First Published June 4, 2024
At the 2024 Colloquium, AIDPH proudly unveiled its first awards ceremony, which honored six individuals and organizations for their outstanding accomplishments in advancing justice, equity, and inclusion in the field of oral health.
The Annual AIDPH Colloquium, which took place this year at Loews Chicago O’Hare Hotel on March 26, 2024, is an innovative oral health event with presentations, panel discussions, and roundtables around research approaches that engage impacted communities. The awards ceremony reflected the overarching 2024 Colloquium’s theme of “Community Collaboration in Oral Health: Advancing Person-Centered Outcomes,” AIDPH Executive Director Annaliese Cothron explained.
“Access to oral healthcare is challenging for people who come from historically marginalized communities due to cost barriers and a lack of culturally affirming care,” Cothron said. “Honoring our community’s work and innovation broadens visibility of oral health needs and the everyday champions who find solutions. Oral health must be part of discussions about holistic, integrated approaches that consider social, political, and physical determinants of health.”
Join us in reflecting on the six recipients of our Community Champion, Equity Trailblazer Student Research, and Visionary Leadership Awards: a group of talented, relentlessly dedicated professionals working to forge a more equitable, justice-oriented future for all. We’ll have information shortly on how you can submit a nomination for next year’s ceremony.
Community Champion Awards
The Community Champion Award celebrates individuals or organizations that have shown outstanding commitment and efforts in prioritizing the voices of marginalized, underserved, oppressed, and historically excluded communities in pursuit of whole-person oral healthcare.
Whole Person Health
A holistic healthcare approach that considers the whole person when assessing someone’s health, rather than a series of isolated symptoms and issues. This approach views a person as part of a community and takes their behavioral, emotional, social, and environmental circumstances into account during health treatment.
With this award, AIDPH hopes to shine a spotlight on the needs of the communities the awardees serve and the work they’ve put in to help address them.
WINNER: Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation
For over two decades, Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation (DDCOF) has invested over $50 million back into the diverse Colorado communities it serves. AIDPH is proud to recognize the organization’s wide array of initiatives, including workforce diversification and expansion, mentorship programs, and expansions of oral hygiene programs with local higher education institutions. A vanguard of children’s health access, DDCOF strives to ensure oral health services are incorporated into early childhood and maternal health care settings. They have partnered with the Children’s Hospital of Colorado to address health access disparities for predominantly BIPOC (black, indigenous, and other people of color) preschoolers and kindergarteners through its School Oral Health Program. In addition, the organization has paved the way for future health access and community empowerment initiatives through its Early Childhood Oral Health Equity Roadmap, a collaborative resource incorporating feedback from diverse stakeholders, including local community members, organizations, and experts. DJ Close, Executive Director of DDCOF and AIDPH Board of Directors member, accepted the award on behalf of the organization.
HONORABLE MENTION: University of Florida College of Dentistry Outreach Program
The University of Florida College of Dentistry (UF COD) Outreach Program is a cornerstone of the Collier County community. Since its inception in 2013, it has provided preventive dental care for over 57,000 children, along with regularly providing cost-free dental services to local rural migrants who experience challenges with transportation access and language barriers. The organization prioritizes oral health literacy education and counseling for disenfranchised and underserved populations. Susan Gorman M.Ed., RDH, Dental Outreach Program Coordinator at UF COD, accepted the award on behalf of the program.
Equity Trailblazer Student Research Awards
The Equity Trailblazer Student Research Award honors talented students who have made significant contributions to research projects that address oral health disparities and promote equity. AIDPH is proud to recognize three rising leaders on the cusp of promising, impactful careers in influencing the future of dental public health.
Bree Zhang
Columbia University College of Dental Medicine
WINNER: Bree Zhang, Columbia University College of Dental Medicine
Bree Zhang, a student at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, will be honored for her groundbreaking research on the impact of bottle feeding positioning on the development and correction of anterior crossbite. Advocating for broader oral health awareness and access, Zhang’s initiatives span concerns affecting the elderly, pregnant individuals, children’s oral health literacy, and the oral systemic link during the COVID-19 pandemic. As the American Student Dental Association District 2 Legislative Liaison, she is currently collaborating with the American Public Health Association and connecting with leaders in public health across the country to create a panelist event called “Redefining Public Health in Dentistry: from Practice to Advocacy.” The event brings population oral health and community health perspectives to dental advocacy, including public healthspeakers from across the country working on different levels of policy, from local to federal.
Lexi Dunnells
University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine
HONORABLE MENTION: Lexi Dunnells, University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine
Lexi Dunnells conducted research showcasing the efficacy of therapy dogs in reducing dental anxiety for veterans, which could help encourage regular dental visits for anxiety-prone patients and thereby prevent the development of long-term dental health problems. Her research contributed to the development of the “Paws for Smiles” program at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine. She has also played a substantial role in research projects designed to address challenges faced by school-based health centers (SBHCs) impacted by COVID-19. Outside of her research, Dunnells has proven herself a force to be reckoned with at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine, having served as Class of 2024 Student Diversity Officer, President of the American Academy of Public Health Dentistry Student Chapter, and Secretary of the Student National Dental Association, among other leadership positions.
Anushree Tiwari
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
HONORABLE MENTION: Anushree Tiwari, Dental Public Health Resident at the CDC
As of writing, Anushree Tiwari is performing ongoing research into oral health disparities among disabled adults in the U.S., underscoring the critical need for public health initiatives, intervention programs, and policies targeted toward disabled Americans. Her study, “Disparities in oral health status by disability status among US adults, 2013–2018,” suggests American adults with disabilities are significantly more likely to have untreated coronal caries and edentulism, and show notably higher rates of untreated root caries. Her work in the U.S. has been guided by her lived experience in a rural community in India. She has worked on several oral health awareness and tobacco cessation campaigns in underserved locations in India, where she witnessed the effects of unequal health access firsthand. Some of her research in India includes assessing the impact of imprisonment on oral health status and incorporating artificial intelligence into oral health monitoring.
Visionary Leadership Award
The Visionary Leadership Award acknowledges individuals who have shown exceptional command and initiative in embodying the vision of a justice-oriented oral health system. We’re thankful to our award winner for a career marked by dedication, ambition, and compassion.
Dr. Mana Mozaffarian, DMD
Integration Consulting Dentist and Former Chief Dental Officer of Pennsylvania
WINNER: Dr. Mana Mozaffarian, DMD
A consultant, advocate, and mentor, Dr. Mana Mozaffarian has demonstrated steadfast devotion to ensuring vulnerable populations receive essential oral health services. As the former Chief Dental Officer for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, she has shaped local, state, and federal oral health policy, and has been particularly influential in linking oral healthcare access and outcomes with mental health and substance use disorders. Her work also includes advising the Pennsylvania Medical Reserve Corps on disaster response for refugees and medically compromised individuals in the state and contributing to dental student mentorship and leadership across various oral health sector boards.
Coming Soon: 2025 Colloquium
We’re excited to conduct our next awards ceremony at the 2025 Colloquium. We’ll post information on the Colloquium page regarding next year’s theme, where you can sign up to attend, and how you can nominate award winners for next year’s ceremony. We hope to see many nominations as we continue our newfound tradition of the AIDPH Awards.