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President’s Remarks

We have experienced in the past five days, during our 81^st Annual Session, what may have been the best meeting yet. We are grateful to all the staff, volunteers, delegates, and members who made this meeting the success it was. We are gratified for the level of participation—in Faculty Development Workshops; in governance sessions, including the House of Delegates; and in the plethora of programs, including Council and Section programs and symposia, Lunch and Learns, and Special Affiliated Programs. We are pleased at the increased representation and participation of our hospitals and advanced education programs. The theme of "Mentoring: Leadership, Learning, Legacy" resonated throughout this Convention Center during the meeting.

You may recall that last year, in my remarks as President-Elect, I cited the work of the artist Pierre Bonnard and the powerful presence of Marthe—his wife, muse, and mentor—in his paintings. This year, for artistic symbolism, we turn to the work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. I have selected six representations from his lifetime body of achievement as metaphor for the evolution of our association. Wright’s work evolved from more traditional forms at the end of the nineteenth century; to the youthful explorations of a new sense of openness, space, and communication with the environment in 1900 and 1905; to one of his defining works, Fallingwater in 1936, that is cantilevered over a river, at the same time precarious and strong, and blending beautifully with its natural surroundings; to the whimsical and futuristic house he designed for his son David in 1950 in Phoenix; to his final work, completed six months after his death in 1959, a mature and confident statement in the juxtaposition of beautiful curves, rectangular structure, and multiple spiraling levels in the Guggenheim Museum in New York City.

In a not dissimilar way, our association has evolved from a traditional association of dental schools to an organization that embraces and values student members, allied members, corporate members, and, most recently, advanced education program members. Our name change in 2000 from the American Association of Dental Schools to the American Dental Education Association clearly reflects and acknowledges that transformation.

As we pause to reflect over the past twelve months, we may collectively take great pride in what we have done to advance the mission and the strategic directions of the Association. The Executive Director has comprehensively summarized many of our joint accomplishments over the past year in his Annual Report. The contents of his report reflect the outcomes of leading together—including the Board of Directors, staff, and membership. My presidential agenda, as outlined a year ago, included the following:

• establishing a Presidential Commission on Mentoring;
  
• creating a Presidential Task Force on Nominations and Appointments to elucidate leadership opportunities within and external to the Association and to make the process of achieving leadership positions within the Association more transparent;
  
• initiating the next steps in founding the Academy of Dental Educators to recognize and value the scholarship of teaching;
  
• exploring the establishment of an Association-based revolving loan fund for disadvantaged students to increase access to the profession for all;
  
• advancing the work on the Curriculum of the Future to help our institutions craft a strategy of education for the next decades;
  
• strengthening ties with existing allies and building relationships with new friends;
  
• commitment to advocacy training and activities; and
  
• pursuing expansion of leadership opportunities for our members.
  

In addition, we determined to review, shape, and refine the Strategic Directions of the Association, focusing on a core set of four seminal strategic directions, reflecting the values and purpose of our Association. We worked with the Administrative Boards of each Council to facilitate their agendas and to identify how the Councils can support the new Strategic Directions of the Association. There were, of course, some issues that were not planned but just emerged. They were the Forrest Gump moments: "Life is like a box of chocolates—you never know what you’re going to get." And we didn’t know that we were going to engage in the Graduate Medical Education (GME) conversation at the level and intensity that we did. As individuals and as an association, we allocated significant time and resources to fighting for dental GME—on the Hill, with sister organizations within dentistry, and with kindred spirits outside of dentistry. We are particularly gratified at the support we received from the ADA, from deans (even those whose schools do not have GME), and from the specialty groups. While we did not prevail on the issue, I believe that through our efforts, we have formed relationships and infrastructure to enable us to move forward more successfully in a more hospitable environment in the future. There is no question that we emerged from the engagement stronger than we entered it. We have achieved much; there is much left to do.

The work of staff at central office is critically important in the achievement of our goals. At my request, each of the divisions at ADEA has identified objectives/challenges for the next year. These include the following:

• Center for Equity and Diversity—establishing a minority leadership program and Women’s Health Information Network;
  
• Center for Public Policy and Advocacy—working for Title VII reauthorization and increasing fiscal allocations through the appropriations process;
  
• Center for Educational Policy and Research—continuing our efforts to bring innovation to the licensure process, designing operational constructs to support the Presidential Commission on Access Report, and supporting faculty recruitment and retention through broad dissemination of the Academic Dental Careers Network resource;
  
• Application Services—continuing to improve systems and infrastructure to serve all our customers, including dental schools, applicants, and advanced education programs;
  
• Finance and Operations—work toward addressing office space and central office staffing requirements with a ten-year view;
  
• Communications and Membership—continue to add value to our products, services, and communications media to keep the realized value of membership in our association one of the best buys in town.
  

At this point, I am reminded of Abraham Lincoln’s immortal words in the Gettysburg Address: "The world will little note nor long remember what we say here." However, I must acknowledge a few very special individuals. First and most importantly, my husband of over thirty-one years, Emanuel. Emanuel has been a constant source of understanding and support throughout the year of my presidency. He is my pillar of strength and my best friend. Thank you, Emanuel. To Rick Valachovic, our Executive Director, special thanks for your focus on achieving and completing the presidential agenda. To my predecessor, David Johnsen, thank you for your leadership, friendship, humor, and patience. Thank you also for your omnipresent camera and for documenting our joint tenure so well with pictures. We will miss you on the board next year, as you "just stand over here." To Frank Catalanotto, who will become President shortly, you have an ambitious and important agenda to accomplish that will benefit dental education and the oral health of the nation. Godspeed and good luck. And to our new President-Elect, Eric Hovland, congratulations and best wishes. Welcome to the board. You are about to begin three of the most exciting years of your already exciting life.

And so, friends and colleagues, let me thank you again and sincerely for the honor and privilege of serving the Association as your president this year, for the strong and enthusiastic support you have provided me, and for the many friendships that have evolved over my thirty years of membership. As I prepare to assume the role of Immediate Past President and wear my new ADEA Past President pin, I remain committed to working with you and for you to address the emerging challenges that will await us in the future. Thank you for your commitment, your talent, your energy, and your dedication to building the future of education—dental and allied dental and advanced dental education—to improve the oral health of the country.

Footnotes

This address by the President of the American Dental Education Association was presented to the membership on March 9, 2004, in Seattle, Washington. Dr. Friedman is Professor and Associate Dean of Administration at the Boston University Goldman School of Dental Medicine.

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