Beginnings: a profile of the incoming classes
by Sylvia Davis
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| William Hooker, PhD, MFT, associate dean for student affairs, speaks to incoming students during orientation. |
The School of Dentistry is pleased to welcome 90 students to the campus as the class of 2005. With 1,332 applicants, the students selected come from 32 colleges and universities throughout the United States. Five students in the class hold a master’s degree; 42 have bachelors of science degrees, and 30 have completed the bachelor of arts degree.
In the incoming class, the most common major is biology followed by biochemistry,
psychology, health science, chemistry, and English. Fifteen students are
entering dental school having completed degrees in the broader liberal
arts areas including history, language, art, music, and humanities. There
are two radiologic technologists, three medical technologists, one physical
therapist and one nurse in the class. The class average GPA is 3.41. Three
students are entering with a college average higher than 3.9 with 19 entering
with a GPA over 3.75. One student begins the dental coursework with a
college GPA of 4.0. The class average in the sciences is 3.28. All of
the students completed the Dental Admission Test as part of their entrance
requirements. On the academic average score, the class average is 18.8.
The class scored an average of 19.5 on the perceptual ability section
of the test. Two students scored 28 on the PAT section and three students
scored 24 on the quantitative section.
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| During orientation, Daniel Kunihira, SD’74, PG’82, president of the School of Dentistry Alumni Association, talks to the incoming class about his experiences as a student, and describes some of the many services provided by the Association to students and members. |
The class has a richly ethnic diverse composition with 41 non-Hispanic
White, 38 Asian, 7 Hispanic, 3 African-American and one Indian-American.
There are ten international students in the class. The average age is
25.1. Ten students in the class are over 30 years of age; the oldest student
was born in 1964 and the youngest student was born in 1980.
More than 75 percent of the class are Seventh-day Adventist with others
representing Catholic, Christian, Baptist, and Latter-day Saint churches.
The names of choice for this class are Kim (there are 3 Kims) and Lee
(there are 3 Lees). There are also 2 Chungs, 2 Andersons, 2 Parks, and
2 Chos in the class. Looking at first names, there are 3 Daniels and 3
Brians in the class. There are two students each with names of Andrew,
Heidi, Jennifer, Linda, Ben, Kenneth, Robert, Evan, Kevin, and Jeff.
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| Jason Ferguson, president of the class of 2003, speaks to the class of 2005 about what to expect during the first year in dental school. |
Twenty-one in the class are married and nine are parents. The class could have its own orchestra with instruments such as violin, cello, clarinet, saxophone, flute, trombone and horn. Ten class members are pianists, five are guitarists, and a number enjoy sharing their vocal talents. This year one of the “unspoken” requirements for entrance is an interest (and/or handicap) for golf, with more than half of the applicants stating they are golfers. There is also a pilot in the class. We look for students who are leaders; three in the class have been resident assistants in on-campus residence halls.
Our alumni play a big part in the success of LLUSD. Twenty in the class
have parents who are alumni, both in dentistry and in dental hygiene.
Ben Bowen from Walla Walla College is the son of Patti Bowen, SD’77,
and the grandson of Frederick Field, SD’57. Seth Latimer is the son
of Jeffrey Latimer, SD’75 and Dania Latimer, SD’75. There are
two students whose fathers completed other dental programs. There are
also several students who have parents who are alumni from other Schools
in the University.
The faculty, staff, and students welcome the class of 2005, knowing they
will make their own vital contribution to our dental family and to the
professional world of dentistry.
Dental hygiene
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| During orientation, Karen Simpson, MPH, chair, dental hygiene, met with the incoming dental hygiene students. Here the students prepare to take a writing assessment test. |
Thirty-nine new students have joined the School family in the dental hygiene department. Selected from 145 applicants, the class of 2003 began their coursework September 24. The class is comprised of 35 women and four men. Students have citizenship in four countries: Mexico, Nicaragua, the Philippines, and the United States.
Twenty-four of the students come from California, three from Washington, two from Oregon, and one each from Maryland, Montana, Nevada, and Tennessee.
The students arrive from 19 schools, both private and public. There are seven students each in the class from Pacific Union College, and Walla Walla College. The average entering GPA is 3.36 and seven students enter the program with GPAs over 3.75. One student enters the program with a 4.0 GPA.
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| Students from incoming classes enjoy the pizza party poolside at Drayson Center. |
Six students have completed baccalaureate degrees with majors in communication
arts, environmental engineering, health information administration, religion,
health science, and biology.
The average age of the class is 24.8 years. The oldest member
of the class was born in 1961 and the youngest was born in 1981. Five
members of the class are married, three are parents.
There are identical twins in the class. There is a Sharika and a Sharisa,
with two students each with the first name Rebecca and Julie.
Kia Davis, daughter of Nicholas Davis, SD’73 and Esther Sohn, daughter
of Erick Sohn, SD’85, are second generation dental family members.
Kristi Morgan is granddaughter of Arthur Morgan, SD’60, formerly
a member of the faculty in the department of orthodontics.
With many needs for dental hygienists throughout the country, especially
in the state of California, it is a pleasure to welcome these highly qualified
individuals to our School and to the profession.
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All rights reserved. Revised February 14, 2001
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