Members of the Kansas City University College of Dental Medicine (KCU-CDM) Class of 2028 officially began their educational journey toward becoming dentists with a white coat ceremony on Saturday, August 17, 2024, at Joplin High School’s Performing Arts Center.
Speaking on behalf of the KCU-CDM Student Government Association (SGA) Student Doctor Kelsey Tran, SGA president, encouraged the new dental students to remain resilient during times of adversity and to seek support from classmates when needed. “Believe in yourself. It is so easy to lose yourself, and your patients deserve the authentic you. We all believe in you but that means nothing if you don’t believe in yourself,” said Tran. “Your legacy begins now. You choose what kind of doctor and person you will become once you put on this coat.”
Linda Niessen, DMD, founding dean of the KCU-CDM and vice provost of oral health affairs, delivered the keynote message during the ceremony. “As you don your white coat, you become a member of the KCU team, a community of dentists committed to improving the oral health of the public. You will develop a new code of professional conduct: integrity, professionalism, ethics and compassion. Remember to keep these qualities with you at all times, with or without your white coat on,” she remarked. “Your clinical skills will be critically important to your future success, but your caring and compassion will be why your patient returns to see you. Patients don’t always remember what you say, but they do remember how you made them feel,” Niessen continued.
Among the 81 students in the Class of 2028, 49 percent come from Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. Nearly 20 percent are historically underrepresented minorities. Another 20 percent are first-generation college graduates.
KCU launched the CDM in 2023 to address a critical shortage of dentists. The Joplin region, like many rural areas in the United States, grapples with a dearth of oral health care providers. Nearly all counties within a 100-mile radius of Joplin qualify as Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. It is estimated that Missouri alone has a shortage of more than 700 dentists. KCU is committed to meeting the health care needs of the region. The CDM further supports the university’s mission of improving the well-being of the communities we serve.
Congratulations and welcome aboard to the CDM class of 2028!
About Kansas City University
Kansas City University, founded in 1916, is a fully accredited, private not-for-profit health sciences university with Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, Biosciences and a developing College of Dental Medicine. The College of Osteopathic Medicine is the eighth largest medical school in the U.S., the ninth most impactful medical school for primary care for the nation, the tenth most affordable of private medical colleges, and the leading producer of physicians for the State of Missouri. The College of Osteopathic Medicine has two sites strategically located on the University’s campuses in Kansas City and Joplin, Missouri, to address the growing needs of both urban and rural populations. The University offers multiple graduate degrees; a doctor of osteopathic medicine; a doctor of psychology in clinical psychology; a master of arts in bioethics; a master of science in the biomedical sciences; a master of business administration in partnership with Rockhurst University; a new master of public health in partnership with the University of Nebraska Medical Center; and plans to seat the first doctor of dental medicine students in 2023.
Reference:
Haley Reardon, Manager of Marketing and Communications
Kansas City University
417.208.0664
Be the first to comment