The University of Maryland Dental School is growing lifelong learners.
With two grants from the National Institutes of Health?s Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and National Institute of Dental Craniofacial Research, the school is poised to sustain its research and also support its training programs.
The largest grant, worth more than $4 million from the NIDCR, went to associate professor Norman Capra, head of the training in oral and craniofacial biology program.
“The training grant provides support for combined DDS-Ph.D. students, and I can work a lot closer with the first-year students,” Capra said. With the grant, “we can find a mentor for a graduate student and pay the student?s stipend for one or two years while they are in their Ph.D. degree program.”
Meanwhile, the other grant from the IDDKD, for more than $1.5 million, will be used by professor Renty Franklin to help with research of prolactin and its metabolic effects on the prostate.
But research is just part of what makes the school unique.
“I can tell you from experience interviewing for a dental hygiene position that there is a significant difference between how University of Maryland Dental School prepares us for our transition into practice and other dental hygiene schools,” Beth Miller, a 2007 graduate of the University of Maryland Dental School, told The Examiner.
“As students we are encouraged to further our education in every aspect; this desire to know more conveys to perspective employers. Every person I?ve sent my resume to is very impressed by the quality of activities I?ve participated in at school, my professional demeanor and the intelligent questions I have during interviews and in practice,” she said.
Founded in 1840, the University of Maryland Dental School is a descendant of the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery. The school has 7,500 graduates worldwide, with 525 students enrolled. It also serves more than 35,000 underserved or disadvantaged people annually.
“Some of my goals are the shared goals of the school,” Capra said. “Increase the overall level of oral health care research and knowledge in the Baltimore area, and hopefully enhance treatment of patients.”
