dentist for a year, finished a two-year residency Weeden lives in Saline, Michigan with her
in periodontics at that hospital in conjunction husband, Andrew, and their three children.
Please mail your ballot to: with the University of Missouri/Kansas City
School of Dentistry. After completing his formal Ms. Anne Diederich Gwozdek* (U-M School
University of Michigan training in 1974, he received a certificate in of Dentistry, DH 1973) and a 1992 graduate
School of Dentistry periodontics from the Leavenworth VA Hospital from Madonna University, has remained active
and a master’s degree from the University in clinical practice since graduating from U-M.
Office of Alumni Relations of Missouri. Dr. Pascoe is a member of the As past president of the U-M Dental Hygienists’
1011 N. University American Academy of Periodontology, the MDA, Alumnae Association, she has worked with
the Michigan Periodontal Association, and the dental hygiene program directors, students,
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1078 Bunting Periodontal Study Cub. and members of the dental and dental hygiene
professions. She resides in Dexter, Michigan.

Alumnus Profile Jerry Mastey
Dr. William Costello, chairman and CEO

of Accu Bite Dental Supply, is seen at
the company’s distribution center in
Williamston, Michigan. The firm sells
more than 40,000dental products and
supplies to solo dental practitioners and
large group dental practices throughout
the U.S. and parts of Canada and Europe.
DDS 1970
Chairman & CEO,
Accu Bite Dental Supply
From private practitioner to
creating a company that is a
Dr. William leading provider of supplies,
Costello equipment, and services to

the dental industry.
I
n high school, he thought about becoming an archi-
tect or an engineer.
But after watching the way his family dentist treated
his brother, young William Costello decided he would
pursue a career in dentistry.
“I couldn’t get to Ann Arbor fast enough when I was
asked to come in for an interview in 1966,” he said. “I
remember talking to Bob Doerr and getting my letter of
admission a few weeks later.”
Ironically, while Costello was vacationing in Florida
“In retrospect, I’m glad I did because it’s been such two summers ago, he and Doerr crossed paths at a
an incredibly rewarding career,” he said. “I received a restaurant in Marathon.
first-class education at the University of Michigan School “After introducing myself, he remembered me and we
of Dentistry which helped me to succeed as a practitioner had a wonderful conversation,” Costello said. “I thanked
and as a businessman.” him for recommending me for admission because, in
The son of a salesman and housewife, Costello said retrospect, it was a turning point in my life.”
what initially intrigued him about dentistry was “the One of Costello’s most enduring memories of his days
instant gratification of seeing a patient smile or hearing at the School of Dentistry was the first day of class that
a heartfelt ‘thank you’ after a problem was corrected. fall.
You don’t get that kind of immediate feedback in many “All of us were at the Health Building on Fletcher
other professions.” Street waiting to get a health screening,” he said. “What
especially impressed me was the caliber of the people
“A Turning Point in My Life” who were in my class.” They included Mike Roher, David
Costello was one of the last members of the Class of Johnsen, and Lee Webster.
1970 to gain admission to the School of Dentistry. Roher is the head of the division of oral and
DentalUM
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19
Per Kjeldsen
his lecture remarks so they wouldn’t be drowned out by

the noise coming from the pile drivers,” he said with a
smile.
Other instructors Costello fondly remembered and
singled out for praise included Drs. Donald Kerr, Major
Ash, Sigurd Ramfjord, and Floyd Ostrander. “It was a
thrill to see Don, Sig, and Floyd become members of the
first class to be inducted into the School’s Hall of Honor
last fall,” he said. Costello participated in the inaugural
induction ceremony as chair of the School’s Alumni
Society Board of Governors.
After receiving his dental degree in 1970 Costello
These flexible dental trays dentists use to take accurate impressions of both and classmate Dr. Edward Jordan opened a practice in
arches and bite relations simply and easily were first designed and manufactured
by Dr. William Costello. Lansing.
But it took them several weeks to find office space.
maxillofacial pathology at the University of Minnesota. In desperation, Costello one day approached a realtor
Johnsen is the dean of the University of Iowa College and told him he needed an office. When the realtor said
of Dentistry. nothing was available, Costello said, “I want your space.
Webster practices dentistry in the Los Angeles area. After some negotiations, we got it.”
Unlike dental students today, Costello worked part- That office was small – about 900 square feet – too
time, as a laboratory medical technician at the U-M small for two dentists to practice simultaneously.
Hospital, to help pay for his education. Rohr and Webster So they worked split shifts. “I worked from seven in
worked with him. the morning until two in the afternoon and Ed worked
Costello said among the classes he especially enjoyed during the afternoon and early evening,” Costello said.
included gross anatomy and histology. Several instructors
made indelible impressions on him.
“Both the University of the Michigan
Memorable Instructors and the School of Dentistry have
“I remember Dr. Edward Pliske, a professor of
anatomy at the Medical School. He could stand in front been incredibly nourishing,
of a blackboard and draw intricate pictures of what tissue enabling me to achieve the success
looked like under a microscope. Sometimes he even used
both hands simultaneously to draw diagrams to make a and the quality of life that I have.”
point.”
Dr. Ralph Moyer was another. “He was tough. He had
high expectations and the School had high expectations. Their business grew significantly when dental benefits
If you didn’t meet them, you were going to have a rough were negotiated into a contract between the United Auto
time,” Costello recalled. Workers union and the automakers. Treatments that
Recalling the expectations of another faculty member, had been postponed increased dramatically. The surge
Dr. James Hayward, Costello said that when the time in demand enabled Costello to build an office which he
came to take the oral surgery section of his board exams, opened in 1976 and leased to several other dentists.
“that section was a piece of cake because he prepared us
so well.” A Product that Changed Dentistry
Costello was studying dentistry at the time the old During the mid 1970s, Costello began looking for
dental school building was being razed to make room for ways to improve a major product dentists were using
the present facility. – impression trays. The ones used at the time had to be
“During the construction, I remember Dr. Louis rigid because of the dimensional stability limitations of
Schultz would adjust both the timing and the volume of the rubber-based impression materials.

Per Kjeldsen
“The better mousetrap” was about to be developed.

Because impression materials with better physical
properties were being developed, Costello, in 1977,
designed and manufactured the first flexible dental
tray.
The unique product allows dentists to take accurate
impressions of both arches and bite relations simply and
easily. Dentists became more efficient and were able to
treat more patients since a patient’s chair time was cut
in half.
The product’s ability to record accurate impressions
led to the creation of the company and its name, Accu
Bite, which was incorporated in 1978. Costello would
Dr. William Costello, chair of the School of Dentistry’s fundraising campaign,
run both his new business and his private practice for enjoys a lighter moment with committee members and officials with the
the next 12 years. University’s Office of Development during a campaign planning committee
meeting held last fall.
A direct marketing plan he created to sell the product
to solo practitioners and large group dental practices was
so successful that by 1985, Accu Bite had saturated the a businessman? Consider this “mini-profile” of his
marketplace. company:
The following year, the firm received one of the • Revenues and profits have risen at double-digit
business world’s highest honors when Inc. magazine percentage rates annually for the past 25 years.
named Accu Bite an “Inc. 500” company. • Customers located in all 50 states as well as
But running a business and a private practice were Canada and Europe.
taking a toll. • More than 300 employees.
“There were days when I felt like I was burning both • Three distribution centers in Williamston,
ends of the candle at the same time,” he said. “I’d be Michigan; Reno, Nevada; and Memphis,
practicing from seven in the morning until two in the Tennessee.
afternoon, then get into my car, drive across town, and • Sales offices in 13 cities across the U.S.
then run my business until nine or ten in the evening.” However, Costello is always looking for ways to
In 1989, Costello and his family went to California to improve. His company’s use of technology is just one
take three months off to recharge. example. About 15 percent of Accu Bite’s business is
When he returned to Michigan, Costello knew that if conducted on the Internet.
he wanted his business to continue growing that he would
have to focus. In 1990, he sold his practice and devoted
full time to his business.
Today, Accu Bite trays are used in more than half
What initially intrigued Dr.
of all dental crown and bridge procedures worldwide. William Costello about dentistry
The company’s product line has significantly expanded. was “ the instant gratification of
It offers over 40,000 dental products, supplies, and
seeing a patient smile or hearing
equipment that can be shipped from three distribution
centers so products are delivered in one or two days. a heartfelt ‘thank you’ after a
problem was corrected. You
Measuring Success don’t get that kind of immediate
After selling his private practice and devoting his
time and energies to the company he founded, Costello feedback in many other
also served three, one-year terms as president of the professions.”
Dental Dealers of America in 1997, 1998, and 1999.
How successful has Dr. William Costello been as
DentalUM
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Jerry Mastey
Advice to Young Dentists
Although there are “very different

demands” in running a private practice and
running a business such as Accu Bite, there
are similarities, according to Dr. William
Costello.
Dr. William Costello, chairman and CEOof Accu Bite Dental Supply, in his
Williamston, Michigan office. He urges dental students to learn as
The Williamston warehouse is a paperless operation. much as they can, not just about dentistry,
Stockers wear radio frequency computer terminals but also about business, marketing, and other
on their wrists that enable them to send and receive
subjects that will help them to succeed.
information on more than 40,000 items in stock.
Last May, his company created an independent Board “When you’re running a practice, you’re
of Directors to provide strategic focus to position the the CEO, the human resources director, the
company for future growth. There’s plenty of room for
that. Adjacent to corporate headquarters, less than two accountant, the purchasing director, and
miles north of I-96, are 11 acres of land the company has person in charge of marketing, so dental
that can be used for further expansion.
students should try to learn as much as they
Giving Back
can about these and other areas because it
“I didn’t achieve all this by myself,” Costello said.
“Others played a major role and that’s why I feel an will help,” he said.
overwhelming need to give something back to my alma Noting that business courses were not
mater.” He said that Latin phrase, meaning “fostering
mother,” is apt. “Both the University of the Michigan and available to dental students when he was a
the School of Dentistry have been incredibly nourishing, student, Costello said,“that’s different today.
enabling me to achieve the success and the quality of life
that I have,” he said.
Students need to learn not just about the
“Not a day goes by when I don’t think about what science of dentistry, but about the business
I’ve been able to achieve because of the outstanding
side of the profession as well.”
education I received at the University of Michigan School
of Dentistry,” he said. “That’s one reason I became Jerry Mastey
involved as the campaign chairman of the School’s new

fundraising campaign. I want to give something back
– to the profession, to the University, and to the School.
Being in this position is an incredible blessing…one I’ve
always been thankful for.”
No, Dr. William Costello never became an architect or
an engineer. But the record clearly shows that he is both.
He built both a private practice and a company. He also
engineered countless successes as a dental practitioner
and businessman who has admirably served the needs
of dentists and their patients during the past 34 years.

School News
Reaching Out
to Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni
Dean Using E-Newsletters, Town Hall Meetings
Since becoming Dean of the School of here that I thought you might be interested in
Dentistry a year ago, Dr. Peter Polverini has knowing about.’ ”
been using two novel methods to communicate Polverini said he used e-newsletters when
with individuals both inside and outside the he was dean in Minnesota and found them “a
School. useful way of communicating, on a regular
One is a quarterly electronic newsletter, basis, with everyone throughout the school
Thought You’d Be Interested… about important issues we were facing. I
The other is what’s known as the “town thought it would be useful here, and it has
hall” meeting. been,” he added.
“These two new approaches are not meant Many faculty members, staff, and students,
to replace any of the traditional ways of he said, have responded with comments
communicating, such as committee meetings and suggestions on a range of issues and
or face-to-face conversations. If anything, they concerns.
complement one another,” Polverini said.
E-newsletters
The electronic newsletter, Thought You’d On the List?
Be Interested…, is e-mailed to all School of If you, as an alumnus, have an e-mail
Dentistry faculty, staff, and students in March,
address and are not on the list and
June, September, and December. It is also sent
to alumni whose e-mail addresses are on file would like to receive future issues of the
with the Office of Alumni Relations. Dean’s electronic newsletter, Thought
Items of interest in the newsletter range
You’d Be Interested…, please let us
from faculty appointments and promotions to
announcements about upcoming programs and know. Send an e-mail to polverini.
events. newsletter@umich.edu asking that
“The title of the newsletter conveys an your name be added to the list.
informal approach to communications,” he
said. “It’s short, easy-to-read and basically
says ‘these are some of the things taking place

School News
Town Hall Meetings
The other communications vehicle Polverini is
using is what’s called the “town hall” meeting. Questions on Various Topics
He may be the only dean of a school or college
on the U-M campus that uses this communications
at Town Hall Meetings
approach.
Dean Peter Polverini has fielded questions on a
Per Kjeldsen range of topics during his town hall meetings.
At two meetings last year, he began with a short
introduction and then answered questions from faculty
and staff.
During the fall meeting, for example, more than
two dozen questions were posed on subjects ranging
from how state budget reductions might affect the
School to what individuals might assume leadership
roles in various departments.
The format of the program changed slightly for
the spring town hall meeting held in April.
Polverini began the spring program talking in
detail about two topics and then answering questions
The “town hall”meeting is a new way Dean Peter Polverini communicates from the audience about the two topics. Later, he
with students, faculty, and staff. In this forum, he presents information
about issues facing the School and answers their questions on matters they answered questions on other issues.
consider important. One of the two topics was the campus-
wide initiative, “Increasing the Participation and
The town hall meetings are public forums that Advancement of Women in Science and Engineering
give faculty, staff, and students an opportunity to hear, Careers.”
first-hand, from Polverini about some of the important The University’s ADVANCE program proposes
issues and challenges facing the School. launching three major initiatives to improve the
Held in an auditorium or lecture room, Polverini opportunities of tenure track women faculty in basic
opens the session with remarks about one or more science and engineering.
subjects and then takes questions on just about any Polverini said the 32 recommendations that were
topic of concern. included in the study would be presented to faculty
“Some of the questions are direct and that’s to be
members at the School of Dentistry and other schools
expected,” he said. “Those questions are appreciated
and colleges on the U-M campus.
because they keep me on my toes. They also give me
The second topic focused on the state budget and
an opportunity to hear, first-hand, what others who I
how funding reductions might affect the School.
may not come into contact with on a daily basis are
Emphasizing that no final decisions had been
thinking. And it also shows the town hall meeting is
made as of early April by either the legislature or the
not a one-way street.”
The town hall meetings are typically held every University, Polverini said the School was preparing
six months. for reductions that could range from 2 to 5 percent.
However, he emphasized that when a final decision is
made,“everyone will share the burden…everyone will
be consulted.”

Dean’s Faculty, Adjunct Faculty
Thanked for Service
Two groups of faculty members who volunteer their time to impart their years of professional experience in clinics and
preclinics were publicly thanked by Dean Peter Polverini earlier this year for their service to the School of Dentistry.
Addressing Dean’s All 24 members of the Dean’s Dean’s Faculty members must
Faculty and Adjunct Faculty have been recommended by be willing to teach one-half day
Faculty members, a peer or colleague. After completing a week. They receive no salary.
Po l v e r i n i s a i d , an application and submitting a Their appointments are reviewed
“With your CV and letters of recommendation, annually.
p re s e n c e , y o u they met with a department chair The charter members of the
enrich the lives and before their name was forwarded to Dean’s Faculty were: Dr. Donald
education of our students by a committee for approval. Briggs (DDS 1954), Dr. William Daines
bringing your experience and passion (DDS 1953), Dr. James Schindler (DDS
for the profession and the craft of Dean’s Faculty members 1953), Dr. Richard Han (DDS 1965), and
dentistry to us.” Dr. Carl Woolley (DDS 1965).
Department of Cariology, A list of the current members of
Dean’s Faculty Restorative Sciences, and the Dean’s Faculty is listed at left.
The Dean’s Faculty was created Endodontics
• Robert Coleman
about 11 years ago following a Adjunct Faculty
• Anthony Dietz
confluence of events and collaboration • Richard Han Like members of the Dean’s
between Dr. William Love (DDS 1953) • Allan Jacobs Faculty, the appointments of Adjunct
and Dean Bernard Machen. • Thomas Johnson Faculty members are annual and
• James Laidlaw
Already teaching several hours • Michael Lindemann
without tenure. However,
a week as a volunteer, Love proposed • Oscar Link u n l i ke t h e D e a n’ s
recruiting faculty whose background • Charles Murray Faculty, Adjunct
and interests were similar to his to the • Steven Shoba Faculty members
chair of the Department of Operative Department of Orthodontics are paid.
Dentistry, Dr. Joseph Dennison. and Pediatric Dentistry Individuals
• Deborah E. Priestap
Dennison was enthusiastic, as are appointed as
was Machen, who strongly supported Department of Periodontics, a d j u n c t l e c t u re r,
Prevention, and Geriatrics
the idea based on his experiences at • Michael Baity a d j u n c t i n s t r u c t o r,
the University of North Carolina. The • William Beck adjunct assistant professor, adjunct
dean gave the name of his office to • R. Craig Diederich associate professor, or adjunct
• Phillip Doyle professor. Qualifications at each
the group.
• Nicholas Gersch
Membership in the Dean’s Faculty • Roger Hill adjunct rank generally are consistent
is by invitation only. Positions are • Salah Huwais with those of tenure-track or clinical-
not advertised, nor are uninvited • Jeffery Johnson track faculty.
• Lloyd Lariscy
applications accepted. Individuals • Alan Padbury, Sr.
The School had 218 adjunct
in this group are highly-experienced, • Mark Setter faculty members during the 2003-
dedicated clinicians with high • William Sorensen 2004 academic year.
standards. • Anthony Spagnuolo

School News
Students Give Kids

About 100 dental students, predental students, Brooke Schultz, a first-year dental student, was
dental hygiene students, faculty, and staff responded another participant. “I thought it would be interesting
enthusiastically to the Give Kids a Smile program that to work with children, so that’s why I participated,” she
was held at the U-M School of Dentistry in February. said.
The program, sponsored by the ADA, Crest, and other Similar sentiments were echoed by Nisha Punjabi.
organizations, was a part of National Children’s Dental “It’s a great opportunity to help kids and serve the
Health Month. community,” she said.
During the local half-day program at the School of Jerry Mastey
Dentistry, parents from Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Southfield,

and surrounding communities brought their children
to second-floor clinics for oral exams, cleaning, x-rays,
sealants, and oral health care advice.
For several children, mostly between 4 and 7 years
old, it was their first visit to a dentist.
Goldie Gibson brought two of her children and two
other relatives to the program as a part of the Community
Leaning Post’s “Next Step Program.”
“I heard about the program from one of the dental
students,” Gibson said, “and I thought it would be a great
opportunity for my children to receive oral health care
and learn more about what goes on here at the dental
school. It’s great. I thank you so much.”
Another parent, Cynthia Stevens, learned more about
proper oral health care for her two children through a sign
language interpreter, Rose Hawver. Hawver, an American
Sign Language interpreter with U-M Hospital, conveyed
oral health care instructions from Dr. Kenneth Stoffers.
[See photo, page 27.]
Students: An Opportunity to Serve

Among the dental students participating in the
program was second-year dental student Bret Johnson. “I
love working with kids, so this was a great opportunity Dental student Seema Parekh made sure 4-year-old Taylor Le’s first visit to the
for me to help out,” he said. “Besides, I had nothing else dentist was a pleasant experience.
to do on a Saturday morning,” he joked.

a Smile
Predental Students Also Involved
Among those participating in the program were
predental students Erin Ealba and Kevin Cook.
Ealba, a senior who will become a first-year dental
student later this summer, said she participated in the
program “because it’s a wonderful cause and a great way
to get involved.”
Jerry Mastey
Cook, a junior majoring in biopsychology, hopes

to become a first-year dental student next summer. “I
wanted to get involved,” he said. “It’s a great community
service and I wanted to help others.”
School of Dentistry dental students, responsible for
setting up this year’s program included leaders of the
Executive Board, Margaret Gingrich (D4) and Edward
Givens, Jr. (D2). Other members included Aunkur Gupta
(D4), Jodi Schilling (D1), and Aimee Snell (D2). Anyone
interested in planning or volunteering for next year’s
program can contact Dr. Hana Hasson via email at
hanahass@umich.edu. Jaleean Hall (center) enjoyed his visit to the dentist and receiving a toothbrush
from Courtney Antonio (left) and Joelle Werschky (right).
Jerry Mastey Jerry Mastey
7-year-old Jaleean Hall and two other youngsters pass time coloring drawings Dr. Kenneth Stoffers’ oral health care instructions were conveyed in sign language
given to them as a part of the Give Kids a Smile program at the School of Dentistry. by Rose Hawver (left) to parent Cynthia Stevens (right). On her lap is Stevens’ 19
month old daughter, Kayla Ann, and 5-1/2 month old Bonawu, Jr.

School News
Make it 5!
Margaret Gingrich the Latest in Family to
M

ay was not the first time
members of the Gingrich
family have attended a U-M School
my dental and medical needs will be the family to earn his dental degree
taken care of in my old age.’ Both from Michigan, and then practiced
became dentists” she said. with his father-in-law in Big Rapids.
of Dentistry graduation ceremony. Her great uncle Dr. Joseph Morris, During the time they practiced
It was the fifth. was originally accepted to the U-M together, Margaret, who was now
Before Margaret Gingrich received Medical School, but changed his mind in elementary school, went to their
her dental degree in May, four other when he saw how much his brother office after school to tell them about
members of her family preceded her. enjoyed dentistry. her day with her classmates and
They were: After earning his dental degree teachers.
• Her grandfather, Young O. from U-M, Young O. “I usually did this sitting
Photo courtesy of
Margaret Gingrich
Morris, Class of 1937 Morris established on a stool while they

• A great uncle, Joseph G. a practice in Big worked on patients,” she
Morris, Class of 1944 Rapids, Michigan in said. “I’d also ask them
• Her father, Arthur Gingrich, 1939. questions about what they
Class of 1976 But his son- were doing and why. One
• A cousin, Harry Bell, Class of i n - l a w, A r t h u r day when I was seven
1993 Gingrich, was or eight, I told them,
Although Gingrich has known more interested in ‘Someday, I’m going
since she was seven years old that she repairing automobiles. to be a dentist just like
wanted to become a dentist, the road Occasionally, he would you.’ “ Encouragement
to earning her dental degree took help his father-in-law This is the articulator Dr. followed. Going to college
several interesting twists and turns fix and maintain dental Young Morris used for was always a “given” in
his board exams in 1937.
before her dream became reality. equipment. the Gingrich family. “They
Two took place before she was born The second twist of fate occurred would always tell me, ‘When you go
in 1978. A third, when she was 10. in 1969. to college,’ not ‘if you go to college’,”
“Dad hadn’t even thought about she said, “and that had a profound
The Great Depression and the dentistry as a career until after he influence on me.”
Road to Dentistry lost a leg during the Vietnam War,” When she was 12, Margaret began
As for the first, which occurred Margaret said. “My grandfather told helping her father at his office.
during the 1930s, Gingrich said dad that since he was good with his
her grandfather, Young O. Morris, hands fixing cars that he should Support from Parents
originally a car dealer, lost everything consider becoming a dentist because The third twist in the road to
during the Depression. they too work with their hands.” becoming a dentist occurred when
“When his mother learned about Margaret was 10 years old and
what happened, she told him and his Setting a Career Path Early learned that she had lost about half
brother, ‘I want one of you to become Arthur Gingrich took the advice of her hearing. She also learned she
a dentist and the other a doctor so all to heart, became the third member of had dyslexia.

Receive DDS from U-M
Photo courtesy of Margaret Gingrich
Woolfolk came up treated have special needs, Gingrich

to me and asked said her hearing loss and dyslexia
me, by name, how have given her insights she hopes to
I was doing,” she carry with her long after graduation.
said. “I think I can better relate to them
Because of her which, in turn, will help me become
hearing problem, a better dentist.” She said one of her
G i n g r i c h w o re goals as a general practitioner will
both a hearing aid be training assistants who can help
and a microphone. patients with needs similar to hers.
The hearing aid This summer, Gingrich begins
made it easier for working with her father at his
Three generations of U-M dentists: Dr. Joseph Morris (Class of 1944), her to hear what practice in Big Rapids.
Dr. Margaret Gingrich (Class of 2004), and Dr. Arthur Gingrich (Class of 1976). instructors were “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime
saying in the to be in a general practice with my
Support from her parents and her classroom; the microphone made it dad and I don’t want to pass that up,”
personal fortitude enabled Gingrich easier for them to hear her questions she said. “I’ll be able to learn from
to hurdle those challenges. “I had a and comments. him and he’ll be able to learn from
tremendous amount of support from However, she forgot to turn the me, especially when it comes to using
my parents and grandparents,” she microphone off while Kotowicz and new technology,” she said.
said. “But I also realized it’s a fact Woolfolk talked to her. “Although I Her great uncle, Joseph Morris,
of life. You have it, you deal with it, didn’t know anyone at the time, after comes to the office on occasion to offer
you move on.” class 100 other students came up to his advice on running the business
Gingrich said she has taught me and asked me, by name, how I and describing how dentistry has
herself sign language. “I know was doing,” she said. changed since he earned his degree
enough to get around and usually sixty years ago.
don’t need an interpreter,” she said. Looking Back…and Ahead Looking ahead, Gingrich said
The night before she arrived Reflecting on the past four years, another goal is to see the family
in Ann Arbor for her interview at Gingrich said she enjoyed working practice celebrate its 100th
the dental school, Gingrich said her with patients, teachers, and coming anniversary in 2039. If the past is
father was more nervous than she into contact with many different any guide, she will succeed.
was. “I think he was up most of people. “It’s also been interesting “I still remember, years after
the night,” she said with a laugh. walking down the halls and seeing telling my father and grandfather
She interviewed, was accepted, and the pictures on the walls of others of my decision to become a dentist,
entered the predoctoral program in in my family who were here before I what they told me: ‘If I made it
August 2000. She remembers her first was,” she said. through dental school, you can too.’
day as a first-year dental student. Noting that between one-quarter They were right. I did.”
“Dean Kotowicz and Dr. Marilyn to one-half of the patients she has

Making it Work . . .
How the Work of “Unsung
E
very organization has two groups of individuals.
In the first group are those frequently referred to as “the

movers and shakers.”
These are the high-profile people whose names and titles
are instantly known to one and all within…and to many
outside…the organization. Those in this group are top
ranking administrators, faculty, and other leaders.
In the second group are individuals who work behind the
scenes.
Sometimes, the names and titles of people in this group are
not known to everyone inside an organization. In many cases,
these individuals are also unknown to the outside world.
However, the work of those in the second group…often
referred to as “unsung heroes”…is vital to the smooth
operation and success of any organization. The University of
Michigan School of Dentistry is no exception.
The cover story for this issue of DentalUM focuses on some
of our “unsung heroes.”
Each person plays an important role that contributes to
the success of the School. In the following pages you will read
about some of them.
However, these are not the only ones. There are hundreds
of others.
Their stories will give you an appreciation of just how
important these “unsung heroes” and others like them are to
the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.

Heroes” Helps the School of Dentistry Per Kjeldsen
Jeremy Towler Dispensing Clerk, Dental Stores
“I don’t know what I’d do without him. You don’t have to ask him to do anything, he just does it,” said Carlie Seigel,
dental stores manager, as she talked about the zest and enthusiasm Jeremy Towler displays.
His responsibilities include shipping and tracking commercial lab work (crowns, bridges, and dentures) for patients
of dental students, embroidering students’ lab coats, and working with faculty, students, and staff at the front counter of
the Dental Stores.
Towler, however, helps in ways that are not a part of his official job description.
During last summer’s blackout, for example, he located flashlights and helped lead patients down dark stairwells since
elevators weren’t working. The patients were participating in board exams for several dental hygiene students.
On other occasions, Towler has helped patients find their cars in the School’s parking garage.
He also assisted a woman who suffered a seizure not long after he was hired in May 2000. “That was scary for me,”
he said. “Luckily, Dr. David Jacobson and others were there to help.”
Towler doesn’t consider what he does unusual. “My job is really a customer service job, so I try to help anyone in any
way I can,” he said.
“After working in factories before coming here, the dental school is a great place to be. It’s great being around the
students and helping them and helping others too. I’m really enjoying myself.”

Per Kjeldsen
Nancy Gee Switchboard Operator
Every Monday through Friday, between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., the School of Dentistry receives hundreds of telephone
calls from individuals across Michigan and other parts of the country seeking information on emergency dental care, the costs of
receiving dental care, how to set up an initial appointment, and other matters.
One of five individuals answering those calls in a room in the basement is Nancy Gee. She came to the School 11 years ago
already possessing significant experience as a dental receptionist and assistant.
“Cheryl Quiney, a long-time friend, urged me to consider working here,” Gee said. “So when the opportunity arose in 1993, I
applied and was hired. I haven’t regretted it.”
Call volume varies, depending on the day of week and time of year.
“Monday is always a higher-volume call day since we’re closed on weekends,”Gee said. Call volume typically declines during
the summer and sharply increases when classes resume as patients make appointments with their student dentists. During the
summer, monthly volume ranges from 3,100 to 3,900 calls. By comparison, the office handled between 4,600 and 4,800 incoming
calls during the winter and spring.
“Everyone helps one another, so it’s seldom that we don’t have an answer to a caller’s question,” Gee said. “There’s always a
procedures manual we can rely on when we need to.”
Gee said Coralie Johnson, who recently retired,“did a great job helping to make the Appointment and Information Office the
success it is. Paul Russeau, who’s taken over for Coralie, is also great to work for. Having a great supervisor to work for and great
colleagues to work with is a combination that’s tough to beat.”

Per Kjeldsen
Mary Gaynor
Senior Financial
Aid Officer
“I play mom a lot, which means
I take care of things students may not
even consider or follow-up when they’re
applying for financial aid,” said Mary
Gaynor. “They’re stressed enough, so I try
to do what I can to make the process as
smooth as silk for each of them.”
It’s not an easy task.
At times, Gaynor said she can be
helping as many as 500 students – not only
the 300 or 400 already in dental school, but
also 100 to 200 prospective students.
Often, she’s working a year in advance
to help a student secure a financial aid
package that will allow a student to make
a commitment to attend the U-M School of
Dentistry.
“Considering that the total annual
cost of a dental education, including living
expenses, is about $40,000 for in-state
students and $60,000 for out-of-state
students, any amount of financial aid you
can get for a student is important,” she
said.
Gaynor, who began her career at U-M
as a senior clerk in the office of financial aid
in 1976 only a week before registration, has
been at the dental school since 1991.
She k nows what students are
experiencing.
“My parents never went to college
and weren’t able to help me financially,”
she said. “But they did provide a lot of
emotional support and encouragement that
helped me to earn my college degree and
succeed afterwards. I’m trying to do the
same for every student that comes to me
for help.”

Keary Campbell
John Squires Chief Media Engineer
He makes sure all audio/visual equipment in classrooms and lecture halls works, installs newly-purchased equipment,
diagnoses and repairs A/V equipment that breaks, and is one of the first persons called when someone has questions about
their Apple computer.
For nearly 24years, John Squires has been the “go to”person administrators, faculty, and staff have relied on for technical
help for events that range from lectures in a classroom to the Dean’s “town hall” meetings to Hall of Honor ceremonies.
“Making it run…and run well,” could be his motto.
“I love troubleshooting,”he says. “Give me something that’s not working and let me figure out how to make it work…or
give me something that’s new and see if it can be used in a new way…that’s what energizes me.”
Although Squires graduated with a degree in psychology and then ran a restaurant for four years, trying to fix a broken
television led to a change in his career path.
He attended a hands-on electronics class at Washtenaw Community College, landed a part-time job at an Ann Arbor
electronics store, and then enrolled in the U-M College of Engineering.
While pursuing his U-M degree, Squires learned the dental school needed an engineer in its television studio. “With
the hands-on experience I acquired at the community college and the electronics store, I decided this was the opportunity
I had been looking for,” he said.
About 30 credit hours shy of earning an engineering degree, Squires decided to focus his energies on his new job. Over
the years, he assumed even more responsibility, including fixing some early-models of Apple computers used in the School’s
computing center.
“It’s worked out even better than I expected,” he said. “I’ve got a lot on my plate now, but I enjoy the challenge of
trying to fix things so that they work and work well.”

Per Kjeldsen
Diane Nixon Manager, Clinical Billing Office

Her office handles more than $6.3 million in payment postings annually…receives approximately 750 incoming calls
a week from patients who have questions about their bills…makes another 500 outgoing calls weekly to patients who
have left voice mail messages seeking clarification about their statements…electronically files more than 350 dental and
medical claims daily with insurance companies…and follows up on approximately 400 inquiries and 800 rejections each
month from insurance companies.
Supervising a staff of 18 in offices on the northeast side of Ann Arbor, Diane Nixon’s office resembles the hub of a
bicycle wheel whose spokes form crucial links to the School’s clinics, information desks, telephone switchboard operators,
patients, insurance companies, and vendors.
Important as that is, Nixon says her responsibilities transcend her formal job description.
“My role is also one of building relationships, being a ‘go-to’ person who can help anyone in this office, throughout the
School, or even outside the School when the need arises,” she said. Reflecting on her career, she says “I’m proud to have
developed so many informal relationships that do not appear on an organizational chart.”
Nixon’s previous experiences as a business education teacher, business owner, administrative assistant, and clinical
administrator have contributed to her success.
She is also President of the Ann Arbor Maia (named for the Greek goddess of the month of May) Chapter of the American
Business Women’s Association (ABWA). She also chairs the Eastern Michigan Council of ABWA, which comprises 16 chapters.
She is now finishing her second two-year term as president of the 43-member group.
“Working together, our office continues to refine our self-directed work team structure to meet the increasing demands
on our staff,” she said. “We don’t give up in our efforts to collect from insurance carriers or patients who come to our School
and receive oral health care. We don’t consider the job done until the patient’s balance is at zero.”
Nixon says she’s not just a manager, but also a coach and mentor.
“I encourage everyone here to look to each other for solutions to thorny problems. I think that approach energizes
them and makes them excited about coming to the office each day,” she said. “But what’s really exciting is to hear them
discuss a problem among themselves and come up with solutions that are win-win for everyone.”

Per Kjeldsen
Kimberly Smith Information Desk Clerk
Many patients who check-in when they arrive at the School of Dentistry to receive oral health care are greeted at
one of three information desks with a warm, friendly smile from Kimberly Smith.
One of nine information desk clerks, Smith was hired as a temp three years ago. “I became a full-time employee
on, of all days, Halloween in 2001,” she said. “On that day, the other desk clerks and I were dressed in costumes. They
liked mine so much they gave me the nickname ‘Miss Spitfire’.”
Miss Spitfire is Smith’s stage name when she does stand-up comedy.
Smith started doing stand-up comedy last fall at churches in Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Inkster, and Lansing. She dresses
as an old lady who hobbles on stage with a cane in hand and reveals a big gold tooth when she smiles. [Photo insert
above.]
“It’s a hobby I enjoy because it gives the sick, elderly, and others who have problems an opportunity to forget them,
even if for only a few moments. My jokes are clean and biblically-inspired too,” she said, “which they appreciate even
more.”
Smith’s up-beat and bubbly demeanor calms many who are in pain when they arrive for treatment. Her attitude is
also soothing.
She recalled a patient who came a week earlier than he should have for his appointment. “We talked about it and
when he realized he made a mistake, he began leaving. As he did, we joked that he now knew his way around and
wouldn’t get lost the next time,” she said. The patient returned the following week as scheduled.
“I love my job. I love my coworkers. I love the patients and students,” she said. “It doesn’t get much better than
this.”

Per Kjeldsen
Tim Deventer
Stock keeper a/k/a
“The Mailman”
He’s probably the only person at the
School of Dentistry who meets everyone…
not just once, but sometimes as often as
four times a day.
To many, Tim Deventer is affectionately
known as “the mailman.”
Although he doesn’t deliver the U.S.
mail, he does deliver virtually everything
else that is delivered to the School’s
shipping docks. Items range from letters
sent by express mail to supplies and,
yes, even the School’s alumni magazine,
DentalUM.
When he’s not “making the rounds,”
Deventer is taking inventory of dozens of
dental materials and supplies stored in the
basement. It’s his job to make sure there
are ample supplies available for dental
students in clinics and the faculty members
who supervise them.
Employed by the University for about
23 years, the last 13 of which have been
at the School of Dentistry, Deventer said
change seems to be the primary constant.
“There’s always something that seems to
be changing, which is one of the things that
makes this an interesting place to work,”he
said.
However, he said the best part of his
job “is coming into daily contact with so
many different people from all walks of life.
After a while, it seems like you’re a member
of a big family.”
As for those daily rounds throughout
the School, Deventer said he wore a
pedometer not long after he arrived and
learned he was walking about four miles a
day. “I haven’t done that recently, but it’s
probably the same distance because I’m
more efficient at what I’m doing, or at least
I hope I am,” he said with a grin.

Per Kjeldsen
Ed Steinman
Computer Programming
Director
He earned his undergraduate degree in zoology at U-M.
But for nearly the past two decades, which include 12 years
at the School of Dentistry, Ed Steinman’s focus has been
computer programming.
“Believe it or not, there are some similarities
between the two,” he said. “Both include research, where
you investigate a problem. Both also have a creative
component which involves devising novel solutions to those
problems.”
Steinman and others in the Computing Unit are
responsible for all of the School’s data – collecting it, storing
it, transferring it, analyzing it, and making sure it’s accessible
to authorized users while also making it secure from hackers
and protected from loss.
That’s no small feat considering there are more than
800 desktop units throughout the School’s offices, clinics,
and research facilities as well as dozens of others at billing
offices on the northeast side of the city and research facilities
on the south side of Ann Arbor.
Others in the Computing Unit provide desktop support
to faculty, staff, and students and maintain the network
infrastructure and servers.
Steinman said his biggest programming challenge
occurred about two years ago when the School switched
its software system from one it had been using for
nearly a decade to a new system, Axium, which handles
appointments, treatment planning, student-faculty clinical
assignments, and billing.
“It was very complicated, affected the entire School,
and involved large amounts of data,” he said. Steinman has
also written several applications from scratch that are still
used.
Asked if he remembered the first computer program
he wrote, Steinman said, “No, but it was very painful. It
involved using punch cards, sequencing them, and walking
over to a computer center. A small change took about half
a day. Now, by comparison, that’s done in seconds.”
That shortened time frame is replaced by complexity.
“It’s time consuming and there’s a lot of attention to
detail,” he said. “Simple changes can take days. But even
if you get all that right, sometimes writing the program is
not the problem, it’s trying to find ways to maximize the
performance and efficiency of the application.”
Steinman said he enjoys the challenges that are a part
of his job. “But our department’s size and the size of the
School also make this an enjoyable environment.”

Per Kjeldsen
Jon Sniderman
& Rob Berg Dental Equipment Technicians
They’re the men in blue coats.
Together, Jon Sniderman and Rob Berg maintain and repair more than $6 million worth of dental equipment.
The equipment includes 300 dental chairs, lights, and other gear used in clinics throughout the School; 110 new
simulation units in the west wing of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic; and more than 150 pieces of equipment in the preclinic’s
east wing.
And if that’s not enough, Sniderman and Berg also repair and maintain equipment used at the Community Dental
Center in downtown Ann Arbor and equipment dental students use during the summer migrant dental clinic program in
the Traverse City area.
Sniderman came to the School of Dentistry from the Space Research Department on North Campus in late 1974. “I
was supposed to be here for only six months, but now I’m going on thirty years,” he said.
Berg, who has been at the School for nine years, was a part of a team of tradesmen that covered a certain zone or
section of the U-M campus (zone maintenance) until two years ago.
“We’re the first line of defense,” Berg said. “If any mechanical problems come up, we’re the first to be called.”
On a typical day, Sniderman and Berg respond to 30 to 40 requests for help. They range from something as simple as
changing a valve which may have rusted to something more complex like fixing a dental chair or repairing and installing
x-ray machines and grinders.
During the holidays, Sniderman and Berg focus their attention on preventive maintenance.
Sniderman is also a part-time inventor who has received two patents and two design copyrights for his work.

Seeing it Through . . .
Dorothy Smith-Fesl & Georgia Kasko Keary Campbell
Dorothy Smith-
Fesl (left) and
Georgia Kasko
review blueprints
in the west wing
of the Dr. Ray
Roberts Preclinical
Laboratory.
As faculty, students, staff, and DentalUM readers know, there have been several major
construction and renovation projects that have taken place throughout the School of Dentistry
since 1998. They include:
• The Kellogg Building and Sindecuse Museum and Atrium.
• Sterilization and dispensing facilities.
• The west unit of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic.
• Facilities between the Blue and Green Clinics on the second and third floors.
• Central Records renovations and relocation within the School.
In addition to these projects, two others that have occurred outside the School. The first was
the renovation and relocation of some researchers and support staff to facilities on the south side
of Ann Arbor. The other was the renovation and relocation of nearly two dozen clinical billing and
financial staff members to offices just outside the northeast side of Ann Arbor.
The construction costs for all seven projects collectively exceeded $20 million, ranging from
$165,000 to more than $13 million.
What do these projects all have in common?
Two women staff members played major roles in seeing these projects come to completion.
Dorothy Smith-Fesl, the School’s facility manager, was responsible for overall project
management.
Georgia Kasko, manager of clinical support services, took on added responsibilities and became
the “go-to” person Smith-Fesl turned to for answers to questions on a range of technical and aesthetic
issues that affected the layout and design of the second and third floors, Patient Care offices, and
Central Records.

from Start to Finish
Dorothy Smith-Fesl Facilities Manager
“I think my family had a big influence on my that time she also earned her bachelor’s degree in
career,” Smith-Fesl said as she talked about growing up engineering from Lawrence Technological University in
in Millington, not far from Flint. “There were seven of us Southfield, Michigan.
– five boys and two girls. Taking that into account, and In 1995, Smith-Fesl was hired as an electrical
working in an all-male environment since I was 26, you design engineer with the University’s Architectural and
learn how to deal with guys,” she said with a laugh. Engineering Services Department.
Smith-Fesl’s career began on a General Motors
Keary Campbell
assembly line at Buick City in Flint in the late 1970s.

Her job involved installing bolts into brake shoes.
“But after a while it was too repetitive and boring,” she
said. A supervisor noticed and suggested Smith-Fesl
consider enrolling in a trades program. She took the
advice to heart and became an electrical apprentice.
“In retrospect, I was so fortunate to be in that spot
at that time. I had a supervisor who cared, pointed me
in the right direction, and because of him, I’m here,” she
said. Her stepfather also supported her decision. “He was
thrilled and provided a lot of encouragement,” she said.
Working, Raising a Family, Going to School

But it still wasn’t easy.
During her four years in the electrical apprenticeship
program, Smith-Fesl raised two children and also attended
classes four hours a day, two days a week at Mott
Community College in Flint.
“I worked 10- or 12-hour days, seven days a week,
went to school, and raised two children,” she said.
“However, after becoming conditioned to the routine, I
didn’t think anything of it.”
After completing her apprenticeship, Smith-Fesl
became a journeyman electrician and, a few years later,
a supervisor of trades personnel with GM.
Her career at the University of Michigan began in
1989 as a journeyman electrician in the Maintenance
As facilities manager, Dorothy Smith-Fesl has been responsible for supervising
Department at U-M Hospital and later as a project renovations to the Kellogg Building, upgrades to sterilization and dispensing
manager in the Facilities Services Department. During units, and the relocation of some faculty and staff to off-campus locations.

“I’ve worked with various contractors and trades
people, and spent many hours reading construction
blueprints. All that helped me with the projects I later had
“I think my family had a
responsibility for managing here at the dental school,” big influence on my career,”
she said. Smith-Fesl said as she talked
Major Project Responsibilities about growing up in Millington,
Smith-Fesl has been the School of Dentistry’s facilities not far from Flint. “ There were
manager since 1998.
She described her job as comparable to “running a seven of us – five boys and two
house, but on a more massive scale.” Her responsibilities girls. Taking that into account,
include construction management, custodial and
maintenance support, assessing space needs, and “dozens
and working in an all-male
of other nuts-and-bolts projects that keep the School environment since I was 26, you
running smoothly.”
learn how to deal with guys,”
Among the major projects she has had supervisory
responsibility for include the renovations to the Kellogg she said with a laugh.
Building, upgrades to sterilization and dispensing units,
and the relocation of faculty and staff to off-campus
locations.
And although it doesn’t happen often, sometimes Looking back, Smith-Fesl said, “I’m very proud of
she is called in the middle of the night for emergencies. what I’ve accomplished. I have developed good relations
Smith-Fesl said her biggest challenge was dealing with with all types of people, which certainly makes my job
the blackout that hit Michigan and other parts of the as facilities manager easier. The atmosphere here is very
country last August. positive and uplifting, you feel people need you, and what
“I was in a stairwell when the lights went out and you do is appreciated. It doesn’t get much better than
thought a circuit breaker had tripped,” she said. “But that.”
when I got to the basement floor and saw that it too was
pitch black, I knew there were bigger problems.”
In that instance, a NERB exam was underway.
“I helped round up flashlights and took them to
the NERB examiners so everyone could use them to find
their way out of the building,” she said. The school later
received emergency power from the University’s power
plant. But when Smith-Fesl returned the next morning
and learned the school was still using that power source,
she told those who had already arrived to return home.

Georgia Kasko Manager, Clinical Support Services
Per Kjeldsen
When she began working as a

temp with the U-M Medical Research
Purchasing Department in 1984, Georgia
Kasko posted bids on index cards to
bulletin boards from companies that
submitted bids to supply pharmaceutical
products to the University Hospital.
Today, as manager of clinical support
services, she supervises more than 25
employees in Central Records and the
School’s dental store, patient-student
monitoring offices, the appointments
office, and the patient business office.
During the past year, she added some
construction oversight responsibilities to
When renovations to the west wing of the Roberts Preclinic began last spring, Georgia Kasko was
her portfolio of experiences. responsible for ordering simulators, monitors, benches, and other equipment for each of the 110
Last year and earlier this year, Kasko units. Ashort time later she assumed oversight responsibility for renovations between clinics on the
supervised construction work in the west second and third floors.
wing of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic and
renovations to facilities between the Blue and Green Taping the Floor
Clinics on the second and third floors of the School of “We did use measuring tapes, but we also counted the
Dentistry. number of cinder blocks that surrounded the windows
Until her son entered first grade twenty years ago, to see how much space would be available for offices,
Kasko was, as she described herself, “a stay-at-home scheduling rooms, and consulting rooms,” she said. “We
mom.” even put tape on the floor to help us visualize the physical
Between 1984 and 1992, she developed the purchasing dimensions of each room.”
skills that would prove helpful later, not just at the Kasko said she also learned to read architectural
Medical Research Purchasing Department but also at U-M blueprints and construction terminology. “When I needed
Health Services. help, Dorothy Smith-Fesl or Dr. Dennis Turner or Dr. Merle
When she began working at the School of Dentistry Jaarda were always there to lend a hand,” she said.
in August 1992, Kasko was Dental Stores manager. Dental Now that more than $2-1/2 million of equipment,
Stores handles the purchases of commodities for all of the including lab benches, simulators, audio/visual equipment
departments, including the equipment and instruments has been installed, Kasko said the biggest thrill has been
dental students use in clinics. seeing the plans finally come to life.
When renovations to the west wing of the Roberts “You see a lot of detail on a blueprint, but it doesn’t
Preclinic began last spring, Kasko was given the really come to life until the project has been completed,”
responsibility of ordering the simulators, monitors, she said. “Seeing a dream or an idea finally become a
benches, and other equipment for each of the 110 units. reality, especially something this extensive, is quite a
Later, with help from the four Patient Care thrill.”
Coordinators, Kasko took what some might consider an
unconventional approach to the project.

School News
Enthusiastic Response to
Renovated Facilities
Per Kjeldsen
“Wow!”
“What a difference!”
Those are just some of the comments that have
been voiced in recent months by students, faculty, and
staff following major improvements to several facilities
throughout the School of Dentistry.
Among the major improvements drawing enthusiastic
response are those that have taken place in the west wing
of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic. [See story pages 12-13.]
Enhancements to facilities between the Blue and
Green Clinics on the second and third floors are also
receiving praise.
Privacy and Convenience

“In the age of HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act) and increased privacy requirements,
these improvements are both timely and necessary,” said
Georgia Kasko, manager of clinical support services, who
coordinated the renovations on the two floors.
Four Patient Care Coordinators have their own offices
(two per floor) that enable them to meet privately with
patients and students when the need arises.
Photo courtesy of Coral Adas
Now, Mary Garrelts, Patient Care Coordinator, and her three colleagues have
ample work space, including a table for face-to-face meetings.
In addition, the PCCs, who are intermediaries between

dental students and patients, are now conveniently
located just a few steps away from students or patients
needing help. Previously, the PCCs had to take an elevator
or walk up several flights of stairs to address the needs
of students or patients.
Meeting rooms, where as many as eight people can
privately converse, are also nearby.
“ Lots of Room”
Instead of a window, this Patient Care Coordinator’s office once used a Coral Adas, one of the four PCCs, said, “Everyone who
photographic mural to convey the feeling of “looking out the window.” comes into my office has been saying how wonderful

Keary Campbell
everything looks and how much more

room there is. In my office alone,” she
continued, “I can meet privately, if I
have to, with several people, whereas
before that was difficult to do.”
Mary Garrelts, another patient care
coordinator, described her new office in
one word: “wonderful. There’s lots of
room for working and having meetings.
It’s great.”
Both floors also have scheduling
rooms that allow students to privately
converse with their patients on the
telephone.
Other New Features

New x-ray rooms are only a few
In the old phone room, students were often elbow to elbow as they called patients to schedule
steps away from the Blue and Green appointments.
Clinics making it quicker for patients to Keary Campbell
begin their treatment plans and making

more time available to dental students
to complete their work.
Each floor also has a newly renovated
wet lab that supports patient care
activities in adjacent clinics. Students
prepare models and other materials
to send to regional laboratories for
fabrication of indirect restorations
and prostheses (crowns, bridges, and
dentures).
Both floors have 100 mailboxes, one
for each dental student, with more than
three cubic feet for storing equipment
and receiving mail. Fifty-six smaller
mailboxes are also provided on both
floors for dental hygiene students. Now, students have more room in the new phone room to make calls or for storing reference materials
on a shelf.

School News
Novel CT Scanner Installed in Clinic
No More Claustrophobia
It will save time for patients and Dentists will scan a patient once
dentists. and using special software will be able
It will also help patients who are to produce many different types of
claustrophobic and provide dentists in images.
the School’s clinics with a wealth of D r. D a v i d S a r m e n t , a c l i n i c a l
information. assistant professor in the Department of
Earlier this year, a new miniature CT Periodontics, Prevention, and Geriatrics,
scanner, dubbed “iCAT,” was installed in said iCAT will be especially helpful to
the Radiology Clinic. dentists doing implants.
The machine, which the Food and “This machine will also allow us to
Drug Administration approved for use last fall, is better gauge bone density and even do simulations so
considerably different than conventional CT scanners implants can be placed in precisely the right location,”
currently used in hospitals. he said.
The iCAT was designed by Xoran Technologies, an Ann
Benefits Arbor company founded three years ago by a group of U-
First, iCAT is much smaller. Since its footprint takes M biomedical engineers, in collaboration with Imaging
up only 20 square feet of space, it’s ideally suited for Sciences International, a Pennsylvania-based company
offices. which has been manufacturing dental imaging devices
Secondly, unlike conventional CT scanners that since 1992.
require patients to lie on their back before being pulled Per Kjeldsen
into a very narrow tunnel, the iCAT allows a patient to

sit upright in a chair in a more open environment.
Doses of radiation are significantly lower than those
from conventional medical CT scans and x-rays can
be taken in one 40-second scan compared to multiple
scans that once took minutes using a conventional CT
scanner.
The cost of the iCAT? Between $150,000 and
$185,000.
“We expect to use this machine for imaging implant
sites, temporomandibular joints, orthodontic jaw
relationships, and other pathology in the head region,”
said Dr. Sharon Brooks, professor of dentistry in the
Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology.
She said iCAT will be a time-saver. “Instead of sending
patients elsewhere to get 3-D images of their head and
neck, we can now do it here, in-house, just steps away
from our clinics.”
A Community Resource
Dentists and physicians in the community will also
be able to refer their patients here for these special scans.
They will receive their images either as prints or on a CD Dr. Sharon Brooks and Dr. David Sarment in front of the School’s new mini CT
for use with other software programs. scanner.

Endo Residents Praise Experiences at Mott’s
Keary Campbell
Two residents in the School of Dentistry’s endodontics

program say they enjoyed new opportunities to provide
oral health care at Mott Children’s Health Center in
Flint.
Last fall, both the School and Mott’s launched the
specialized outreach program to help underserved
adolescents in Flint and the Genesee County area. It’s the
first time graduate endodontics students have provided
oral health care outside the School’s clinics in Ann
Arbor.
Four residents participate in the program on a
rotating basis; that is, only one provides care during any
given week.
“A Great Community Service”

Two early participants were Drs. Sasan Jafari and
Ryan Soden. Both said they were glad to be involved. “It’s
a great community service that benefits a lot of people
who might not otherwise receive that kind of care,” Jafari
said.
He also said he was “especially grateful to work with
Dr. Sasan Jafari, a resident in the University of Michigan School of Dentistry’s
Mott’s well-trained assistants. Because they’re so good graduate endodontics program, begins root canal therapy on a 15-year-old
working with kids, they made my job easier because I patient at Mott Children’s Health Center in Flint. Registered dental assistant
could focus on providing treatment instead of managing Aimee Kula provides assistance.
behavior.” Briskie said that MCHC handled about 150 endodontics
Soden agreed, adding he broadened his experiences cases in 2002. Of that number, about one-third required
and “saw a few more trauma cases there than here at the extensive work.
School’s clinics.” “This program also fills a pressing need,” he said
That point was emphasized by Dr. Neville McDonald, noting that no endodontists in Genesee County accept
director of the endodontics program. “We want our Medicaid. “The collaboration between Mott Children’s
residents to obtain a broader set of clinical experiences Health Center and the School of Dentistry will help fill
that will help them after they graduate,” he said. that need, especially among those least likely to be able
Dr. Daniel Briskie, the head of the pediatric dentistry to afford this type of oral health care,” he said.
department at Mott Children’s Health Center, said the Jafari said he hopes the program continues to grow.
program “continues a relationship we’ve had with the U- “Dr. McDonald is always looking for new ways for us to
M School of Dentistry for more than 10 years and allows us broaden our experiences and, in the process, help others.
to better serve residents in Flint and Genesee County.” I hope this program continues for a long time.”

School News
Preparing for the Worst, Hoping for the Best
Dr. Dennis Lopatin Active in Bioterrorism Preparations
Per Kjeldsen
It’s a challenge he’s relishing. Washtenaw County and the state,

It allows him to use his training he is also the School’s liaison with
and experience as a microbiologist four other dental schools to develop
to convey important information a model that other dental schools will
that leads to developing policies and want to follow. The four other dental
procedures that may benefit hundreds schools are: New York University, the
of thousands, if not millions, of people University of Florida, the University
across Michigan and the country. of New Jersey Medical and Dental
For the past two years, Dr. Dennis School, and University of Southern
Lopatin has devoted a considerable California.
amount of time and effort to a timely
issue: making sure that oral health care professionals What Dentists Offer
are uppermost in the minds of local, state, and national After September 11, 2001, the ADA, the American
officials should a widespread health disaster or emergency Dental Education Association, the Centers for Disease
occur in southeast Michigan or elsewhere in the state. Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Public Health Service
Whether it’s SARS, the “bird flu,” an influenza organized a conference to determine how dentists,
pandemic, or even acts of bioterrorism, Lopatin has been hygienists, and others in oral health care could help
telling local and regional public safety and government government officials should similar catastrophic events,
officials that because of their skills and training, dentists or even acts of bioterrorism, occur in the future.
and dental hygienists are in a unique position to help “If we are not called on should bioterrorism occur,
them…and serve the public. then the plans we develop may help in other ways, such
“We’re planning for the worst, but obviously hoping as dealing with massive outbreaks of flu or other medical
for the best,” he said. emergencies,” he said.
Lopatin is in charge of the School of Dentistry’s Lopatin said his experiences dealing with public
biopreparedness program. safety officials and other government agencies have been
Not only is he working with officials throughout revealing.

“When I first attended some of these local meetings Other Educational Uses of Information
and told them who I was and what I do, everyone had a Lopatin is also working with the University of
puzzled look on their face,” he said, “because, to many, Michigan Medical Center and the Michigan Dental
dentists are people who work with teeth.” Association to develop specific responses that would be
“But when I told them what we as oral health taken “for every type of contingency.”
professionals have learned, how we’re trained, and As those plans are developed, Lopatin wants to create
what we have to offer, they sit up, take notice, and educational materials for emergency preparedness and
enthusiastically acknowledge that we can make a major incorporate some of that information into the School’s
contribution.” dental and dental hygiene curricula.
The oral health care profession “brings a lot to the He is planning to use the information that will be
table,” he said. gathered to create continuing dental education courses
“We have experience in dealing with infection control, that will be accessible on the Web so dentists can
pharmacology, triage, administering injections, patient meet their educational requirements and gain a better
management, and record keeping. And when you consider understanding of biopreparedness.
that dentists, as a group, are very civic-minded and know “I think all of us in this profession have a responsibility
people in virtually all walks of life, we’re a very valuable to give back, in some way, to the communities we serve,”
resource.” Lopatin said. “Not only does this allow me to do that, it
With approximately 250,000 dental practices allows me to use my expertise as a microbiologist to help
around the country, Lopatin said each dentist and many in other ways.”
hygienist, literally, has front-line exposure to a patient’s The reaction among officials is now much different
condition. than what it was two years ago, he added.
“We’re the proverbial canary in the mineshaft,” he “When I introduce myself and tell them I’m
said. “So if there are any adverse conditions out there representing dentistry and why, I’m now greeted with
like SARS, or bird flu, or even bioterrorist attacks, we can open arms. When they hear what we as oral health care
play a critical role in disease surveillance.” professionals have to offer, they’re very receptive,” he
said. “This is turning out to be one of the most upbeat,
most positive experiences of my career.”

School News
Ignelzi Recommendation Draws
Urges Children See Dentist
Per Kjeldsen
A recommendation Dr. Michael dental colleagues have little choice

Ignelzi presented at the American but to take children younger than
Dental Association’s annual session three into the operating room to
last October has drawn comment repair and extract bad teeth because
from parents whose children have toddlers simply don’t hold still.
been affected by caries at a very early With the risks of putting a small
age. child under general anesthesia, and
Challenging conventional costs in the thousands of dollars,
practice which suggests children he said it would be much easier to
should first see a dentist when they’re prevent many of those problems
3 years old, Ignelzi, an associate through earlier dental checkups.
professor of pediatric dentistry, said
that’s too late. A Chronic Disease in Children
Instead, he urged children visit “Many mistakenly believe
a dentist at age 1. dental caries are a thing of the
Parents who take their child to past,” Ignelzi said. “But the Surgeon
see a pediatric dentist at that age General recently concluded that
would give dentists the chance to tell Dr. Michael Ignelzi dental caries is the most common
parents about appropriate feeding chronic disease in children. About
practices and the importance of building good dental 40 percent of kindergarten children have experienced it,”
hygiene habits early. he said.
Infants whose parents are of low socioeconomic
status, who consume sugary foods, and whose mothers
Tooth Decay Starts Young
have low education levels are 32 times more likely to have
He said many parents think they are adequately
caries at 3 years of age than those children who do not
cleaning baby teeth if they swab their child’s mouth
have these risk factors, he said.
with a washcloth, when they should really be using a
toothbrush instead. Many also give their children milk Don’t Wait
at night, thinking it’s good for teeth and bones, but sugar Ignelzi said building a mutually beneficial relationship
in milk rots young teeth. between a family and a dentist is easier than waiting
“If we spent 20 minutes with the family of every kid until a child is in pain or has a playground accident.
who goes to bed with a bottle of milk every night, we “When that happens,” he said, “parents scramble for
could head off a lot of problems,” Ignelzi said. a dentist and, many times, make the child’s first dental
In those cases, Ignelzi said he and many of his pediatric experience a traumatic one.”

One Parent’s Anguish
Comment Dear Dr. Ignelzi:
I saw the news story about your presentation. …
at Age 1 It’s a subject very close to my heart.
I wanted to thank you for wanting to get this

message out and I hope the dentists who attend
your presentation take it to heart.
I am the mother of a 4-year-old son. We’re

Named to Pediatric educated and have dental coverage. When he
Medicine Experts Panel was tinier, I read baby books and heard advice
about not letting children go to bed with bottles.
…We brushed his teeth pretty regularly after he
Dr. Michael Ignelzi has been appointed started eating solids, but not before bed.
to the American Academy of Pediatrics
My son paid dearly for those decisions. Before
“Bright Futures Early Childhood” experts his second birthday he ended up having his front
panel. two teeth pulled (it was the opinion of the dentist
Ignelzi, whose appointment runs that he’d be better off without them rather than
risk infection from a repair) and several crowns
through 2006, is the only dentist of the 10-
on his molars.
member group.
The panel’s work is significant because We now brush and floss his teeth religiously,
but are continuing to fight battles with decay.
its recommendations eventually become His pediatric dentist has been surprised at how
the Academy’s official policy which affects quickly his teeth deteriorate from one visit to
the types of health care millions of children the next.
receive from pediatricians, family practice My husband and I have been devastated by this.
physicians, nurses, and other health care We feel terrible…I wouldn’t wish our experience
providers. The guidelines are also used on any parents (and obviously, not on any
by insurance companies to determine children). . .
reimbursement rates medical providers and I had read mixed advice about when to take kids
a child’s parents receive. to the dentist. Some books said do it at one, but
most said wait until three. Both my husband
The 10-member panel is reviewing and
and I asked our dentist about it, and his staff
will likely revise health recommendations, emphatically said they weren’t interested in
including behavioral assessments, nutrition seeing him until he was three.
counseling, and immunizations for children One day, however, I actually pulled his lip back
when they are 1 year, 15 months, 18 months, and was alarmed by what I saw and then we
2 years, 3 years, and 4 years of age. wouldn’t take “no” for an answer. . .
Ignelzi’s appointment to the panel I wish they had encouraged us to bring him
comes following a three-year chairmanship in sooner. We would have gotten an earlier
of the American Academy of Pediatric warning about his teeth, and may have averted
Dentistry’s Council on Scientific Affairs. an awful lot of damage.
Sincerely,
A concerned parent.

Faculty Profile
Dr. George
Taylor
By every measure, Dr. George
Taylor has not only achieved
the dreams he had growing up
in Newport News, he surpassed
Keary Campbell
his own expectations.
If you’re looking for the personification of spunk and determination at the
University of Michigan School of Dentistry, you don’t have to look very far.
You’ll find it in abundance on the second floor of the Research Tower in the
person of Dr. George Taylor, III.
Consider these two examples.
During an eight-week break between his third and fourth years of study at the
Harvard School of Dental Medicine in 1973, as an oral surgery extern at New York
City’s Queens General Hospital, young George Taylor was so captivated by what
colleagues told him about the director of dental and oral surgery at Brookdale
Hospital Medical Center in Brooklyn that he immediately acted.
He went to a nearby pay phone, called the director, and asked to meet him in
person. A short time later, he did.
On a second occasion, before receiving his dental degree in 1974, Taylor spent
five hours one snowy day driving from Boston to New York City to be interviewed
for a residency at Brookdale.
As he waited in a lobby with other candidates, Taylor noticed those who were
being interviewed were spending about ten minutes behind closed doors being
interviewed. Taylor told himself, “After driving five hours, ten minutes is not
enough time. I’m not going to leave the interview until I’m ready!”

Taylor spent about ten minutes answering questions. about the American Fund for Dental Health Scholarship
However, when the interviewers finished, they were for minority students and submitted an application which
surprised to see him pull out a sheet of paper and tell was accepted. “That solidified my decision to pursue
them, “Now I have a few questions I want to ask you!” dentistry,” he said.
Instead of spending 10 minutes behind closed doors,
Taylor spent 45. A short time later, he was offered a Gravitating toward Clinical Dentistry
residency. In retrospect, the scholarship would turn out to be
a key to his future. Another was his participation in
Early Fascination with Science the U.S. Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC)
Now an associate professor of dentistry, Taylor, an program.
only child, said he has been fascinated with science, and That scholarship helped Taylor fund both his final
with art, for as long as he can remember. year of college and all four years of his education at the
His mother, Lois Taylor, was an elementary school Harvard School of Dental Medicine.
teacher in Hampton and Newport News, Virginia. During his four years at Harvard (1970-1974), Taylor
His father, George W. Taylor, learned “the curriculum suited
Jr., taught industrial arts in me perfectly. I worked with
Hampton following a military “I always felt I’d have a medical students and dental
career. career in health science. students. During my final year,
“I always felt I’d have a all my courses were electives, so I
In junior high school, I
career in health science,” he was able to take the courses and
said. “In junior high school, I remember buying ‘The explore things I was interested
remember buying ‘The Visible Visible Human’ at a local in – oral surgery, dermatology,
Human’ at a local store, taking psychiatry, and others. I was in
it home, putting it together, store, taking it home, putting clinics as much as I could be,” he
painting it, and then talking it together, painting it, and said.
about it.” Research, however, was not an
Taylor was also a good then talking about it.” area of interest.
artist. “I could draw characters “Research was an alien notion
from comic books, but when I to me. I saw myself as a clinician
showed classmates my drawings, they didn’t believe they interacting and helping the underserved somewhere in
were mine.” the country,” he said.
At first, Taylor thought about pursuing a career in Taylor’s passion for general dentistry and oral
medicine. After giving it some thought, however, he later surgery was fueled by his experiences in extramural
turned to dentistry. “Dentistry appealed to me because it rotations while at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine
was health science and also had an artistic component to and between his junior and senior years when he spent
it,” he said. “I also thought dentists had more control of eight weeks at Queens General Hospital in New York
their time. But notice I use the word ‘thought,’ ” Taylor City.
said with a laugh. When he interviewed…for 45 minutes…for a
While pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology residency at Brookdale Hospital Medical Center, Taylor had
from the University of Virginia, Taylor thought more to decide whether to pursue an oral surgery or general
about becoming a dentist, especially practicing in an practice residency. He chose the later and hasn’t regretted
underserved community. But even then, he wasn’t it.
completely sure it was what he wanted to do. As an undergraduate at the University of Virginia,
Hoping that the results of both a pre-medical and Taylor also participated in the Air Force ROTC program
pre-dental exam might help him decide which career to thinking that one day he might like to become a pilot.
pursue, Taylor said the scores on both exams “were just Although he passed a qualifying test, Taylor said after
about the same, so they didn’t help me much.” thinking about it some more, he decided not to follow
During his senior year at Virginia, Taylor learned through.

Instead, Taylor asked the Air Force about becoming As he did in 1973 when he picked up the phone and
“a flight dentist.” called the director of dental surgery at Brookdale, Taylor,
When he was told that such a position did not in 1979, took the initiative and wrote a letter to the
exist, Taylor, still in dental school, later applied for a dental school dean at U-D Mercy. He told him about his
dental position with the National Health Service Corps, background and asked if he could stop in for an interview.
expressing a desire to practice dentistry in an underserved His request was honored. A short time later, he was hired
part of the country. as a staff dentist.
Initially, his request was approved. However, a year Although Taylor arrived at U-D Mercy in 1979, the
later, it was reversed. clinic wasn’t ready. It wouldn’t be until March 1981.
Not taking “no” for an answer, Taylor argued that In addition to being a staff dentist for nine years
because of his experiences at Harvard and Brookdale that beginning in 1979, Taylor was a full-time clinical
he was in a unique position to help the underserved. The instructor (1979-1982), an assistant professor and director
argument was for naught. of the dental service in the Detroit Medical Center (1982-
1986), and chair of the Department of General Dentistry
The Road to Teaching…and Michigan (1983-1988).
After earning his DMD in 1974 and completing a one- In 1980, Taylor began working toward a master’s
year residency in 1975 at Brookdale, Taylor spent three degree in public health on the U-M campus.
years in England as an Air Force general dentist and the “Dr. David Striffler, who was in charge of the dental
final year of his tour of duty providing oral health care public health program at the time, was very influential
at an Air Force base in Maine. in my decision to earn my master’s degree,” Taylor said.
In addition to practicing dentistry, Taylor also taught “The program was good for me because I was able to add
Red Cross volunteers how to be dental assistants. After the administration and teaching to build upon the success I
training, the volunteers worked with Air Force dentists in acquired clinically.”
the clinics. “It was exciting not only to learn something, During his two years of study at the U-M School of
but also to be able to pass along to students what I had Public Health, Taylor was a student in an on job/on-campus
learned,” he said. program that was a combined medical care organization
Ta y l o r s t i l l Per Kjeldsen
and dental public
wanted to help the health program. “Not
underserved after he only did I learn about
was discharged. He dental public health
looked at opportunities from Dave Striffler,
in Boston and back but I was able to learn
home in Virginia, but from three outstanding
a cousin in Detroit SPH faculty members
told him about an – Brian Burt, Stephen
opportunity that Eklund, and Susan
would eventually bring Szpunar. It was a
Taylor to Michigan. great experience,”
“He told me the Taylor said.
University of Detroit- “While all were
M e rc y a n d Wa y n e helpful, Brian in
State University were Dr. George Taylor was the advisor to Reynaldo Rivera for last year’s Research Table Clinic Day particular, as a mentor
building a 41-chair program. and dissertation
facility in the Detroit supervisor, would be influential in advancing my career.
Medical Center,” Taylor said. The more I learned about I am truly grateful for all his help and insights during the
that, the more excited I became because this was exactly years we’ve known and worked with each other,” Taylor
what I wanted to do.” said. Nearly 20 years later, the two worked on different

Per Kjeldsen
sections of the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Oral Health

in America. [See sidebar.]
After earning his MPH in 1982, and continuing until
1988, Taylor was a nonresident lecturer at the School of
Public Health. He was a resident in the dental public
health program between 1986 and 1988.
In 1988, Taylor and his wife, Gloria, moved from
Detroit to Ann Arbor so Taylor could pursue a doctorate
at the School of Public Health as a National Research
Service Award fellow.
“A Give-Away, not a Garage Sale”

However, before moving, George and Gloria disposed
of most of their household possessions. “We didn’t have a
garage sale,” he said, “we had a give-away. Anyone who
stopped by was able to pickup and take home whatever
they wanted.” Contributing to a Pioneering Report
That gesture personifies Taylor, both personally and
professionally. Looking back, he has found that, in giving Dr. George Taylor (left) and Dr. Brian
of himself, he has received more than he ever expected.
Burt (right) were two of three U-M School of
In addition to teaching, Taylor has been a research
Dentistry faculty members who played major
mentor, an advisor to students pursuing masters
roles in developing the Surgeon General’s
and doctoral degrees, has spoken to groups about the
Report on Oral Health. The other faculty
interrelationships between oral and systemic health, and
more. member was Dr. Amid Ismail.
“I’ve been fortunate to develop some very cherished Issued in May 2000, the groundbreaking
relationships here at the School of Dentistry and across report focused on the state of oral health in the
the University of Michigan campus – with colleagues, country. It emphasized the importance of oral
students, and others,” he said. health and its relationship to general health
In particular, Taylor recalled “the generosity of both and well-being.
Walter Loesche and Paul Lang who invited me to join Taylor, a contributing author, reviewed
their research projects when I first joined the faculty. I, literature and prepared the original draft
of course, accepted the invitations which turned out to of one section of the report that focused
be very influential in helping me establish my research on the interrelationship between diabetes
career here.”
and periodontal disease. Burt drafted the
When asked if he considers himself a role model
original section of the report focusing on the
for other African Americans, especially students at the
epidemiology of periodontal diseases, along
School who are pursuing careers in oral health, or who
with a series of graphs. Ismail co-authored a
are considering careers in dentistry, Taylor said, “Yes, I do.
I have a special sensitivity to the needs and aspirations chapter on dental care and verified the scientific
of minority students. That’s why I go out of my way to accuracy of four chapters of information.
help them as much as I can whenever I can.” “I was honored to be asked to contribute to
By every measure, Dr. George Taylor has not only that report,” Taylor said. “The best part, though,
achieved his dreams when he was growing up in Newport was having an opportunity to meet and work
News, he surpassed even his own expectations. “I’ve been with so many others, not just here in Michigan,
tremendously blessed in my career,” he said. but other parts of the country.”

Dr. George Taylor
Professional Achievements
Selected Highlights
Education Hospital Appointments
• Doctor of Public Health, University of Michigan School of • Staff consultant, Hutzel Hospital, Detroit (1989-2003)
Public Health (1994) • Staff consultant, Rehabilitation Institute of Detroit (1981-2003)
• Master of Public Health, University of Michigan School of • Staff consultant, Detroit Receiving Hospital (1981-present)
Public Health (1982) • General practice resident, Brookdale Hospital Medical Center
• Master of Science, Public Health, University of Michigan (1974-1975)
School of Public Health (1982)
Memberships in Professional Societies
• General Practice Residency, Brookdale Hospital Medical Center,
• American Association of Public Health Dentistry
Brooklyn, New York (1974-1975)
(1980 to present)
• Doctor of Dental Medicine, Harvard University School of Dental
- Executive Council member (1997 to present)
Medicine, Boston (1974)
- Co-chair, Oral Health and Public Policy Committee (1998 to
• Bachelor of Arts, sociology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
present)
- Membership Committee member (1996-1997)
Academic Appointments and Professional Experience
• Michigan Dental Association Committee on Health Planning,
• Associate professor of dentistry, with tenure, U-M School of
Hospital and Institutional Dental Services (consultant, 1987-
Dentistry (since September 2000)
1988; member, 1988-1993)
• Assistant professor of dentistry, U-M School of Dentistry
• Detroit District Dental Society, Michigan Dental Association
(1993-2000)
(1979 to present)
• Research associate, U-M School of Public Health, program in
- Delegate to the MDA House of Delegates (1987)
dental public health and U-M School of Dentistry (1992-1993)
- Executive Council member (1986-1987)
• Adjunct associate clinical professor, University of Detroit
- Peer Review Committee member (1986-1987)
Mercy School of Dentistry (1988 to present)
- Alternate Delegate to the MDA House of Delegates (1986)
• Nonresident lecturer, U-M School of Public Health (1982-1988)
• National Dental Association (2001 to present)
• Director, extramural affairs; U-D Mercy School of Dentistry
• International Association of Dental Research (1988 to present)
(1986-1988)
• American Public Health Association (1980 to present)
• Chair, Department of General Dentistry; U-D Mercy School of
• Academy of General Dentistry (1979 to present)
Dentistry (1983-1988)
• American Dental Association (1975 to present)
• Assistant professor, U-D Mercy School of Dentistry; director, U-D
Mercy Dental Service, Detroit Medical Center (1982-1986) Editorships and Review Panels
• Clinical instructor, U-D Mercy School of Dentistry (1979-1982) • Editorial Board, Journal of Evidence-Based Dental Practice
(2001 to present)
Honors and Awards • Reviewer, Journal of Periodontology; Annals of Periodontology
• National Advisory Dental and Craniofacial Research Council (2000 to present)
Award, National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research, • Reviewer, Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology
NIH (2003) (1997 to present)
• National Dental Association Foundation/Colgate Palmolive • Reviewer, Journal of Public Health Dentistry (1997 to present)
Faculty Recognition Award (2002) • Reviewer, American Journal of Public Health (1997 to present)
• Diplomate, American Board of Public Health Dentistry (2002) • Review Committee member, U.S. Public Health Service, Health
• Civil Rights Award, National Dental Association (1988) Resources and Services Administration (1994 to present)
• National Research Service Award, National Institute of Dental
Research (1988)

Faculty NEWS
McNamara, 3 Others Win Top Research Prize Lopatin New Senior
Associate Dean
D r. J a m e s M c N a m a r a , t h e skeletal maturation by analyzing the
Thomas M. and Doris Graber maturation of vertebrae in the neck. Per Kjelsden
Endowed Professor of Dentistry in Their study found that the group

the Department of Orthodontics and treated before the pubertal peak
Pediatric Dentistry, is one of four showed significantly greater increases
individuals to receive the Edward H. in the width of the maxilla and in the
Angle Research Prize. nasal cavities. The study indicated
McNamara and three others that expansion treatment prior to
– Drs. Tiziano Baccetti, Lorenzo the peak in skeletal growth velocity
Franchi, and Christopher Cameron is able to induce more pronounced
– recently received the award from transverse craniofacial changes at
the Edward H. Angle Educational and the skeletal level.
Research Foundation during its 35th Baccetti and Franchi are Thomas
biennial meeting. The award is given M. Graber Visiting Scholars in U-M’s
for the outstanding scientific paper Department of Orthodontics and Dr. Dennis Lopatin has been
published in the orthodontic journal, Pediatric Dentistry. The two are also named to the new position of Senior
The Angle Orthodontist, during the faculty members of the Department Associate Dean.
previous two years. of Orthodontics at the University of A faculty member since 1976,
The aim of their study was Florence, Italy. The fourth recipient, Lopatin previously served as vice chair
to evaluate differences in both Dr. Chris Cameron, is a private of the Department of Biologic and
short-term and long-term effects practice orthodontist in Toronto who Materials Sciences and interim chair
of orthopedically expanding the graduated from the U-M School of of the Department of Periodontics,
upper jaw in two groups of subjects Dentistry’s orthodontics program in Prevention, and Geriatrics.
treated before and after the peak in 2000. As senior associate dean, Lopatin
Photo courtesy of Dr. James McNamara
will work with Dean Peter Polverini
in coordinating the allocation of
space, renovations, construction,
and related budgets; crafting a
school-wide faculty development
program; assisting in implementing
the School’s strategic plan, and
overseeing personnel actions,
including faculty appointments and
promotions.
In addition to these
responsibilities, Lopatin will also
continue to serve as director of the
School of Dentistry’s biopreparedness
Recipients of the 2003Edward H. Angle Research Prize were (left to right): Drs. Lorenzo Franchi, Tiziano
Baccetti, and James McNamara, the Graber Endowed Professor of Dentistry. Afourth recipient, Dr. Christopher program.
Cameron, was not present.

Faculty NEWS
Drs. Sunil & Yvonne Kapila Join Dental School Sarment Pens Manual
Per Kjelsden
An outstanding husband and wife team A s u g g e s t i o n f ro m a

are the newest members of the School of predoctoral student led to
Dentistry’s faculty. Dr. David Sarment writing
Dr. Sunil Kapila is the new chair of the a manual about dental
Department of Orthodontics and Pediatric implants.
Dentistry. His wife, Dr. Yvonne Kapila, is a “A l t h o u g h I ’ v e
new associate professor in the Department of written articles and
Periodontics, Prevention and Geriatrics. chapters for books, I’ve done
Before coming to Michigan, he was an nothing like this until now,” said
associate professor in the Department of Sarment, a clinical assistant professor
Growth and Development at the University of in the Department of Periodontics,
California in San Francisco and was the first Prevention, and Geriatrics.
Eugene West Endowed Chair of Orthodontics. Sarment said what wound up
He succeeds Dr. Lysle Johnston, Jr., who chaired as a manual began as lesson plans.
the department for 12 years. He changed directions following the
A Fulbright-Hayes scholar who has won predoctoral student’s suggestion.
several research awards, including the Milo The Manual of Dental Implants,
Hellman Award from the American Association a Reference Guide for Diagnosis and
of Orthodontists, Sunil is also a diplomate of Treatment, is published by Lexi-Comp
the American Board of Orthodontics. of Hudson, Ohio.
His research focuses on determining It can be ordered by calling (800)
the causes of temporomandibular joint 837-5394 or on the Web at www.lexi.
diseases in women, on bioengineering TMJ com.
tissues, and bone regeneration. These
studies have applications in orthodontics and Faculty Named to
periodontics. Endowed Professorships
Dr. Yvonne Kapila also possesses impressive credentials.
In 1986, she earned a bachelor’s degree in human biology from Stanford Several School of Dentistr y
and a dental degree, certificate in periodontics, and doctoral degree from UCSF faculty members have been appointed
in 1990, 1994, and 1997, respectively. Since 1999 she has been an assistant to endowed professorships. They
professor at UCSF in the Department of Stomatology and is also active in a include: Dr. William Kotowicz named
clinical practice. the Roy Roberts Endowed Professor of
Yvonne is principal investigator of two $1 million-plus grants and is the Dentistry, Dr. Cun-Yu Wang appointed
principal investigator of two other research projects, including one totaling to the Richard H. Kingery Endowed
$674,000. Her research interests are in cell matrix interactions that govern the
Collegiate Professorship, Dr. William
repair and regeneration of periodontal tissues and cell survival of squamous
Giannobile named the William K.
cell carcinomas.
and Mary Anne Najjar Professor
Sunil and Yvonne will soon arrive in Ann Arbor along with their 6-year-
of Dentistry, Dr. Sunil D. Kapila,
old daughter, Anjuli, and 2-year-old twins, Sahil and Simran.
the Robert W. Browne Professor in
Orthodontics.

Lanning First Dental Faculty Member in Medical Polverini and Wang
Education Program New ACD Fellows
Per Kjelsden
Dr. Sharon Lanning is the first Originally Dean Peter Polverini and Dr.
School of Dentistry faculty member designed for Hom-Lay Wang, director of the
selected for a specialized program the Medical graduate periodontics program, were
designed to prepare health care School’s faculty awarded Fellowships in the American
professionals for leadership roles in m e m b e r s College of Dentists during the group’s
education. in 1997, the annual meeting in San Francisco last
Lanning, a clinical assistant program in October.
p ro f e s s o r i n t h e D e p a r t m e n t recent years has Polverini is also a Fellow in
of Periodontics, Prevention, and expanded to the American Academy of Oral and
Geriatrics, is one of 13 health care include different sectors of the health Maxillofacial Pathology.
scholars from across the U-M campus care profession. Those participating Wang is also a Fellow of the
who successfully competed for a in the program with Lanning include International Congress of Oral
spot in the Medical School’s Medical specialists in internal, pediatric, Implantologists, a Diplomate of the
Education Scholars Program (MESP). geriatric, emergency, and family American Board of Periodontology,
The one-year program, which medicine; psychiatry; public health, is the author or co-author of 12 book
begins in the fall, consists of weekly, and obstetrics and gynecology. chapters and more than 100 scientific
half-day workshops on topics led by MESP scholars are also expected articles and abstracts, and has given
experts in their field. Subjects include to develop an educational project more than 200 lectures at professional
basic principles of education and they would like to pursue while and scientific congresses around the
learning, teaching methods, research participating in the program. world during the past 15 years.
principles, academic leadership, Lanning said her project features Fellowship in the American
and educational evaluation and a case-based program aimed at College of Dentists is by invitation
assessment. Experts may be from enhancing the consistency of teaching only and is based on demonstrated
the Medical School, other schools on in School clinics. leadership and contributions to
campus, or those outside U-M with Since arriving at the U-M School organized dentistry, oral health care,
major national or international of Dentistry two years ago, Lanning dental research, dental education, the
credentials. has taken a major role in piloting profession, and society.
“What’s especially rewarding a teaching program for dentistry Since its founding in 1920, the
about the program are the many that’s similar to teaching programs College has launched and supported
opportunities to interact with others at many medical schools. She has many initiatives designed to enhance
from outside my own field,” Lanning also initiated a case-based program to the quality of dental care and the
said. “Their expertise and insights improve the consistency of teaching profession’s ser vice to society.
are invaluable, not just in learning in School clinics. Approximately three-and-a-half
more about a particular topic, but percent of dentists are Fellows of
also networking.” ACD.

DENTAL HYGIENE
DH Class of ’04 Makes its Mark
93% Participation
Keary Campbell
B y a n y m e a s u re , t h e i r e f f o r t s w e re
outstanding.
The 28 students who are members of the Dental
Hygiene Class of 2004 completed the first-ever senior
pledge drive for dental hygiene students.
Their achievements were impressive. Consider
these facts:
• Ninety-three percent of the class pledged.
• The target pledge goal of $3,000 was
surpassed by nearly 40 percent!
• The total amount pledged was $4,195.
• The average amount pledged was $161.
Seen in this picture of the Dental Hygiene Class of 2004are: the director of the
“As a class, you’re awesome,” said Professor dental hygiene program, Prof. Wendy Kerschbaum (second row, right) and
Wendy Kerschbaum, director of the dental hygiene Dawn Ford (second row, left) from the Office of Development who organized the
program.
program. “You set a high standard for others to
follow.” Keary Campbell
She also stressed the significance of their gifts. Kristen Wilhelm

(right), president
“The giving program at any School plays an of the Dental
important role in sustaining a range of programs,” Hygiene Class of
2004, and Julie
Kerschbaum said. “Your efforts will enable us Pitel, class vice
to continue offering the excellent programs we president, were
have which, in turn, makes your dental hygiene instrumental in
the success of
degree from the University of Michigan so highly the fundraising
regarded.” effort.
Kerschbaum urged the hygiene students to
follow through on their pledges and continue giving
over the years.
Kristen Wilhelm, president of the class, said,
“Our decision to give was really not much of a
sacrifice. As soon-to-be-alumni, we would like to
see this program continue to succeed in the future.
We hope our gifts will help the University to exceed
the expectations of students in the future, just as it
has with us.”

Leading on the Ice
Julie Pitel: DH Class of ‘04 Vice President & Championship Skating Coach
Jerry Mastey
She’s coached her synchronized skating team

from Wayne, Michigan to three first-place finishes in
competitions earlier this year.
She also teaches power skating to five- and six-year-
olds learning to play ice hockey in nearby Canton.
And after she earns her Bachelor of Science degree in
dental hygiene in May, Julie Pitel plans to continue her role
as an ice skating coach and instructor. “It’s great exercise,
gives me an opportunity to get out with my friends and
have some fun, and it’s also helped me to pay for some
of my college expenses,” she said.
Beginnings Julie Pitel (second from right) has help from co-coach Sarah Dean. They and
Pitel first put on figure skates when she was seven. some of the members of the team paused for this picture after practice last
December.
She enjoyed herself so much that she took private lessons
for the next ten years to help improve her performance
in competitions. was so fussy about how I wanted things done that I yelled
When she was 11, she joined a synchronized figure a lot,” Pitel said with a laugh. “So when an opportunity
skating team in Wayne and participated in competitions arose to teach young hockey players, I gave it a try.”
in and around the Detroit area and other parts of the Unlike coaching the synchronized skating team,
country. “I had a good time,” she said. “There were 26 of which occurs regularly, Pitel teaches power skating to
us on the team, so when I went to college, I thought I’d ice hockey players on a when-needed basis. She teaches
try it there too.” them the basics – how to start and stop, how to cross
She succeeded, landing a spot with the synchronized over, skate backwards, and the importance of balance.
skating team at Western Michigan University in
Kalamazoo. To help her meet some of her educational Three 1st Place Finishes
expenses, she also coached figure skaters. But after one The first few months of 2004 have been both busy
semester, Pitel came to U-M to pursue her bachelor’s and rewarding.
degree in dental hygiene. “This was the best place to do In January, Pitel’s synchronized skating team won
that,” she said. first place in a competition in Melvindale, Michigan. Less
than a month later, the group earned a first-place finish
Coaching in a competition in Westland. A third championship
About three years ago, Pitel began coaching a group followed two weeks later in Southgate.
of 14 girls, ages 8 to 12, who belong to a synchronized Soon, she will coach a synchronized skating team
figure skating team in Wayne. “I’m on the ice with them that will participate in regional competition in Chicago
every Saturday morning and get paid for it, which helps and then a world competition in Minneapolis in late July.
me to meet some of my expenses here,” she said. “I’ll probably be a nervous wreck then,” she said. “I’m
That role turned out to be a springboard for teaching more nervous watching them skate than I was when I
another group – young ice hockey players – how to skate. was competing.”
A parent suggested she give it a try. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in dental
One day, the father of one of the synchronized skaters hygiene, Pitel plans to return to U-M to earn a master’s
offered the idea. “When I asked why, he said because I degree in public health.

DENTAL HYGIENE
Expanding a Great Tradition – Community Service

As alumni of the University of Michigan, we’re already If you know of an opportunity for volunteering, please
members of an elite group. Our top-notch education has let us know. The Dental Hygienists’ Alumnae Association
afforded us many privileges in both educational and will inform its members, and hopefully participation
dental circles. in the event will be even better. Also, if you have an
Not everyone is so lucky, however. experience you would like to share with fellow alumni,
When we were students, we were exposed to various write us.
types of volunteering. These included visits to Hope Clinic You can e-mail the alumni association at jemma_
in Ypsilanti, the V.A. Hospital, the Maxey Boys School, rdh@lycos.com, or send a letter to the School of
Native American clinics, nursing homes, and elementary Dentistry’s Office of Alumni Relations at 1011 N.
schools, to name a few. University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078.
Each visit was a unique experience. We learned a
Sincerely,
great deal about different types of people, and hopefully,
ourselves as well.
Jemma Allor, President
“The more you give, the more you receive” is probably
the best way to sum up what these experiences were
about. That’s the beauty of volunteer work.
In our profession, and when we serve as volunteers,
we carry on what we were taught – to treat our patients Join Today
with respect and kindness.
But what about volunteering in the public sector? Your active involvement in the U-M Dental
Many alumni are active and volunteer their time Hygienists’ Alumnae Association is encouraged.
and services in their community and enjoy meeting new Among its activities, the organization presents
types of people and helping them. Whether it is an elderly the Pauline F. Steele Award to an outstanding senior
patient, or someone who is medically compromised, or an during spring graduation ceremonies, as well as
underprivileged patient, there is always an opportunity the Distinguished Dental Hygienist Alumnae Award.
to grow from time spent serving the public.
The recipient of that award is recognized at the
Other activities may also include participating in
a fundraising walk, working in a free clinic, or simply organization’s annual fall banquet.
donating supplies to the local homeless shelter. The point Annual dues of $15 (July 1 to June 30) help
is, University of Michigan dental hygiene alumni are out finance these and other activities. Please make
there and helping as much as they can. We are very proud your check payable to the U-M Dental Hygienists’
of those that continue to give back and hope their efforts Alumnae Association. You can mail your check
will inspire others. to Amy Reyes at the School of Dentistry, 1011 N.
Let us continue and expand upon this great tradition
University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078.
of community service.

McGowan Receives
Fall Homecoming Humanitarian Award
It’s not too early to begin thinking about being a part Dr. Joan McGowan received the Humanitarian Award
of this year’s Homecoming activities. This year’s events from the Academy of Dentistry International during its
begin on Thursday, October 7, and continue through meeting in San Francisco last fall.
Saturday, October 9. The award is given to an individual to recognize
Dental hygiene graduates who graduated in years their “significant contributions to the enhancement of
ending in 4 and 9 will be recognized this year. U-M Dental the quality of life and the human condition.”
Hygienists’ Alumnae Association will hold its annual McGowan, who has been at the U-M School of
dinner on Friday, October 8, at Kensington Court, formerly Dentistry since 1973, is the Michigan coordinator of the
the Crowne Plaza, in Ann Arbor. A reception begins at National Spit Tobacco Education Program.
6:30 p.m. Dinner begins about half-an-hour later. The Academy advances dentistry and dental
We would like to make this year’s turn-out the best standards worldwide through continuing education.
yet. Along with sponsoring dental education and service
Our annual dinner is an excellent opportunity to projects, it directly aids in improving the oral health and
catch up on what’s going on in the lives of old friends, well-being of people worldwide.
exchange ideas with peers, and perhaps even offer to
volunteer for an activity.
If you are interested in attending or helping with
the planning, please send an e-mail to Jemma Allor. Her
e-mail address is: jemma_rdh@lycos.com.
Dana Sutton Awarded Scholarships

Dental hygiene student Dana Sutton was awarded two
scholarships totaling $1,000.
The first scholarship of $500, was awarded by the National
Dental Hygiene Association during its annual convention last
summer. To Sutton’s surprise, the National Dental Association
matched the scholarship.
After receiving her degree in May, Sutton said she would
like to practice dental hygiene in Switzerland. “I got the idea
from Kari Gould who told me about her experiences and highly
recommended it,” Sutton said. [DentalUM, Spring & Summer
2001, pages 36-38.] Dana Sutton (left), dual scholarship recipient, and Juana Gissendaner
Sutton said when she returns, she would like to either go back (RDH 1988). For the past three years, Gissendaner has been working
to attract more minorities to the School’s dental hygiene program.
to school or work in a private practice.

DENTAL HYGIENE
DH Students in
Research Table Clinic Day Executive Board Members:
U-M Dental Hygienists’
Dental hygiene students participated in the School’s Alumnae Association
Research Table Clinic Day program held in February. [See (2004-2006)
story, page 85.]
This year, 29 DH students were involved in 11 table
Term Expires 2004
clinics. Their work was displayed on four-foot high tables
with tri-fold posters. Poster presentations, by comparison, Heather Goemer, Class of 1999
measured four feet by six feet and are mounted on an Shawntel Hale, Class of 1999
easel. Karen Beckerman, Class of 1995
Some of the table clinic participants are pictured Laura Roth, Class of 1999
below. Per Kjeldsen
Term Expires 2005

Jemma Allor (President),
Class of 2000
Christine Klausner, Class of 1972
Sheila May, Class of 1999
Mary Stout, Class of 1966
Term Expires 2006

Kathleen Early-Burk (Secretary),
Class of 1977
Alyssa King (left) and Julie Morgan. Shirley Branam (Treasurer),
Per Kjeldsen
Class of 1998
Beverly Gainer, Class of 1998
Kelly Donovan Richter, Class of 1995
Ex-Officio Member
Wendy Kerschbaum
Maria Schuemann (left) and Nicole Maynard.

2nd Annual
Per Kjeldsen
Coating Ceremony
“You’re the cream of the crop, but don’t
take anything for granted,”
MDA President tells dental students
Marking the second year of a tradition established in the fall of 2002, first-year
dental students received the white coats they are now wearing in clinics during formal
ceremonies last October at Rackham Auditorium.
In keynote remarks, the President of the Michigan Dental Association, Dr. Raymond
Gist challenged the D1s to put their special talents to work, both during their four years
of study at the U-M School of Dentistry and throughout their professional careers.
Memories…and Looking Ahead

Gist, who received his DDS from the U-M School of Dentistry in 1966, recalled his days
as a dental student.
“I’m sure that many of our thoughts, feelings, and concerns are the same,” he said.
“We share a common bond. We are all dental professionals. We are just at different stages
of our professional growth.”
Congratulating the students on being accepted into the predoctoral program, Gist
told the students that their education “will be earned, not received.”
Reminding them they had “a few short years to earn their degree,” Gist told the
students their dedication “will set you apart in today’s society and your community.”

Only eight percent of Michigan residents older than 25 have a graduate or a
professional degree, he said. “So you will become part of a very small percentage of the
population to reap the benefits of higher learning. …You are the cream of the crop, but
don’t take anything for granted. Be conscientious, work hard, and utilize the expertise
of those within the halls of this fine university.”
He also stressed the responsibility of providing ethical service and being self-
Per Kjeldsen regulating.
“We must be ever vigilant, as we are constantly under scrutiny. Presenting ourselves
to the public as a profession beyond reproach is an on-going process,” he said. “We are
depending on you to maintain the impeccable status of our profession.”
A Symbol of Respect and Pride

Afua Mireku, Dental Class of 2004 president, told students that wearing the white
coat “is a privilege and not something to be taken lightly. It is a symbol of respect, honor,
and great responsibility.”
Dr. Raymond Gist, a member of the Class of She reminded students that every patient they treat, whether in School clinics or
1966 and President of the Michigan Dental
Association, reminded dental students of after graduation, “is an individual who is relying on you, trusting you to provide the
their obligations to both the profession and best care. You must realize your coat represents your commitment to your patients and
their patients.
your profession. Wear it with pride.”
Per Kjeldsen
Like Learning to Ski

Dr. Aleco Tujios, who was president of the Dental Class of 2003 for the first white coat
ceremony a year earlier, told the D1s that dental school was similar to learning to ski.
“You’re all crammed into the same gondola,” he told the 107 students. “Your first
two years will be a long, slow, uphill climb,” but that the final two years will be “a quick
downhill return to the real world.”
Continuing the metaphor, he said that periodically, the gondola would stop to pick
up ski instructors. “All of your instructors Per Kjeldsen
will teach you something different. Take

time to learn all the different techniques.
Somewhere along the way, you’ll put it all
together and develop your own way of doing
Afua Mireku, president of the Dental things,” he said.
Class of 2004, told dental students Tujios also reminded students that they
that wearing a white coat “is a
privilege and not something to be would be expected to conduct themselves
taken lightly.” “in a manner consistent with those in
your profession, not simply as a student
practicing as you learn.”
At a reception in the lobby of the
Rackham Building, Gist spent time talking
to dental students about the profession.
Dr. Jay Werschky (Class of 1976) urged first-year dental students

to maintain the School’s long-term tradition of excellence.
Representing the Alumni Society Board of Governors, he told
students “you can’t over-prepare for your future.” He urged
students to give some of their time, efforts, and resources back
to the profession after earning their degree. His daughter,
Joelle, was among the students receiving a white coat.

Ceremony Impresses
Students and Parents Per Kjeldsen
The coating ceremony was especially memorable for some parents and other family
members who were able to attend the event to see their first-year student receive a white
coat.
Some traveled only short distances. Others traveled considerably farther.
Courtney Spence said her parents flew in from Seattle. “It was a great opportunity
for many of us not only to see our own families, but to meet the families of some of our
friends here at the dental school,” she said.
Sangmo “Dannie” Yu, said his fiancée traveled to Ann Arbor from Dallas to attend.
“She was impressed with the program,” he said. “I too thought it was very well planned
and was flattered by the effort the D4s put into it.”
Abby Carlson said her parents and grandmother drove from Grand Rapids to attend
the ceremony. “They enjoyed themselves and had nothing but positive comments about
events of the day.” Courtney Spence
Richard Koh said his parents didn’t have to fly, nor drive a great distance, since they
live in nearby Canton. Per Kjeldsen
Erica Frando said she enjoyed the setting and the speakers. “Rackham was the perfect
place to have it. It was absolutely gorgeous. The speakers were excellent, especially Dr.
Tujios,” she said. “I thought his skiing analogy was true and funny.”
Some parents were taking pictures of the coating ceremony both during the event . . . and, in the case of Imani Lewis, afterwards.
Per Kjeldsen Per Kjeldsen
Dannie Yu
Per Kjeldsen
Members of the White Coat Committee

that helped to organize the ceremony
included fourth-year dental students
Kathryn Swan (left) and Kelly Burgess.
Other members included Afua Mireku,
Denise Lyons, and Jill Burgess.

The Oath of Aspiring
Dental Professionals
(Drafted by the Class of 2004 - Recited by the Class of 2007)
Dedication to my career goals has earned me an honorable position in

the dental community. This is a privilege that comes with considerable
responsibility to my patients, my colleagues, and other health
professionals.
I will be committed to disciplined academic studies and the competent
and knowledgeable practice of dentistry.
I will work with my peers to establish an atmosphere of honesty and

collegiality, thereby fostering collaborative learning. I will actively
participate in my community and respect the confidence entrusted in
me by my patients.
I understand that the foundation of my education built here at the

University of Michigan provides the framework for my continued
education. I will acknowledge the changes and advancement of the
profession over time, recognize my limitations, and be committed to a
lifetime of learning.
I will uphold the highest level of professionalism throughout my dental

career and enrich the legacy of my predecessors.
Per Kjeldsen

Then and Now…
Serving Near and Far
Dr. Dick Nieusma, Dr. Barbara
Emerick, and Paul Orley (D3)
For more than a century, University of Michigan School of Dentistry graduates
and dental students have helped thousands of people in countries near and far.
Dr. Dick Nieusma (DDS 1956), Dr. Barbara Emerick (DDS 1980), and Paul Orley,
who is finishing the third year of his predoctoral studies, have spent varying
amounts of time providing oral health care.
Nieusma spent more than 20 years treating patients and educating future
dentists and dental hygienists in Korea, as well as in a republic that once was a
part of the former Soviet Union.
Emerick spent a week last Christmas serving in the Dominican Republic.
Orley spent two weeks last summer treating patients, mostly adolescents, in
the Philippines.
Their experiences show that…regardless of age…one person can make a
difference in the lives of many and, in the process, gain professional and personal
satisfaction from those efforts.
Dick Nieusma…Honored in Korea and Central Asia
Dick Nieusma is a legend in his own time.

Since earning his dental degree in 1956, the 73-year-old Grand Rapids area dentist has
become an icon among oral health care professionals in South Korea as well as the former
Soviet republic of Uzbekistan. [See map on next page.]
Last summer, Dick and his wife, Ruth, traveled half a world away to Tashkent, Uzbekistan,
for the dedication of the “Dr. Dick H. Nieusma Memorial Dental Center.”
“I know the word ‘memorial’ is typically used to honor a person after he or she passes
away, but I’m glad that, in my case, it wasn’t done posthumously,” he said with a laugh.
“Rather, the word ‘memorial’ was used to express affection and appreciation. For that, I’m
deeply grateful.”

only help people but also develop
education programs that would
train future practitioners.” At
that time, faculty or residents
treated patients while dental
students watched. So clinical
residencies were highly sought.
A “ First” in South Korea

How it Began Nieusma achieved a personal and national milestone
Nieusma’s interest in in 1966 when he became the first foreigner to be issued
Korea began during the two-and-a-half a license to practice dentistry in Korea. Two translators
years he was a dentist with the U.S. Army in Tokyo. were provided for the National Board Exam.
During his tour of duty, he and his wife adopted a Korean- Relying on what he learned at the U-M School of
born son, Paul, in 1958, now a detective in Ingham County, Dentistry and a rotating internship while in the Army
Michigan. Four years later, they adopted a Korean-born in Japan, Nieusma was able to develop a prosthodontics
daughter, Mary, now a dental hygienist who’s married residency program that was accredited by the Korean
to a dental ceramist in Orlando, Florida. Ministry of Health and the Korean military. His graduates
In 1961, Nieusma began what would turn out to be entered the military as prosthodontic specialists.
nearly a quarter century of training dental residents “We focused on developing a strong academic
at a hospital in Kwangju, South Korea, about 200 miles program, developing and maintaining high standards
south of Seoul. However, his first two years were devoted of oral health care, and having modern equipment and
to learning the language at Yonsei University in Seoul. supplies,” Nieusma said. If equipment was not available,
Nieusma said that Korean pronunciation was especially Nieusma designed it himself...something he continues to
difficult to learn. Once when he asked a pharmacist for do even now.
toothpaste (ch’i-yak), he was given a bottle of “chwi-yak,” “I taught dentistry to the Koreans in their own
which is rat poison! language and was invited to lecture at a number of dental
He continued his research on the language, and in schools across the country,” he said. He also taught dental
1969, published a dictionary and a verb wheel. The materials at the two local dental schools for 10 years.
wheel enables a user to form difficult Korean verbs “Over the years, I was thrilled to see some of my students
automatically simply by matching colors on the wheel. become professors and even deans at some of the dental
Nieusma is also working on a revision of the dictionary. schools in that country.”
“From an oral health care perspective, things were
pretty bad, back in 1961,” he said. “There was a lot of Former Students Now Faculty
periodontal disease and occlusal wear from grit in the Between September 1971 and August 1972, Nieusma
rice, but interestingly, very little caries because sugar was a visiting clinical assistant professor at the U-M
candies had not yet been introduced on a massive scale.” School of Dentistry. “Merle Jaarda, Ron Heys, and Don
That soon changed. Heys were students then. Some students later worked
Nonetheless, Nieusma said he was fortunate to arrive with me in Kwangju including Dan Vander Meulen, Gary
when he did “because modern dentistry was just getting Clague, Ray Lubberts, John Vander Kolk, Walter Kubinski,
started and the country needed dentists who could not and Dave Feick,” Nieusma said.

In 1982, Nieusma helped establish Dental Service hygienists receive intensive training on cross-cultural
International (DSI) to promote dental training and communication and dental education to prepare them
treatment of the less fortunate throughout Asia. His for overseas service.
graduates and other Korean dental professionals carried Nieusma and his wife have been invited to return
the torch and have established dental centers in China, to Central Asia this fall to participate in another DSI-
Mongolia, Malaysia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and other sponsored symposium at the National Medical Center in
Asian countries. Tashkent.
Dental outreach programs included frequent “To have trained, challenged, and inspired dentists
“extraction clinics” in country villages. Thousands of to provide quality oral health care and now to see them
school-age children were examined and treated each year. take over and carry on the work I started is a great source
Many cleft palate and oral cancer patients were fitted of pride and inspiration to me,” Nieusma said.
with obturators and speech appliances. Today, dentistry is vital, both physically and
A full-service laboratory training program graduated culturally, to the Korean people. So much so, Nieusma
about 50 government-certified lab technicians. A dental said, that having good teeth “is considered one of the
hygiene department was founded in a local junior college five great blessings in life. That’s why Koreans are more
with the help of an American and a Korean hygienist. interested in dental restorations than extractions,” he
said.
Efforts Recognized Nieusma’s work has been recognized in Korea,
His efforts have been acknowledged. including becoming an honorary citizen of Kwangju in
Last June, Nieusma and his wife joined a team of 1986. In 1992, he received the ADA’s Meritorious Service
Korean members of DSI who traveled to Tashkent for Award for his work In 2000, Hope College, his alma mater,
the dedication of the “Dr. Dick H. Nieusma Memorial where he received his bachelor’s degree, awarded him the
Dental Center.” He was a part of the ribbon-cutting Hope for Humanity Award for his service in Korea.
ceremony that included Uzbekistan’s Minister of Health,
the president of the Uzbek Dental Association, and the Photo courtesy of Dr. Dick Nieusma
Korean ambassador to Uzbekistan.

Following the ceremony, the group traveled an hour
east to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, where DSI sponsored a dental
symposium for about 250 local dentists. Nieusma was one
of the lecturers, as was one of his friends, Dr. Huen-Taik
Jhee, who earned a master’s degree in crown and bridge
at U-M in 1966, when Nieusma’s classmate Dr. George
Myers chaired the department.
His work was recognized in another special way.
A Special Exhibit
After returning to Seoul, Nieusma visited Seoul
National University Dental Museum that had a special Dr. Dick Nieusma was invited to participate in a ribbon cutting ceremony last
summer at the Tashkent Dental Center. Also participating in the ceremony were
exhibit about him – the instruments he used, the Korean (left to right): Dr. Heun-Taik Jhee, U-M School of Dentistry (1966); Nieusma; the
dictionary and verb wheel he published, and a copy Uzbek Minister of Health; the president of the Uzbek Dental Association; and
Korean Ambassador to Uzbekistan. Note the white gloves all are wearing. “It’s a
of his Korean dental license. He also visited the DSI- sign of respect in that part of the world and takes place on occasions such as this,”
operated Love Dental Training Center where dentists and Nieusma said.

Daughter’s Comment, Online Search Lead
Dr. Barbara Emerick to Service
It began with a high school-age daughter’s desire She has assembled the information into a database
to perform a community service project “that was to help determine what kind of follow-up care and
different.” treatments might be provided. Emerick hopes an
By the time it was over as 2003 was ending, the international dental organization might be able to use
project so captivated Dr. Barbara Emerick (DDS 1980); her the information and provide follow-up care.
16-year-old twins, Joe and Jessie; and a 24-year-old son, “Because of sugar cane, there’s an incredible amount
Jake, that they’re considering returning to the Dominican of tooth decay among all age groups,” she said.
Republic. Emerick said she and other members of her family
Emerick, a research investigator at the School of felt their week of service “was probably one of the most
Dentistry, said her twin daughter, Jessica, a junior at rewarding things we’ve ever done.”
Dexter High School, one day said “she wanted to do a The family also established a scholarship fund, which
community service project, but one that’s out of the will award $500 annually to a student from that country
ordinary.” that will enable them to pursue an education beyond the
“We’re adventurous,” Emerick said with a laugh, “so seventh grade.
we went online and began looking for something different “To us, $500 isn’t much,” she said, “but in the
and began considering international volunteering Dominican Republic it can help an adolescent reach a
opportunities.” higher level of education and, hopefully, a better life.”
They found one in the Dominican Republic – the Sister “That one week of service was probably one of the
Island Project. most interesting and rewarding things I’ve ever done,”
“It seemed interesting, wasn’t far away, and we Emerick said. “I definitely would encourage others to
checked it out. So we felt confident about what we look at doing something like this because it does make a
were doing when we left Michigan on December 19,” she difference.”
said.
“Still, it was a big leap of faith for us because, Photo courtesy of Dr. Barbara Emerick
although we were in contact with people associated with

the project, we didn’t know anyone, nor did we know the
language.” Translators made the job easier.
500 Toothbrushes
Helping residents build a secondary school in Cruz
Verde was the primary goal of Emerick and her family.
But she also used her dental training and experience to
provide oral health care to children and their parents in
that village and two others, Alta Gracia and Mata los
Indios.
“I took 500 toothbrushes with me and passed all of
them out in the villages,” she said. After instructing
children and adults how to use the toothbrushes, Emerick Dr. Barbara Emerick checks the teeth of a resident in Mata los Indios in the
recorded data about the oral health conditions of those Dominican Republic last December.
she examined.

Paul Orley . . . From Construction to Dentistry
Now a third-year dental student, Paul Orley initially “Until then, I hadn’t. But I loved science and had
had aspirations of becoming a construction manager. given only passing thought to becoming a physician, but I
But after working construction on the home and didn’t want to be on call all the time,” he continued. “But
office of a dentist in Decatur, Michigan, a town about 20 his question made me think. I looked at several dental
miles southwest of Kalamazoo, Orley’s plans changed. schools, applied to several and was accepted, and then
The dentist, Dr. Richard Moussalli, liked Orley’s work ethic chose Michigan.”
and hired him after he expressed an interest in dentistry
and asked for a job as a dental assistant. Teen Challenge Centers
“One day, Dr. Moussalli said something I’ll never Before arriving at the U-M School of Dentistry, Orley
forget, ‘You’re good with your hands, have you ever spent a week in Peru working with dental missionaries.
considered becoming a dentist?’,” Orley said. Last summer, Orley spent nearly two weeks with members
Photo courtesy of Dr. Paul Orley
Following an extraction on other patients, dental student Paul Orley and his assistant place gauze and check for hemostasis on a resident of the Teen Challenge Center
in Cebu. The girls in the background have also had extractions and were also checked for hemostasis before leaving the clinic.

“I have an even greater love for dentistry than I did before.
When I graduate in 2005, I plan to do this kind of work two weeks
or one month every year.”
of a church group from Kalamazoo providing oral health His experiences have enhanced his education at the
care and other help in the city of Cebu on the island of the School of Dentistry.
same name in the Philippines, about 350 miles southeast Helping so many patients in the Philippines on a daily
of Manila. basis “taught me a lot about efficiency and delegation,”
Orley was one of several individuals working under Orley said. Not expecting to see so many patients each
Dr. Moussalli’s direction providing oral health care day, the dentists developed a system for treating patients
services for several days in facilities called “Teen Challenge who needed extractions. “I provided the oral health care,
Centers.” The centers provided various rehabilitation but relied on others to talk to the patients, ask them
services to troubled teens. As part of that program, the questions about what was wrong, and make records
group reached out to the city’s poor, including homeless of what was done for any follow-up care that might be
children and adolescents. needed,” he said.
On other occasions, following a day’s work, Orley He also said he learned how to be flexible and respond
and others on the dental team would take the portable to new situations and challenges as they arose. “I have
equipment down, pack it up, take it to a new location, an even greater love for dentistry than I did before,” Orley
set it up, and get ready for the next day. “When you’re said. “When I graduate in 2005, I plan to do this kind of
treating patients from nine in the morning until five or work two weeks or one month every year.”
six o’clock in a climate that’s very hot and humid, and Photo courtesy of Paul Orley
then do these other things, you’re drained,” he said. “But

it was worth the effort to meet the great dental needs of
this community.”
Two or three local dentists, Moussalli, and Orley saw
and treated about 700 patients during the two weeks he
was in Cebu last August, usually about 100 patients a day.
On his final day, Orley and the other dentists treated 180
patients. Most had to have one or more teeth extracted
because of the severity of caries and level of pain.
Applying Philippines Experiences at Michigan

Orley said the patients “were very grateful that
someone from the United States would come so far Third-year dental student Paul Orley administers a local anesthetic at a church
in Cebu that was transformed into a dental clinic. His assistant (left) and a
to help them. We tried to meet their physical needs, translator (partially obscured) look on. In the background on the left hand side
through dentistry and provide some spiritual assistance of the picture is another patient who has already received an anesthetic and is
as well.” waiting for an extraction.

Martin Luther King Day Observed
Keary Campbell
While the University Panelists Recall

of Michigan was marking Experiences
the 17th annual observance During the School’s program,
of Martin Luther King Day several individuals recalled
in January, the School of some of their experiences as
Dentistry also marked the students.
day with a program of its Juana Gissendaner (RDH 1988),
own. who has been working part-
The School’s program time during the past three years
featured remarks from Dean to attract more minorities to the
Peter Polverini, reflections on the life of the late civil School’s dental hygiene program, and Tina Pryor, human
rights leader by Dr. Todd Ester, five individuals in a panel resources officer, talked about some of the obstacles they
discussion talking about their experiences on the U-M faced as students during the 1970s and 1980s.
campus in the 1970s and 1980s, and the presentation of One hurdle was not being asked by their peers to
the Ida Gray Award. participate in group assignments. “I had to be very
assertive. If students didn’t ask me to be in their
Today’s World More Diverse study groups, I basically invited myself to join them,”
In remarks to faculty, staff, and students, Polverini Gissendaner said.
reaffirmed the School’s commitment to diversity and Pryor said when she encountered similar situations as
multiculturalism. a student, “it made me want to excel that much more.”
“The ability of our students, faculty, and staff to Both added that what they experienced made them more
interact with others of different cultures, races, and sensitive to students today, especially those who are
income levels in classrooms, clinics, and elsewhere is introverted and don’t have the support or haven’t gained
one way of preparing us for our role as oral health care the acceptance of others.
professionals,” he said.
Citing the 2000 U.S. Surgeon General’s report on oral The Role of Sports
health care that pointed out profound and consequential Another panelist, Darnell Kaigler, Jr., said that while
oral health disparities within the U.S. population, learning to interact with individuals of other racial and
Polverini said the School of Dentistry has been working for cultural groups is important, “I don’t recall ever feeling
a long time to improve the quality of life of everyone. as though I did not fit in. In fact, I’ve always considered
He cited oral health care provided to thousands of myself as someone who’s part of the norm.”
patients at the School’s clinics, state-wide community Kaigler, who is the first African American enrolled
outreach efforts, and the Pipeline and Profiles for Success in, and hopes to soon complete, the School’s combined
programs designed to bring underrepresented college DDS/Oral Health Sciences PhD program, said his parents
students from around the country to help them prepare stressed the importance of treating everyone with respect.
for admission to dental and medical schools. He also recalled the important role sports have played in
Saying today’s world is more diverse than it was 50, his life.
25, or even 10 years ago, Polverini said “it will become “When you’re playing a game or even practicing,
even more so in the future. We’re moving forward, but you’re interacting with people of different races or
there’s still work ahead.” different cultures. In those situations, you’re all best

MLK
friends. You don’t see color or ethnicity because, for
those two or three hours you’re in a game or practicing,
you’re working as one toward a common goal, and that’s Katcher, Tyler, Holland
winning,” he said. Receive Award
Other panelists were professor Wendy Kerschbaum
and Dr. Rex Holland.
Three individuals received the School of
Keary Campbell Dentistry’s Ida Gray Award during the
School’s observance of Martin Luther King
Day in January. Dr. Gray was the first black
woman in the nation to earn a dental degree.
She received her degree from the U-M School
of Dentistry in 1890 and later practiced in
Chicago. The award, presented annually
by the Multicultural Affairs Committee,
recognizes those who promote diversity
throughout the School.
Cheryl Quiney (left) presented an Ida Gray Award to dental student Erika Tyler
for Tyler’s commitment to patients with special needs and for her role with the
Special Olympics in Mt. Pleasant and Lansing.
Keary Campbell Keary Campbell
Marilyn Woolfolk (left) presented an Ida Gray Award to Patricia Katcher. Ken May (left) presented an Ida Gray Award to fellow faculty member Rex
Katcher received the award for her work with the Pipeline and Profile for Success Holland.
programs.

Online Publication Offers Insights
Into Early Dentistry
Dental Cosmos Informative, Entertaining
“It’s amazing to see how much interest there is in this In 1936, the publication merged with the Journal of the
online publication,” said School of Dentistry librarian, American Dental Association (JADA).
Patricia Anderson. “It’s coming from colleges and
universities across the country, those in private practice, Dentist Walks in with Past Issues
and even a faculty member at a dental school in Lima, “It’s an informative and entertaining publication,”
Peru.” Anderson said. “There’s a wealth of knowledge in it
The online publication is Dental Cosmos. It’s that will interest dentists, specialists, dental hygienists,
available, at no cost, at this Web site: www.hti.umich. students, educators, historians, and others.” Copyright
edu/d/dencos. protection for issues prior to 1923 expired years ago,
consequently, the early volumes of the publication
An Influential Publication are now considered to be in the
Dental Cosmos was one of the first public domain.
national journals for the American Among those
dental profession and was also one of the responding to the online
most significant in the early history of publication was an
American dentistry. For more than 70 endodontist in Vancouver,
years, it was considered the source of Wa s h i n g t o n w h o
information for practitioners. researched the publication
Last fall, the first 33 volumes of for information about the
Dental Cosmos (from the premier history of amalgam.
issue of August 1859 through A faculty member
December 1891) were offered online from the dental school in Peru
by the University of Michigan. needed original and complete
Launched as a publication articles from the publication to
to encourage dentists to use complete a thesis.
products manufactured by But the icing on the cake
the magazine ’s fo unde r, occurred earlier this year when a
the Samuel S. White Dental middle-aged gentleman and his wife
Manufacturing Company, walked into the dentistry library and
Dental Cosmos showcases the birth and asked to speak to Anderson.
evolution of the dental profession in the U.S. from just The dentist, who wished to remain
prior to the start of the Civil War to the years leading up a n o n y m o u s , said he was talking to a neighbor
to the start of the 20th Century. about some old dental journals in the neighbor’s garage.
In time, it became the first enduring national journal The anonymous dentist recalled reading an article about
for the American dental profession and one of the most Dental Cosmos that appeared in The Journal of the
significant in the early history of American dentistry. Michigan Dental Association.

School in Pioneering
Digital Video Test
Program
But he also recalled that some of the dental journals Videos demonstrating an array of dental procedures
in the neighbor’s garage were early issues of Dental that were recorded in School of Dentistry television
Cosmos. studios during the 1970s and 1980s may soon be used in
After returning to his neighbor, he was given a novel way.
permission to rescue the early issues that were originally The University of Michigan and IBM have teamed up
destined for the garbage dump and then brought them to to make it easier for students, faculty, and researchers to
the U-M School of Dentistry. find other sources of information – video, images, and
“We’re glad he did,” Anderson said with a smile. film. The effort to improve the access to vast quantities
“Some of those issues had portraits on the cover of our of these images is known as Digital Asset Management
first dean, Dr. Jonathan Taft, and other notables such as System, or DAMS.
G.V. Black and Horace Wells.” Basically, DAMS would mimic the approach one uses
to search for print information on the Internet.
Types of Information Available However, in the case of DAMS, instead of entering
Anderson said the online issues contain articles about a keyword or phrase and receiving a list of print
the origins of some of the clinical techniques that are still publications (newspapers, magazines, etc.), the items
used today, what kinds of interventions were used at the that would be searched, retrieved, and delivered to the
time to treat various conditions, discussions about herbal desktop would be much different — videos, images, and
remedies that did and did not work, the importance of films.
the fluoridation of water, and other interesting and fun The School of Dentistry is involved in DAMS.
things about the profession. Dan Bruell, multimedia developer, is directing
“Since dental schools were being created in several the School’s participation in the project that involves
states, including Michigan in 1875, there is a significant seven other schools and colleges on the U-M campus:
amount of information in Dental Cosmos about what it Education, Pharmacy, Literature Sciences and the Arts,
means to be a dentist, the core competencies students Nursing, Social Work, University Library, and Information
needed to become dentists, how dentists should Technology Central Services.
communicate with patients, and how to encourage The School is making video demonstrations of various
parents to have their children treated by a dentist before dental procedures online, giving dental students instant
the children lost their teeth,” she said. “Some of the and repeated reference to a procedure, such as teeth
early founders of the profession, such as Dr. Jonathan cleaning. Those procedures are now being delivered
Taft, who was the first dean of the Michigan College of to monitors at a student’s workstation in the newly-
Dental Surgery, as it was called at the time, are quoted renovated west wing of the Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic.
extensively in these issues.” “Over the past thirty years or so, we’ve produced
Transferring the content of the 33 volumes online hundreds, if not thousands, of videotapes in our own
from print was made possible with the generous support studios that could possibly be used for the DAMS project
of the Colgate-Palmolive Company in partnership with the and the refurbished preclinic,” said John Squires, the
University Library Preservation Division, Digital Library School’s chief media engineer.
Production Services and the U-M Dental Library.

Sindecuse Museum Changes
Per Kjeldsen
Shannon O’Dell is the new curator

of the Gordon H. Sindecuse Dental
Museum.
O’Dell was named assistant
curator last summer and became
curator earlier this year when
the previous curator, Tammy
Szatkowski-Reeves, and her
husband moved out of state.
O’Dell has worked for
U-M since 1995, previously
with the University Library’s
Preservation Division, as a
resource coordinator. Before that,
she was curator for 12 years with
the DeWitt Historical Society of
Tompkins County in Ithaca, New
York.
She holds a bachelor’s degree
from Oregon State University and
a master’s degree in anthropology,
with concentrations in historical
archaeology and museum studies,
Shannon O’Dell is the new curator of the Gordon H. Sindecuse
Museum. from the University of Idaho.
Volunteers Needed
The School of Dentistry is looking for volunteers who are willing to devote a
few hours a week to help identify items in its collection of dental equipment and
supplies.
Because of the age of many of the items, it is difficult to determine their
precise use and function.
To volunteer, please e-mail: dentalmuseum@umich.edu or call Shannon
O’Dell, curator, Sindecuse Museum, at (734) 763-0767.

Paul Bunyan Mural Moved to Sindecuse Atrium
Sections of a large mural that sparked many

conversations between children and parents as
children waited for their dental appointments in the
Kellogg Building were recently moved in the Sindecuse
Atrium.
The mural, painted by Francis Danovich, depicts
scenes from the life of the legendary lumberjack, Paul
Bunyan, and his companion, Babe the Blue Ox.
Danovich, an artist from the Michigan Institute of
Arts and Crafts (Cranbrook), was commissioned by the
U.S. Works Progress Administration in 1939.
The mural as it appeared in the 1940s and 1950s.
Danovich painted the scenes directly onto two of
the plaster walls in the Children’s Waiting Room of the Per Kjeldsen
Kellogg Building.
Children were attracted to the mural because of
its size, the colors, and the depiction of a gigantic Paul
Bunyan. Parents also became involved as they answered
their children’s questions about the whimsical life of the
legendary lumberman and his friends.
Around the time he finished the mural in 1941,
Danovich said, “I have tried to convey simply an
amusing and light fantasy, using the elements found
in real lumber camps. I have tried to avoid incredulity
to the degree of normal conception, mainly because the
Aportion of the mural was saved and removed before renovations to the
mural was originally planned for children. But since Kellogg Building began in 1999.
adults too will see it,” he added, “I have attempted to
make it acceptable to a varied audience.”
Per Kjeldsen
By the 1970s, the mural had been covered by

wallpaper and was all but forgotten.
But it was “rediscovered” when renovations to the
Kellogg Building began in 1998.
However, by that time, only portions of the mural
could be salvaged and eventually framed because several
sections of the original mural had been damaged.
Some of the larger holes that are visible in the
corners of the three sections were made to distribute
equally the weight of the mural so that key images
could be saved. The mural as it appears now in the Gordon H. Sindecuse Atrium.

DEPARTMENT UPDATE
Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology
T
Per Kjeldsen
h e re h a v e b e e n s e v e r a l abnormal tissues that have been

interesting and important collected and archived by the School’s
developments in our Oral Pathology and Biopsy Service.
department since my Previously, specimens on glass
first report to you two years ago. sides were viewed by students in
[DentalUM, Spring & Summer 2002, groups of six or seven under 20-
pages 45-48.] year-old light microscopes. In some
As you’re aware from having instances, the light microscopes
read that first report, we began broke down, in others, tissue samples
developing a novel teaching tool faded or the glass slides cracked
called “the virtual microscope.” and the tissue dried out. Instead of
Featured prominently in the School spending $2,500 to replace each light
of Dentistry’s annual report in 2001 microscope, tissue images have been
(pages 7 and 8), this tool is designed digitized.
to make learning oral pathology more Now, all students view the
Dr. Thomas Carey, interesting and relevant. same image at the same resolution.
Chair Image quality is considerably
Virtual Microscope Project sharper and can be shown at various
Bolstered magnifications. Case narratives
Last fall, the program received a accompany the digitized images to
boost with a second grant from the help students understand pathologic
Whitaker Foundation. changes in tissues.
A $25,000 grant will enable us to
double, to more than 120, the number Building Upon Earlier
of digitized pathology and histology Successes
cases that dental students will be able “The grant from the Whitaker
to view using both the Internet and Foundation will enable us to build
digital video discs (DVDs). upon the success we’ve already had
The funds will also be used to the past two years in converting the
develop an interactive workbook microscope-based course to a virtual,
and make the Internet and DVD case-based learning experience,” said
versions of the case-based pathology project directors, Drs. Carl Hanks and
course available to fourth-year dental Nisha D’Silva.
students. The interactive workbook They pointed out other benefits:
will provide instant feedback on each eliminating the need to replace or
case to help students evaluate their maintain old light microscopes,
understanding of the material. students saving two hours of class
time, and more effective use of time
The Benefits of Digital by faculty members.
Microscopes “Previously, two or three faculty
Second-year dental students use their members attended the weekly
computer monitors as surrogate microscope laboratory for three hours
microscopes to view images of and repeated the same material for

two consecutive weeks to small groups
who used the light microscopes,”
Hanks and D’Silva said. “Now just Second-year dental students can now
one faculty member spends one hour,
view approximately 60 images using
every other week, presenting the
assigned cases simultaneously to an high-speed Internet connections from
entire class using projected images the School’s computing center, or
from the virtual laboratory.”
The second-year dental students from a personal computer at home
can now view approximately 60 or apartment that links directly to a
images using high-speed Internet
connections from the School’s
designated Web site.
computing center, or from a personal
computer that links directly to
a designated Web site. Students
without a high-speed Internet S t u d e n t s c a n a l s o re v i e w Comprehensive Cancer Center has
connection can use a DVD to view lecture notes and textbooks. This the potential to improve the lives of
images and complete their virtual comprehensive approach enables patients with oral and other head and
laboratory assignment. them to develop the collaboration and neck cancers and eventually decrease
Each DVD has a key-sized coded lifelong learning skills they will rely the mortality rates associated with
device, called a “dongle,” that restricts on extensively after graduation. those cancers.
use to one computer at a time. This Bacus Laboratories in suburban It als o provides num e ro u s
approach minimizes any attempts Chicago digitizes the images for the opportunities for undergraduate and
to copy a disk which protects the course that will soon be available to dental students to become involved
proprietary software used to record fourth-year dental students. “The in clinically relevant research. Each
and store the images. Since this fourth-year students will find this project must have a translational
information is always available, course beneficial because it will aspect to it which, I believe, greatly
students can personalize their reinforce the information about increases the sense of relevance for
schedules even more and review the lesions that will be so important our students.
material when their schedules allow. to them as they enter the world of
How much a student understands private practice,” Hanks and D’Silva Background
is evaluated after class-based virtual said. The Internet/DVD approach An $8.5 million Specialized
laboratory sessions. Under the could become a continuing dental Programs of Research Excellence
supervision of a faculty member, education course that dentists or (SPORE) grant from the National
students are divided into groups and dental hygienists might be interested Cancer Institute and the National
are given unknown cases that are in taking at a later date. Institute of Dental and Craniofacial
similar, but not identical, to cases Research is funding five separate
that are assigned for study. Students Head, Neck Cancer research projects for five years.
review clinical photos, radiographs, Program Expands Projects range from molecular
histopathology and other material on Research diagnostics to imaging and the
the Web site and answer questions A collaborative research program now biology of tumor progression. The
about possible clinical diagnosis and underway between the U-M School of SPORE grant also allows for novel
treatment approaches. Dentistry, the Medical School, and the research initiatives.

We will take what we learn in
research laboratories and apply that
knowledge to patients who come to
us for treatment in our clinics. Other Faculty Efforts
I’m co-director of the SPORE grant
with Dr. Gregory Wolf, professor Other faculty members in our department have been
and chair of the Department of involved in various research projects, including:
Otolaryngology. The goal of this
research is to improve the chances Dr. Paul Krebsbach has been working on bone regeneration
of survival for patients with oral and which has potential applications in other areas. It has been
other head and neck cancers. the focus of investigation among head and neck cancer
The current five-year survival fellows and residents, so it is relevant to the oral oncology
rates for those with advanced oral area of our department.
and other head and neck cancers,
range from 90 percent for patients Dr. Carol Anne Murdoch-Kinch, along with Drs. Avi Eisbruch
with Stage 1 cancers to only to 20 and Joseph Helman are collaborating on a research program
to 30 percent for those with more that’s assessing dental health in patients receiving parotid
advanced, or Stage 4, head and sparing radiation.
neck cancers. Many patients are
unaware of early-stage cancers and Drs. Preetha Kanjirath and Kitrina Cordell have initiated
do not seek treatment until the tumor a project to identify markets of aggressive cancers
becomes symptomatic when it’s more among the sinonasal cancers of the head and neck. This
advanced and less easy to cure. We work is being conducted in collaboration with Dr. Larry
want to improve those survival Marentette, director of the skull base surgery program of
rates by better understanding what
the otolaryngology department. This multi-institutional
happens at the molecular level and
study is providing opportunities for students to become
why some patients survive and
others don’t.
involved in research with faculty members.
Dr. Sharon Brooks is conducting research to develop newer

Novel Research Initiatives
and more precise CT scans for oral radiology. [See story,
The SPORE grant also provides
page 46.]
funds for faculty to conduct pilot
research programs. One $50,000 Dr. Jack Gobetti’s long-running blood pressure study
grant, awarded to Dr. Jacques Nör,
continues. It’s also attracting undergraduate dental
associate professor at the School of
students, one of whom, Sara Kellogg, recently won an
Dentistry, seeks to understand how
award. [DentalUM, Fall 2003, pages 72 and 73.]
blood vessels grow (angiogenesis),
how they contribute to the growth Dr. Brad Henson obtained a Mentored K Award to examine
of oral cancers, and what might be
signaling pathways that link galanin receptors to Rap and
done to arrest their development.
RhoC in malignant progression. Two years ago, Henson
Another $50,000 grant, to Dr.
won first prize in the graduate and postdoctorate category
Nisha D’Silva, an assistant professor
in the dental school’s Department during the School’s Research Table Clinic Day. Since then,
of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and his work has caught the attention of at least one other
Oncology, will study rap1, a small dental student who hopes to follow in his footsteps.
protein highly expressed in oral Drs. Thomas Carey and Nisha D’Silva are Henson’s
cancers, for its effects in promoting mentors.
growth of cancer cells. This protein

Per Kjeldsen
also induces the secretion of factors

that promote the growth of new blood
vessels that provide nutrients to the
cancer cells.
In addition, Drs. Cun-Yu Wang and
Brent Ward have each been awarded
a $50,000 developmental project from
SPORE. Wang’s project will study
how and whether a potential cancer
therapy compound, PS-341, induces
oral cancer cell death and improves
the efficacy of chemotherapy.
The grants for pilot research
programs will allow these
investigators to generate the
preliminary data that will lead to
additional and much larger grants Drs. Nisha D’Silva and Mark Prince examine a cancerous oropharyngeal tissue on a computer monitor as part
in the years ahead for even more of a study that seeks to identify proteins and molecular mechanisms that may promote cancer cell growth.
Understanding these processes may one day lead to developing oral cancer treatments that are unique for a
extensive research in these fields. patient. As the only dentist/scientist in the national group, D’Silva’s expertise in dentistry and pathology will
An important goal of the SPORE be invaluable in bridging the gap between scientists and clinicians.
grant is to translate these new
discoveries into new treatments in recurrence or progression of their These lost segments encode genes,
clinics. We want these new ideas to tumors. Project 4 examines the role such as the galanin receptor, that
be applied to save lives and improve of a secreted protein, galanin, and help control cell growth. The lack of
a patient’s quality of life. its receptors in tumor progression. these genes can result in uncontrolled
Project 5 uses a novel drug developed tumor proliferation which, in turn,
The Five Major Projects at U-M to halt the development or diminishes the chances of long-
Each of the five main projects formation of blood vessels that allow term survival for patients with oral
funded by the SPORE grant is led by oral and other head and neck cancers and other head and neck cancers.
a clinical investigator and researcher. to grow and spread. Eventually, we would like to develop
All projects involve laboratory- and novel strategies that will regulate
patient-based research. Dental School and Medical the physiology affected by the loss of
Project 1 uses drug treatment School Research this chromosome so we can improve
to enhance the effects of radiation Nisha D’Silva and myself, as co- patient outcomes.
treatment on patients with head principal investigators of Project 4, D’Silva, a board-certified oral
and neck cancers. Project 2 uses are focusing our research on genetic and maxillofacial pathologist, is
molecular markers to predict the markers that are associated with also the co-director of one of the
response to chemotherapy and aggressive tumor behavior in the SPORE’s projects, the tissue core,
radiation treatments among patients head and neck. If we can identify along with Dr. Mark Prince of the
with laryngeal and hypopharyngeal the specific markers that cause these Department of Otolaryngology. They
cancers. It also tests the use of a new lethal tumors, we hope to be able to are supervising the development of a
molecule (BL-193) developed at U-M to employ suitably aggressive therapy patient database and the collection,
overcome resistance to conventional to help these individuals. storage, and distribution of patient
chemotherapeutic drugs. We have pinpointed chromosome tissue and blood samples designed
Project 3 uses dietary, smoking, 18 as an important genetic marker. to gain a better understanding of the
and behavioral factors as well as Segments of the chromosome are genetic and molecular mechanisms
molecule markers to examine a group rearranged in certain tumors leading behind malignant tumor behavior.
of patients to determine the risks of to a loss of a part of the chromosome.

RESEARCH NEWS
Research Table Clinic Day 2004
Per Kjeldsen
“A celebration of research and discovery” is how Dean

Peter Polverini described the School of Dentistry’s
annual Research Table Clinic Day program held February 10.
Nearly 50 poster presentations and a dozen table clinics marked
this year’s exhibition held at the Michigan League Ballroom.
This year’s keynote speaker was Dr. Ira Lamster, dean of
the Columbia University School of Dental and Oral Surgery.
In remarks to faculty, students, and staff, Lamster said he
considered programs like this to be “probably one of the most
important days on the academic calendar.”
Lamster, who has extensive experience in oral health
research, talked about “The Oral Infection-Systemic Disease
Link: Of Mouse Models and Clinical Trials.”
Per Kjeldsen

Award Winners
Per Kjeldsen
BASIC SCIENCE Bryan Nakfoor, D3: Polymerization Shrinkage and Temperature Increase
Undergraduate, Dental of Provisional Materials
Hygiene, Dental, Graduate Mentor: Peter Yaman
Specialties 3rd Place
Grand Prize (ADA Louis Whitesman, D3: Induction of Growth Factor Release During
Dentsply): Periodontal Wound Repair in Humans
Trip to American Dental Mentor: William Giannobile
Association’s 145th Annual Robert Yeung Per Kjeldsen
Session in Orlando, Florida. BASIC SCIENCE

Doctoral, Postdoctoral,
Robert Yeung: Staff
Surface Modification of Biodegradable Polymer Scaffolds and Effect on
Cells. 1st Prize
Mentor: Peter Ma Sarah Webb, Research
Associate: Platelet-Derived
1st Place Tie Growth Factor Gene Delivery
Aaron Havens, undergraduate: The role of CD164 in the Metastatic Promotes Periodontal Tissue Sarah Webb
Spread of Cancer Repair
Mentor: Russell Taichman Mentor: William Giannobile Lab
Matthew Pinsky, D3: Development of a Novel in Vivo Model System to 2nd Place
Study Oral Cancer Progression Glenda Pettway, PhD student, biomedical engineering:
Mentor: Jacques Nör Anabolic Actions of PTH: Role of Early Events in Mineralization in a Novel
3rd Place Regeneration Model
Patrick Mullally, D3: A Novel Source of Cells for Transplantation Therapy Mentors: Laurie McCauley, Peter Ma
in Parkinson’s Disease Tie for 3rd Place
Mentor: Christopher Nosrat Champa Jayasuriya, Postdoctoral: Development of Environmentally
Responsive Micro Porous poly(lactide-co-glycolide) Scaffolds for Bone
Per Kjeldsen
Tissue Engineering
CURRENT TOPICS Mentor: David Kohn Lab
Undergraduate, Dental
Hygiene, Dental, Graduate Abraham Schneider, Oral Health Sciences PhD candidate: Increased
Specialties Bone Turnover Facilitates Prostate Cancer Metastasis to the Skeleton
Mentor: Laurie McCauley Lab
Grand Prize
Jeffrey Wessel: C-Reactive Per Kjeldsen
Protein: A Systemic Second-year dental

student Rajeev Prasher
Connection Between Jeffrey Wessel received the Audience
Periodontal Disease and Choice Award for his poster
Cardiovascular Disease presentation: Effect of
Mentor: George Taylor Bleaching Agents on Pit
and Fissure Staining. His
1st Place Tie mentor was Dr. James
Renita Beason, D4: Accuracy of DentoCAT® Cone-Beam CT (Alpha Hamilton.
Prototype): Dental Implant Imaging
Mentor: Sharon Brooks

Faculty Involved Pinsky Wins 3rd Place Cooke’s won first place for his
presentation, Induction of Wound
Award at ADA Healing Mediators During Periodontal
In addition to serving as mentors
to dental and dental hygiene students Tissue Repair. His mentor was Dr.
Matthew Pinsky won third place William Giannobile.
for their poster presentations, in basic sciences during national
many members of the School of research competition at last fall’s ADA
Dentistry faculty, as the pictures convention in San Francisco.
below illustrate, also judge the Pinsky, a third-year dental U-M Research Funding
competition. student, earned the opportunity to Up 14.3%
participate in the competition after
Keary Campbell
Largest Increase since 1987

winning the grand prize in basic
science research at during the School Research funding at the University
of Dentistry’s Research Table Clinic of Michigan reached $749 million in
Day program last year. FY 2003, an increase of 14.3 percent.
His research is trying to determine That was the largest percentage
if disrupting blood vessels that increase since 1987.
feed oral cancers can lead to the For the last 10 years, research at
Scott Behnan (left) answers questions posed by Dr. death of cancerous tumor cells. His the University has increased every
Ken Stoffers. mentor is Dr. Jacques Nör, associate
Keary Campbell year but one when it was flat.
professor in the Department of The percentage increase in
Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and research expenditures at U-M also
Endodontics. continued to outpace the percentage
increase in federal research and
Cook Takes 1st in development.
Perio Competition Fawwaz Ulaby, vice president
for research, said, “The campus
Dr. Laurie McCauley asks Aaron Havens about his Dr. Jason Cooke, a graduate investment in the life sciences is
work.
periodontics resident, won first place yielding excellent returns. And with
Keary Campbell
in the Graduate Student Research two major research facilities coming

competition at the Midwest Society of on line, the Life Sciences Institute and
Periodontics in Chicago in February. the Biomedical Research Building,
Cooke’s achievement marks the the University is in a strong position
third time in the last four years that a to increase life sciences research
U-M School of Dentistry graduate perio activities even further, and at a faster
resident has won the competition. pace than ever.”
Ricardo Gapski captured first place
Drs. Christopher Fenno (left) and Cun-Yu Wang
evaluate projects. last year as did Khalaf Al-Shammari
Keary Campbell
in 2001.
The Midwest Society of
Periodontology’s Graduate Student
Research competition is open to
students from 11 states and two
Canadian provinces. Each year, the
three highest-score abstracts among
the papers that are submitted are
Dr. Rex Holland and Tyra Jefferson discuss her poster invited to compete during the annual
presentation meeting.

Alumni News
Three Alumni Elected to Board
Three U-M School of Dentistry alumni were recently elected to the Board of Trustees of the Delta Dental Fund,
the philanthropic arm of the Delta Dental Plans of Michigan, Ohio, and Indiana.
The three are: Lawrence Crawford (Class of 1974) of Saginaw who was elected secretary; Stephen Eklund (DDS
1973) of Ann Arbor, re-elected member-at-large; and Timothy Gietzen (DDS 1976) of Grand Rapids who was elected
immediate past chair.
Another School of Dentistry alumnus, George Walkotten (Class of 1957) was re-elected to the board for a one-year
term.
The Fund supports education and research to advance dental science and promotes public oral health through
education and service activities, including an annual continuing dental education program held each January on
the U-M campus that attracts hundreds of dentists from across Midwest. [See related story on page 17.]
Class Notes
2000s
Deepa Sreenivasan (DDS 2001) is now practicing country,” he wrote. He stopped practicing dentistry in
in Nevada and California after completing the 1998 to return to school.
pediatric dentistry program at the University of Illinois
(Chicago). Joel Felsenfeld (DDS 1985) recently accepted a part-
time teaching position as adjunct clinical instructor at the
1990s Turner Geriatric Center at U-M Hospital. He’s responsible
David Charles Mady (DDS 1993) for supervising fourth-year dental students during their
of Windsor, Ontario, Canada, was the rotations at the center. He has a private practice in
subject of a cover story that appeared Keego Harbor, Michigan, with an emphasis on managing
in the September 2003 issue a popular medically compromised and geriatric patients.
Windsor magazine, The Drive. Mady
practices at Madison Dental (named Dayle Hartgerink (DDS 1980; MS,
for his first daughter, Madison), makes orthodontics 1986) recently retired
house calls, provides oral health care at retirement and from the U.S. Air Force Dental Corps
nursing homes, participates in career expos, and visits after nearly 23 years of active duty
schools to teach youngsters about dentistry. He also and is now in private practice in
writes a column, “Ask the Dentist,” that appears the first Colorado Springs. While in the Air
Thursday of each month in the Windsor Star. Mady’s Force she completed assignments in
articles are available on his Web site: www.drmady. the U.S., Guam, Washington DC, the United Kingdom, and
com. Japan before finishing her career at the Air Force Academy
in Colorado Springs. She also received the Meritorious
1980s Service Medal and the Outstanding Woman Officer of
William Pollack (DDS 1989) of Chicago recently the Year Award while stationed at Keesler Air Force Base
received a master’s degree in architecture. “I’m working in Biloxi, Mississippi. She is a Diplomate of the American
for a small firm specializing in custom residential Board of Orthodontics and a member of the College of
architecture and have worked on houses throughout the Diplomates, American Board of Orthodontics.

Alita Marchelletta Marlowe for outstanding contributions to the organization.
(DH certificate 1980; BS, dental Comprised almost entirely of dentists who serve as
hygiene, 1981) begins her second year consultants to dental insurance carriers, AADC has nearly
as president of Marlowe & Associates, 400 national and international members. Navarro is a
a Fa r m in gt o n H i l l s , M i c h i g an , past president of AADC.
consulting firm she founded that
works with dentists and their staff
to increase their efficiency and profitability. Marlowe 1960s
says her business allows her to combine her academic Terry D. McDonald (DDS 1961, MS orthodontics 1967)
credentials, professional experiences, and passion for of Salem, Oregon received the American Association of
efficient organizing. She also conducts continuing Orthodontists James E. Brophy Distinguished Service
education workshops for dental and dental hygiene Award during the organization’s national meeting in
organizations and is a member of the ADHA, Business Florida in May. The award, the AAO’s highest honor, is
Network International, the National Association of named for James E. Brophy and recognizes an individual
Professional Organizers, and the National Study Group who has made significant contributions to orthodontics.
for the Chronically Disorganized. Brophy was AAO’s executive director from 1961 to 1985.
1970s 1950s
George A. Smith (DDS 1977), of George Eastman (DDS 1959; MS, orthodontics, 1963)
Portsmouth, Virginia, was recently received the Great Lakes Association of Orthodontists
appointed Chief Dentist for the Distinguished Service Award last fall.
Virginia Department of Corrections.
He is responsible for oversight of Robert F. Streelman (DDS 1955) recently became the
the Department’s dental program, first recipient of an award named in his honor. Presented
planning, budgeting, training, and by the Wyoming (Michigan) Community Foundation, the
the clinical supervision of dentists employed or contracted Robert F. Streelman Community Service Award honors
by the Department. He is also retired, with the rank of an individual who contributes time and resources that
Navy Captain, from the Commissioned Officers Corps of benefit the residents of that community near Grand
the U.S. Public Health Service. Rapids. “Bob was the driving force that led to the
creation of the organization in the early nineties,” said
Yv o n n e S l a y G i l e a d ( D H its president, Tim Newhouse. “In fact, ‘Old Doc Bob,’ as he
certificate 1974) is celebrating 30 likes to be called, even drove up from Florida to receive the
years in dental hygiene this year. “I award when we presented it to him on November 13.”
never dreamed I’d still be doing this
and still enjoying it,” she wrote. “After Robert L. Haag (DDS 1954) is enjoying his retirement
several detours, including working in Florida. Although he hasn’t practiced dentistry since
in life insurance with my husband, 1988, he said, “I’m not having any problems staying busy.
home schooling, and working in hospital research, I’m I’m reading a lot, swimming, and working around the
working full time at a dental practice in Southfield, house. But I had to give up golfing a few years ago after
Michigan,” she added. injuring my shoulder while riding a bicycle.” Dr. Haag
also said five of his six children all earned degrees from
D. Scott Navarro (DDS 1970), vice president of U-M. Three are oral health care professionals. Daughter
professional services and dental director with the Delta Kathy Peck earned a certificate in dental hygiene in 1974;
Dental Plan of New Jersey, recently received an award another daughter, Heidi Braun, earned her DDS in 1984;
for meritorious service from the American Association and a son, Robert, earned a DDS in 1986.
of Dental Consultants. The Dr. Israel (Sonnie) Shulman
Award for Meritorious Service recognizes AADC members
DentalUM
DentalUM Spring
Spring&&Summer
Summer2004
2004 89
University of Michigan
School of Dentistry
Hall of Honor
I nominate The Hall of Honor will posthumously pay
tribute to some of the legends of the dental
_________________________________________
profession who have been associated with
for consideration to the University of Michigan
the U-M School of Dentistry.
School of Dentistry Hall of Honor.
Please provide any professional information you may have about this individual that would help the
Nomination Committee. You may use a separate sheet of paper if necessary.
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
Your name ______________________________________________________________________________
Your address ____________________________________________________________________________
Your U-M School of Dentistry degree(s) & year(s) ________________________________________________
Your phone number ( _____ )_______________________ E-mail _________________________________
Please return this form to: University of Michigan School of Dentistry

Office of Alumni Relations
Attn: Debbie Montague
1011 N. University
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078
The envelope with your nomination must be postmarked by November 1, 2004.

In Memoriam
Dr. Robert Lorey Dr. Richard A. Reed

(Class of 1957) (Class of 1949)
Dr. Robert Lorey, whose Dr. Richard A. Reed,

career with the School of who once persuaded
Dentistry spanned nearly entertainer George
50 years, died on April 9, Jessel to pay tribute
his 71st birthday. to Dr. Richard Kingery
After earning his dental at a retirement dinner
degree in 1957, he served for Kingery in the mid-
in the U.S. Army Dental 1960s, died March 16. He
Corps for two years before was 80.
returning to Ann Arbor in Reed earned three
1959 to pursue a master’s degrees from U-M – a
degree. While working for BS in zoology in 1945,
his degree in crown and his DDS in 1949, and a
bridge prosthesis, which he received in 1961, Dr. Lorey was master’s in prosthetics in 1951.
also a clinical instructor in the Department of Crown and After taking over the practice of a dentist in
Bridge Prosthodontics and in the Department of Operative Kalamazoo who was serving in the Armed Forces, Reed
Dentistry. himself entered the Air Force in 1953, serving as captain
He was promoted to assistant professor in 1962, and chief prosthetic officer at Forbes Air Force Base in
associate professor in 1967, and professor three years later. Topeka. After his tour of duty ended in 1955, he went
He also maintained a private practice between 1960 and into general practice with two other dentists in Saginaw
1969. and was active in many professional organizations and
In 1985, he was appointed chair of the Department community groups.
of Crown and Bridge Prosthodontics. He had served as At the urging of several friends, he began teaching at
acting department chair on three previous occasions. the School of Dentistry as an assistant professor in 1971.
In addition to being actively involved in professional Four years later, was promoted to associate professor.
organizations, Dr. Lorey also presented hundreds of In 1979, he received the Paul Gibbons Award from
programs to local, national, and international dental graduating dental students for his outstanding teaching
schools and societies. He produced approximately during their four years of dental education. The following
70 videotapes for undergraduate, graduate, and year, he received an award from third-year dental
postgraduate education and also won many honors for students for teaching excellence.
his photography. He retired from active faculty status in 1986 and was
A memorial service was held for Dr. Lorey on April named a professor emeritus of dentistry that same year.
21 in Ann Arbor. One of the stories Reed enjoyed telling was how he
persuaded Jessel to speak at Kingery’s retirement party
in 1964. The Summer 1985 issue of Alumni News, the
School of Dentistry’s alumni magazine, Reed described
how it happened.
“Mr. Jessel was in the area to do a benefit and was
staying at Weber’s Inn where, coincidentally, the dinner
for Dr. Kingery was being held. Spying Jessel in the hall,
Dr. Reed greeted him like a long-lost friend. Mr. Jessel not
DentalUM
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Summer 2004
2004 91
In Memoriam
only replied, but also graciously spent several minutes around the time she was finishing her work on her
conversing with Dr. Reed… doctorate,” said Joan McGowan, associate professor of
“The conversation eventually turned to the dinner dental hygiene. In 1994, Joseph received the School of
and…Dr. Reed asked him to stop by if he had time. Much Dentistry’s Distinguished Service Award presented by
to his amazement, George Jessel did show up at the dinner the Dental Hygienists’ Alumni Association.
a few minutes later and talked for ten minutes about Dr. Joseph began her career in 1979 as a medical radiation
Kingery – a man he knew even less well than he knew specialist in the FDA’s Bureau of Radiological Health. She
Dr. Reed!” worked in the field of radiological health for most of her
career.
During the mid-1980s, she guided a panel of experts
Lirek a Joseph in developing criteria for prescribing dental radiographs.
(DH Class of 1964) These clinical practice guidelines are considered the first
in dentistry to support consensus recommendations.
Lireka P. Joseph, who earned a Bachelor of Science Dr. Sharon Brooks, a professor of dentistry in the
degree in dental hygiene from the U-M School of Dentistry Department of Oral Medicine, Pathology, and Oncology,
in 1964 and held two major positions with the U.S. worked with Joseph at one time. “Although I didn’t see
government, died Feb. 17 in Bethesda, Maryland. She was much of her in the last 15 years, I have fond memories
61. of our working together.”
At the time of her death, Joseph was Chief Professional Brooks said she and Joseph worked together and
Officer for the Scientist Category of the U.S. Public Health wrote a government publication, Basic Concepts in the
Service. She was also Director of the Office of Health and Selection of Patients for Dental X-ray Examinations
Industry Programs with the FDA’s Center for Devices and (HHS Publication 85-8249). “This was just before the
Radiological Health. FDA selection criteria panel began their work to develop
After earning her degree from the School of Dentistry, guidelines for taking dental radiographs. I stayed with
Joseph earned a master’s degree in public health and a Lee for two months while I was on sabbatical, working
doctorate from the U-M School of Public Health. with the FDA’s Centers for Devices and Radiological Health
“Lee was my roommate in 1973-74, which was in 1984,” Brooks added.
In 1985, Joseph was selected to guide the review of
Rear Admiral John C. Villforth, USPHS (Ret.) evidence for non-cancerous health effects of smokeless
tobacco. In that role, she was assigned to the Centers for
Disease Control under the direction of the Chief Dental
Officer and reported to then-Surgeon General, Dr. C.
Everett Koop. Those conclusions were included in the
Surgeon General’s report on smokeless tobacco.
About her work, Dr. William Maas (DDS 1973) said, “I
was impressed that she was willing to drop everything to
guide this effort which was pretty intense over the course
of six to 12 months.”
Joseph also played a major role in drafting a PHS
reports on risks and benefits associated with dental
amalgam restorative material.
Since 1996, she served as Director of the Office of
Caption: This picture of Rear Admiral Lireka Joseph, U.S. Public Health Service, Health and Industry Programs. She directed a staff
with FDACommissioner Mark McClellan, was taken Feb. 13, 2004following a
public ceremony marking her promotion to Rear Admiral. of 140 professionals responsible for communicating,
92
educating, and interpreting policy. She also administered Dr. Richard Elias
the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 which (Class of 1933)
certifies and inspects 10,000 mammography facilities
throughout the U.S. Dr. Richard Elias,
In October 2000, Joseph was selected by the U.S. who reflected on his
Surgeon General as the Chief Professional Officer for the days at the U-M School
Scientist category. In that role, she provided leadership of Dentistry in the late
and coordinated the U.S. Public Health Service’s scientist 1920s and early 1930s
professional affairs office. She also provided guidance on in the Fall 2001 issue of
recruiting, retention, and career development of USPHS DentalUM, died January
scientists. 14, 2004. He was 94.
Last November, she was promoted to the rank of Rear Talking about his
Admiral/Assistant Surgeon General, U.S. Public Health life, Elias recalled how
Service Commissioned Corps. his family, when he was
On February 12, Surgeon General Richard Carmona 14, decided to move to
presided over a private ceremony in Bethesda marking California. Because his
Joseph’s promotion. The following day, FDA Commissioner mother had relatives in Grand Rapids, “this was as far
Mark McClellan and Assistant Secretary for Health as we got,” he said.
Christina Beato held a public ceremony and reception. After earning his DDS in 1933, Elias opened his office
The day before Valentine’s Day, Secretary of Health and above a grocery store on the southeast side of the city.
Human Services, Tommy Thompson, called Joseph asking “My dad paid my first month’s rent, $15,” he said. During
her to be his valentine. his early years as a dentist, which coincided with the
Describing Joseph as “one of those humble, but Great Depression, Elias said he charged patients $2 to
remarkable people,” Maas said “she was very capable and clean teeth, $1 for extractions, and between $2 and $6
confident, quietly acquiring the respect and admiration of for fillings.
others and eventually was given responsibilities greater Over the years, about two dozen U-M School of
than most dentists ever have.” Dentistry dentists got their start working with him. “I
During her career, Joseph received numerous awards found that no one ever succeeded on their own,” he said.
including a Meritorious Service Medal, two Outstanding “Someone will always push you or encourage you. I
Service Medals, two Outstanding Unit Citations, nine wanted to be that someone for others.”
unit commendations, and a Public Health Service citation Asked to account for his longevity, when he was 91,
for her work. Elias said, “Follow the Golden Rule. The rules for living
Dr. Dushanka Kleinman, chief dental officer for the a rewarding life have been around a long time – forgive
U.S. Public Health Service, said, “Lee set a standard in life others, don’t make excuses, and don’t blame. We’re quick
and in her death that will be a challenge and a legacy for to forget them, but they work.”
all of us. Her strength, her love for all, her humor, and
her peace of mind remained to the very end. I know we
are all so fortunate to have had her in our lives.”
DentalUM
DentalUM Spring
Spring && Summer
Summer 2004
2004 93
93
In Memoriam
Dr. Kenneth D. McClatchey D u r i n g t h e 1 9 8 0 s h e a l s o s e r v e d t h e Pa n

(Class of 1968) American Health Organization and the World Health
Organization.
The University of Dr. McClatchey was the department’s specialist in
Michigan celebrated oral and forensic pathology and in clinical microbiology/
the life of Dr. Kenneth virology.
McClatchey, a professor of He received numerous awards from the Medical School,
dentistry at the School of the School of Dentistry, and national organizations; was
Dentistry, a professor of active in the College of American Pathologists, and served
pathology at the Medical on its board of governors between 1993 and 1996. When
School, and one of the he retired from active faculty status in 1996, he was
world’s leading head named professor emeritus of pathology and professor
and neck pathologists, in emeritus of dentistry.
January. He died December
21, 2003. He was 61.
Born in Detroit, Dr.
McClatchey distinguished himself from the time he Dr. Leon Herschfus
arrived in Ann Arbor in 1960. He received four degrees (Class of 1945)
from U-M — a Bachelor of Science degree in 1964, a Doctor
of Dental Science degree in 1968, a Master of Science degree Dr. Leon Herschfus of
in oral pathology in 1971, and his Doctor of Medicine Southfield, Michigan died
degree in 1975. November 26, 2003. He
Between 1973 and 1978, he held an appointment at was 91.
the School of Dentistry as a lecturer in the Department of Dr. Herschfus was
Oral Pathology. In 1975, he entered the residency training a member of the School
program in the Department of Pathology, completed his of Dentistr y’s Alumni
training, and was certified by the American Board of Society Board of Governors
Pathology in anatomic and clinical pathology in 1978. from 1999 to 2002, chair
He was also certified in oral pathology by the American of the U-M Regents
Board of Oral Pathology in 1973. Alumni Scholarship
In 1978, he became an assistant professor in the Committee, former chair
School of Dentistry’s Department of Pathology, was of the Michigan Board
promoted to associate professor of pathology in 1982, of Dentistry, member of the Northeast Regional Board
associate professor of dentistry in 1985, professor of of Dental Examiners, chairman of the State Ethics
pathology in 1988, and professor of dentistry in 1994. Committee of the MDA (1975-1979), and a member of the
While teaching at U-M, Dr. McClatchey also held Michigan Dental Foundation.
joint appointments at the School of Dentistry and at the Dr. Herschfus also chaired the Board of Health of the
Medical Center’s Department of Otorhinolaryngology. City of Southfield, Michigan (1972-1980), a past president
Dr. McClatchey served as associate chair of the of the Detroit District Dental Society (1976-1977), and
Department of Pathology from 1982 to 1991 and was the national president of the American Academy of Oral
director of the clinical laboratories from 1987 to 1991. He Medicine (1977-1978).
was also director of the Clinical Microbiology/Virology From 1990 to 2003, he wrote a column for the
Laboratory from 1978 to 1996. From 1990 to 1995, he served Journal of the Michigan Dental Association, “Abstracts
as associate chief of clinical affairs at University Hospital. of Interest.”
94
Dr. Marvin “ Bud” K anouse Dr. Robert Ellison
(Class of 1963)
D r. M a r v i n “ B u d ” Dr. Robert Ellison, professor emeritus of endodontics,

Kanouse of Grand Rapids died May 16. He was 71. Ellison obtained his dental
died October 9, 2003. He degree in 1960 from Meharry Medical College and obtained
was 67. his degree in endontics in 1964 from the University of
After earning his Pennsylvania Graduate School of Medicine. He joined
dental degree in 1963 the U-M School of Dentistry as an associate professor in
and a master’s degree 1971, was promoted to professor in 1979, and retired as
i n p e r i o d o n t i c s t h re e professor emeritus in 1997.
years later, both from the Known for his dedication to teaching, Dr. Ellison
University of Michigan, served as a member of more than 30 masters thesis
Kanouse opened his dental practice in Grand Rapids in committees while he was at the School of Dentistry. He
1968. He retired in 1989 due to an allergic reaction to was an endodontics course director (both undergraduate
latex powder and latex gloves. and graduate courses), published more than 30 articles,
A feature in the Spring & Summer 2002 DentalUM co-authored four clinic manuals, and was a member in
(pages 37-39) focused on Kanouse’s love of the outdoors several professional societies including the ADA, MDA,
and his paintings. “I did a lot of pencil sketching as a American and Michigan Associations of Endodontists,
kid, especially drawing scenes that involved birds or bird and others. He also served on the endodontic programs
hunting or trout fishing,” he said. accreditation commission for the ADA and was an editorial
When he wasn’t painting in his Grand Rapids home, consultant or board member to several journals.
Dr. Kanouse was doing the same in a century-old home
in Sheridan, Montana, about 90 miles southwest of ’38 Dr. Sidney A. Sackett
Bozeman. New York, New York
Kanouse’s paintings were purchased by museums, March 27, 2004
corporations, and individuals. They were exhibited at
the Detroit Institute of Arts; the U-M Museum of Art; the ’52 Dr. James Alderisio (Orthodontics)
Grand Rapids Art Museum; the National Park Academy Sarasota, Florida
of the Arts in Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Christie’s Wildlife September 25, 2003
Art Auction in London, England; the Sotetsu Gallery in
Yokohama, Japan; and the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art ’58 Dr. Conrad Smolarski
Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin. February 15, 2004
Some of his work also appeared in art books including
The Best of Wildlife Art, Best of Watercolor, and The ’81 Dr. Barbara Ann Elliott
Artistic Touch. Traverse City, Michigan
December 15, 2003
’93 Rita Vencil Holton (Dental Hygiene)

Munith, Michigan
April 28,2004
DentalUM
DentalUM Spring
Spring && Summer
Summer 2004
2004 95
What’s New with You?
Your Classmates Want to Know! Please
clip
Send news about your latest personal or professional achievement, award, or honor, and
along with a picture (black and white or color) to: Jerry Mastey, editor DentalUM, mail
University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, 1011 N. University Avenue, Room 1205,
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078.
Name ___________________________________________________________________
Address __________________________________________________________________
City ________________________________ State ______ Zip Code __________________
Telephone __________________________Fax (if available) ___________________________
e-mail __________________________________________________________________
Is this an address change? ____ Yes ____ No

What type of address change? ____ Home ____ Office
(Please list only University of Michigan degrees and the year earned.)
DDS ________
DH Certificate ________
BS ________
MS ________
PhD ________
Specialization __________________________________________________________
News: ___________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Get Involved!
_____ I would like to help plan my next reunion.
_____ I would like to be considered for the Alumni Society Board of Governors.

Per Kjeldsen
Upcoming Continuing Dental
Education Courses
July 29 & 30, 2004 (Thurs. & Fri.)
Comprehensive Review of Local Anesthesia &
Emergency Procedures
Speaker: Dr. Stanley Malamed, Professor of
Dentistry at the University of Southern California;
Professor and Chair, Department of Anesthesia and
Medicine
Location: Ypsilanti Marriott at Eagle Crest For more information about
Ypsilanti, Michigan these and other continuing
This two-day course will provide participants with a dental education courses,
comprehensive review of medical emergencies and local contact:
anesthesia for all members of the dental team.
University of Michigan
August 16, 17, 18, 2004 (Mon., Tues., Wed.) School of Dentistry
At-a-Glance: Homecoming Activities
Nitrous Oxide/Oxygen Sedation for Dental Office of Continuing
Hygienists Dental Education
Thursday, October 7
Speakers: Wendy Kerschbaum & Christine Klausner 1011 N. University
Location: University of Michigan School of Room G508 • Emeritus Pinning Ceremony – 11:30 a.m. – G390.
Dentistry Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078 • Emeritus class picture – 12:30 p.m.
This course is designed to prepare the dental hygienist Phone: (734) 763-5070
to safely and effectively administer nitrous oxide/ • Emeritus/Hall of Honor Induction Luncheon – 1:00 p.m. – Sindecuse Atrium
Fax: (734) 936-3065
oxygen sedation as a pain control strategy. The course,
www.dent.umich.edu • Hall of Honor Induction Ceremony – 2:30 p.m. – G390.
which meets the educational requirements specified
by Michigan law, includes classroom instruction and Friday, October 8
clinical experiences. Participants will work in groups and
administer nitrous oxide/oxygen to each other. • Morawa Lecture. Speaker: Dr. Terry Donovan, associate professor and executive associate dean,
University of Southern California School of Dentistry.
August 19 & 20, 2004 (Thurs. & Fri.) - Location – Ypsilanti Marriott at Eagle Crest
Medical Emergencies in the Dental Office 1275 S. Huron Street, Ypsilanti, Michigan. Fall DentalUM
Speakers: Drs. George Upton & John Gobetti - Registration – 8:00 a.m.; Course – 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in November
Location: University of Michigan School of
Dentistry • Class Reunions: 1954, 1959, 1964, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994.
This course will outline the team approach to managing • Dental Hygiene All-Class Reunion: Classes ending in 4 and 9. Editor’s note: Since
medical emergencies by office personnel. It will review
• Class Reunions at Kensington Court (formerly Crowne Plaza) Homecoming Weekend
important aspects of the medical history that may alert
the dentist to patients at increased risk and will teach the 610 Hilton Blvd., Ann Arbor. activities will take place
practitioner to use vital signs as the guide for appropriate in October, the Fall 2004
emergency management. Saturday, October 9 issue of DentalUM will be
• Tailgate Party – 3 hours before kick-off. Elbel Field. mailed to you later than
• Football Game – University of Michigan vs. University of Minnesota. usual. Instead of receiving
Kick-off time to be announced. the publication in October,
look for it sometime
around Thanksgiving.

DentalUM Spring/Summer 2004

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DentalUM

Spring & Summer 2004 Volume 20, Number 1

DentalUM magazine is published twice a year by the

Mail letters and updates to: Jerry Mastey, Editor, School

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 1

4 New Fundraising Campaign, The Michigan Difference, Begins

11 Up and Running! The Dr. Roy Roberts Preclinic (west wing)

19 Alumnus Profile – Dr. William Costello

28 Margaret Gingrich: Fifth Family Member to Receive DDS from

48 Preparing for the Worst, Hoping for the Best

50 Ignelzi Recommendation to ADA Draws Comment

65 2nd Annual Coating Ceremony

69 Then and Now...Serving Near and Far

91 In Memoriam: Robert Lorey, Richard Reed, Lireka Joseph, Richard Elias,

4 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

School’s Efforts Lauded

Completes Campaign Planning

a model throughout the University to show others how

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 5

in setting “an aggressive, yet realistic and

6 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 7

that students are deciding whether to attend based on

chair of the of the School’s

8 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 9

10 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

With renovations they need to practice

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 11

12 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

“NFL commentator John Madden better watch out.

Live Demonstrations = Instant Credibility

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 13

Dr. Roy Roberts and his wife, Natalie.

14 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 15

Thursday, October 7 Per Kjeldsen

• Emeritus Pinning Ceremony – 11:30 a.m., G390.

16 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

“There is artistry in all professions. It’s not limited to cooking or making

think, it’s what our patients think about

Dr. Ronald Goldstein, a co-founder

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 17

18 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

Dr. William Costello, chairman and CEO

Costello equipment, and services to

his lecture remarks so they wouldn’t be drowned out by

20 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

“The better mousetrap” was about to be developed.

Advice to Young Dentists

Although there are “very different

involved as the campaign chairman of the School’s new

22 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 23

24 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 25

Students Give Kids

Dentistry, parents from Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Southfield,

Students: An Opportunity to Serve

26 DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004

Cook, a junior majoring in biopsychology, hopes

DentalUM Spring & Summer 2004 27