Achievements & Awards

Student Profile: With a dual DDS and PhD, Ben Swanson brings a ‘clinician-engineer’ vision of scientific discovery and new technologies to clinical care

January 23, 2024

Ben Swanson’s seven-year sojourn in Ann Arbor has been an educational tour de force packed with clinical dentistry training, advanced scientific research, and business and entrepreneurial studies. When he leaves the University of Michigan School of Dentistry after commencement in May, he’ll hold a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and a PhD in the Oral …

Jennifer Cullen appointed director of Dental Hygiene Division at School of Dentistry

January 16, 2024

Ann Arbor, Mich., Jan. 16, 2024 – School of Dentistry dental hygiene faculty member Jennifer Cullen has been appointed director of the school’s Dental Hygiene Division. Dr. Purnima Kumar, chair of the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, which oversees the division, announced the appointment Friday, ending a national search. Since 2016, Cullen has served …

Annual award presentation highlights staff service to School of Dentistry

January 3, 2024

Ann Arbor, Mich., Jan. 3, 2024 – During its annual event to acknowledge and honor the contributions of staff at the School of Dentistry, the school highlighted staff for service milestones as well as presenting the third annual Great Impressions Awards to staff in seven categories. The awards were presented in late November during a …

U-M Dental Student Wins Gold Medal in Parapan American Games

December 12, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Dec. 12, 2023 – Fourth-year University of Michigan School of Dentistry student Leo Merle has added a world title to his resume. Merle recently returned from Santiago, Chile, where he took first place and the gold medal for Team USA in the 1,500-meter run at the 2023 Parapan American Games. The Parapan …

Dental school faculty member Isabelle Lombaert receives major innovation award

October 30, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Oct. 30, 2023 – School of Dentistry faculty member Dr. Isabelle Lombaert, a principal investigator for research on finding solutions for dry mouth, or xerostomia, has received a major funding award of $500,000.  She is one of the 2023 recipients of the University of Michigan Medical School’s Frankel Innovation Initiative Award, a …

Faculty member, alumnus appointed to Michigan Board of Dentistry

October 17, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Oct. 17, 2023 – A School of Dentistry faculty member and an alumnus of the school who is an adjunct faculty member have been appointed to the Michigan Board of Dentistry by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Dr. Dennis Fasbinder, Clinical Professor of Dentistry in the Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences and Endodontics, was …

Two leadership appointments announced for School of Dentistry

October 11, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Oct. 11, 2023 – Two leadership appointments for the School of Dentistry have been announced by Dean Jacques Nör. Dr. Mark Fitzgerald is the school’s new Senior Associate Dean, and Diane Thomas has been named Director of Budget and Financial Planning. Both appointments were effective Oct. 1. Fitzgerald is a professor in …

Dental school PhD candidate draws national and international awards

September 19, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Sept. 19, 2023 – When Yao Yao left China in 2017 for a summer research internship at the University of Toronto in Canada, she expected it would be an interesting experience after which she would return to her home country, finish her final year of dental school and then decide on her …

Three Dental Hygiene graduate students receive state King-Chavez-Parks grants

September 15, 2023

Ann Arbor, Mich., Sept. 15, 2023 – Three students in the School of Dentistry’s graduate dental hygiene program have each received a significant state grant that encourages the development of faculty teaching careers in postsecondary education. Ellese Blackmon Smith, Edith Dana and Rowie Fuertes each received the King-Chavez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship Program grant. The three are …