Periodontics chair, D3 student, SON earn awards

ADEA/Sunstar selects SOD student for internship

Ambika Srivastava, a third-year dental student, has been selected from nine applicants nationwide for the 2019 American Dental Education Association/Sunstar Americas, Inc. Jack Bresch Student Legislative Internship.

Srivastava will complete a six-week, stipend-supported internship assisting as a staff member of ADEA’s Advocacy and Governmental Relations focus area in Washington, D.C. The internship teaches students about becoming involved in the state and federal legislative processes and the making of public policy as it relates to academic dentistry.

Srivastava will participate in congressional meetings on Capitol Hill, coalition meetings and in policy discussions among the ADEA Legislative Advisory Committee and the ADEA Advocacy and Governmental Relations staff.

Periodontics chair earns ADEA Leadership fellowship

Dr. Jennifer Bain, associate professor of dentistry and chair of the Department of Periodontics and Preventive Sciences, has been selected the 2019-20 American Dental Education Association Leadership Institute Fellow.

The institute, the ADEA’s flagship leadership development program, is a yearlong program that develops the nation’s most promising individuals at academic dental institutions to become future leaders in dental and higher education.

SON’s Mercy Delta Express obtains gubernatorial award

The School of Nursing received a 2019 Governor’s Award in the “District and Community-wide Partnership Excellence Awards” category for its partnership with the South Delta School District in operating the Mercy Delta Express school-based health centers.

The awards go to school-community partnership programs that have produced outstanding results for students in K-12 public schools in Mississippi.

The clinics are located at Ripley Blackwell Head Start Center in Mayersville, South Delta Elementary School in Rolling Fork, South Delta Middle School in Anguilla and South Delta High School in Rolling Fork.

Those in the clinics perform physicals and minor care for students, in addition to illness and injury care for teachers and staff. The clinics also offer health education, sports physicals and school-wide and community health screenings and serve as a clinical rotation site for UMMC students.