UNMC College of Dentistry Periodontics Program faculty, staff, residents and alumni gathered at the Wick Alumni Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on April 22 to celebrate the program’s 60th anniversary and to honor two faculty members who have had significant roles in the program's trajectory of success: Gerald J. Tussing, DDS, MSD and Wayne B. Kaldahl, DDS. (See side bar.)
"This celebration brought together the faculty, staff, residents and alumni who have made the UNMC Periodontics Program a premier educational program," said Amy Killeen, DDS, MS, associate professor and a 2010 graduate of the program.
"Together, we commemorated 60 years of accomplishments in periodontal education, patient care and research. It was a very memorable celebration," she said.
The event was hosted by Kenneth L. Kalkwarf, DDS, MS, a 1973 graduate and former director of the UNMC Periodontics Program who went on to serve as dean of the University of Texas Health Science Center School of Dentistry.
Dr. Kalkwarf shared the history of the program and described the remarkable influence the program’s esteemed faculty and residents have had on the field of periodontics.
Founded in 1962, the program has had 130 graduates, 41 diplomates of the American Board of Periodontology, and has received national and international acclaim.
The program's founder, Richard Bradley, DDS, was a graduate of the UNMC College of Dentistry who joined the faculty in 1959 and went on the serve as the college’s fifth dean. The program directors have been Drs. Gerald Tussing, Don Adams, Ken Kalkwarf, Wayne Kaldahl, Glenn Maze and Dan Assad.
Throughout the event, the program’s foundation of excellence – and exciting future – were celebrated.
Richard A. Reinhardt, DDS, PhD, professor, highlighted the program’s 60 years of pioneering research in periodontal disease.
Dr. Reinhardt also shared the program’s current research endeavors, including the formation of the Oral Mucosal Immunity Consortium (OMIC), a collaboration between UNMC and the University of Colorado, University of Minnesota, and University of Iowa. The goal of the OMIC is to share knowledge and ideas to better understand how the oral mucosal systems function when healthy and in the presence of disease.
Matthew R. Byarlay, DDS, MS, associate professor, current program director and a 2004 graduate of the program, described how the program stays on the forefront of periodontal education, patient care and research, including how dental technology is utilized to enhance patient care.
The celebration concluded with a special tribute to Drs. Tussing and Kaldahl.
"To honor the guidance Drs. Tussing and Kaldahl provided periodontal residents for nearly 60 years, and for helping form what we know about periodontology, we are initiating the Tussing-Kaldahl Scholar Fund," Dr. Kalkwarf announced.
The Tussing-Kaldahl Scholar Fund will support resident and faculty efforts to create compelling pilot data for National Institutes of Health grants. Projects will focus on clinical research designed to answer questions about how the periodontal inflammatory response can be manipulated to improve treatment healing outcomes, and to prime oral and systemic mucosal immunity to enhance general health.
"These projects will be integral components linking the UNMC Periodontics Program with the Oral Mucosal Immunity Consortium to leverage the strengths of each institution and to generate world-wide impact," Dr. Kalkwarf said.
Janet M. Guthmiller, DDS, PhD, dean of the college, thanked all in attendance for joining in the celebration.
"The contributions the UNMC Periodontics Program faculty, staff, residents and alumni have made to periodontal education, research and practice are remarkable. The legacies of Drs. Tussing and Kaldahl will live on through the Tussing-Kaldahl Scholar Fund, supporting important resident and faculty research," she said.
For information about donating to the Tussing-Kaldahl Scholar Fund, please contact Theresa Brown, director of development, 402-209-1429, theresa.brown@nufoundation.org.
