Penn Dental Faculty Recognized by Students with Annual Teaching Awards

 

Award recipients Dr. Scott Odell, Marianne Contino, and Dr. Frank Smithgall. Not pictured are Drs. Faizan Alawi and Bruce Fisher, who could not attend the program.

Philadelphia – Penn Dental Medicine faculty members were honored for excellence in teaching at the School’s Senior Farewell, held May 10 at The Hyatt at the Bellevue in Center City Philadelphia. Each academic year, the graduating class recognizes members of the faculty with teaching awards, presented at this annual event that celebrates the passage of students to professional dentistry and welcomes them into the Penn Dental Medicine Alumni Society. The awards and recipients included the following:

The Basic Science Award – presented for excellence in teaching within the basic sciences. This year’s recipient is Dr. Faizan Alawi, Associate Professor of Pathology and Assistant Dean for Curriculum. A member of the Penn Dental Medicine faculty since 2001, Dr. Alawi teaches oral and maxillofacial pathology for students in the School’s predoctoral and postdoctoral programs, as well as to Penn medical students and residents. Dr. Alawi also serves as Director of Penn Oral Pathology Services. He was previously recognized with the Basic Science Award in 2010.

The Robert E. DeRevere Award – presented for excellence in preclinical teaching by a part-time faculty member. The award is named in honor of Dr. DeRevere, a member of the Penn Dental Medicine Class of 1945, who served on the School’s faculty. This year’s recipient is Dr. Francis J. Smithgall (C’79, D’83), Clinical Associate Professor of Restorative Dentistry. A member of the School’s faculty since 1984, Smithgall is course director for Removable Partial Dentures and teaches predoctoral dental students in the general restorative dentistry laboratory. He previously was recognized with the DeRevere Award in 1990, 2010, and 2011.

The Joseph L. T. Appleton Award – presented to a part-time faculty member for excellence in clinical teaching. This year’ recipient is Marianne Contino. Contino, a dental hygienist, has been instructing students in the predoctoral clinics since 2008. The Appleton Award is named in honor of Dr. Joseph Appleton, a 1914 alumnus of Penn Dental Medicine, who served as dean of the School from 1941 to 1951. The award was founded in 1979 by Dr. Abram Cohen, a member of the Class of 1923 and father of Dean Emeritus D. Walter Cohen, Class of 1950.

The Senior Outstanding Teaching Award – presented to a faculty member who has gone beyond the scope of his/her responsibilities to significantly impact the class’s education at Penn Dental Medicine. This year the Senior Outstanding Teaching Award was presented to Dr. Scott Odell (D’82), Instructor, Department of Oral Medicine. A member of the School’s faculty since 2007, Odell teaches diagnostic radiology, is Chief of Emergency Care and Clinical Director of the Medically Complex Clinic. Odell was previously recognized with the Outstanding Teaching Award in 2012, received the Appleton Award six times, and has twice won the Executive Student Council’s Outstanding Service to Students Award.

The Earle Bank Hoyt Award – presented for excellence in teaching to a faculty member who is a Penn Dental Medicine graduate. The award was established by a grateful patient in honor of Dr. Hoyt, a distinguished clinician and educator and member of the Class of 1918. This year’s recipient is Dr. Bruce Fisher (D’92, M’97, GD’00, RES’00), Clinical Assistant Professor of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery. Fisher served on the faculty from 2009. During his tenure, he also held the post of Director of the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinic at Penn Dental Medicine.