Students Shine During Excellence Day

June  08, 2007

Students from the Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry showcased their clinical and research skills during the school's annual Excellence Day on May 23. The event, sponsored by Omicron Kappa Upsilon Honor Society's Delta Delta Chapter, Procter & Gamble and Western Dental Services, Inc., provided a platform for students to present their accomplishments in research and dental treatment.

During the clinical portion of the event, nearly 50 students demonstrated their clinical skills using live patients, electronic presentations and informative posters in the dental school's main clinic. Students competed in several categories that included aesthetics, case presentation, complex restorative, implants and removable prosthodontics. Teams of dental school faculty members reviewed and evaluated students' cases based on oral and physical presentation, case difficulty, preparation and treatment.

Clinical Category Winners

• Aesthetic Dentistry: First Place, Marshall Hanson '07; Second Place, David Mishler '07
• Case Presentation: First Place, David Moore '07; Second Place, Ariana Ebrahiminian '07
• Complex Restorative Dentistry: First Place, David Moore '07; Second Place, Danny Nakhla '07
• Implant Dentistry: First Place, Allison Yen '07; Second Place, Chris Spain '07
• Removable Prosthodontics: First Place, Allison Yen '07; Second Place, Eric Young '07

During the research portion of Excellence Day, students presented 32 different projects focusing on topics such as orofacial cleft prevention, oral cancer treatment and HIV gene therapy. Each student paired with a faculty mentor to conduct their research. Students competed for a spot at the ADA/Dentsply Student Clinician Research Program during the ADA Annual Session in San Francisco in September and for the chance to compete in the Hinman Student Research Symposium in Memphis, Tenn., in October, as well as in the CDA Annual Scientific Session in Anaheim next spring.

Research Category Winners

• ADA/Dentsply Research Competition: Dan Witcher '08 CDA
• Scientific Session Awards: Shana Van Cleave '08, Blake Kitamura '08
• Hinman Symposium Awards: Aric Petersen '08, Andrew Michael '08
• Konopka Prize for Excellence in Research Presentation: Allison Yen '07
• Senior Research Competition: First Place, Ashley Streeter '07; Second Place, Micah Porter '07
• Third Place, Michael Lindsay '07 and Josh Smith '07

Category Type: Special Events, Honors and Awards

Contact:  Office of Public Relations, 415.929.6434, pr@pacific.edu