Congratulations Graduates!
98 DDS diplomas. 44 residency certificates. 17 oral biology advanced degrees. One commencement ceremony. A senior awards banquet. And inductions into the OKU dental honor society. To read about the various year-end celebrations—and watch our slide shows, simply scroll down.
Commencement 2006
The 2006 Commencement Ceremony was held June 4, 2006 in Royce Hall. Dr. David C. Johnsen, Dean of the University of Iowa College of Dentistry, delivered the keynote speech. Dr. Kathryn Atchison was honored as Distinguished Faculty of the Year, and Dr. Byoung I. Suh was recognized as a generous benefactor of the UCLA School of Dentistry.
Congratulations to the 98 graduates! Of note, half of these talented new dentists plan to enter a specialty program and another quarter of the class will pursue advanced training in general dentistry. In addition, this year a total of 44 residency certificates were awarded, and 17 oral biology graduate students received degrees in record numbers–6 PhDs and 11 MS degrees were conferred! We wish great success and happiness to all of our former students as they continue their professional journeys.
Senior Awards Ceremony and Banquet
The Awards Ceremony and Senior Banquet in honor of the graduating Class of 2006 was held on June 2, 2006 at the beautiful Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades. The awards recognized achievement in diverse areas including scholarship, leadership, clinical excellence, community service, and research activity. A highlight of this event was the presentation of ten Dean’s Medals for honors at graduation: seven for academic achievement and three for leadership contributions.
The Awards Ceremony was followed by a reception and banquet. During the banquet, the class leaders entertained the audience with an innovative slide show and presented awards of appreciation to the faculty and staff members who had contributed in special ways to their educational experience.
Chancellor’s Reception
On May 31, 2006, Chancellor Albert Carnesale hosted the annual Chancellor’s Distinguished Student Reception. This event recognizes 400 graduating students campus-wide for their academic achievements and leadership.
Fourteen members of the Class of 2006 were invited to be guests of the Chancellor. They are: Brett Brazeal, Dana Casaus, Naren Chelian, Jennifer Crowe, Michele Frawley, Katie Hadden, Daniel Han, Enoch Kim, Kaitlyn Kim, Jennifer Messenger, Ryan Monti, Taylor Olsen, Lee Pham and Richard Webster.
OKU Ceremony
Epsilon Zeta, the UCLA chapter of Omicron Kappa Upsilon (OKU), the national dental honor society, held its annual banquet on May 24, 2006. Twelve students from the Class of 2006 were honored with alumni membership: Brett Brazeal, Dana Casaus, Mi Young Chung, Jennifer Crowe, Michele Frawley, Katie Hadden, Daniel Han, Lecia Harmer, Enoch Kim, Kaitlyn Kim, Taylor Olsen, and Ryan Wallace. In addition, third-year student Karen Potter received the prestigious Kramer Award.
Drs. Perry Klokkevold, Marvin Marcus, Sig Urbach, and John Yamamoto were recognized with faculty membership and Ms. Michelle Popowitz with honorary membership. Dr. Joseph Cooney received the prestigious Robert B. Wolcott Award for distinguished service to the dental profession.
