 Welcome to the 2020 virtual meeting and convocation of the American College of Dentists. I'm Stephen Rawls, president of the college. This is an historic event and one I'm confident our founders could never have imagined in 1920. This is our first ever virtual session and importantly, this is our centennial. While the format has changed, the significance of the events certainly does not. You are participating in history. The setting is the beautiful Willard Intercontinental Hotel in our nation's capital. On behalf of the Board of Regents, I am confident you will enjoy the event, appreciate its significance, and find it a worthy initiation to the organization we trust and admire. We will begin with a brief business meeting, which includes an orientation and the president elect's address. The convocation will follow. The official business meeting of the American College of Dentists will now come to order. Candidates for fellowship in the American College of Dentists, fellows and guests, it is my honor to welcome you to the 2020 annual business meeting. I now invite Dr. Leo Rawls to the podium to present the invocation. Please stand. We are gathered here today to honor our colleagues and to welcome them as fellows of the American College of Dentists. Eternal God, Master of the Universe, look with favor upon our new fellows, their families, their friends, and all who serve the great profession of dentistry. Grant us the blessing of your divine presence. Enrich our hearts with compassion and guide the college in its work to serve mankind. As all who teach, all who learn, and all who serve, in their God-blessedest nation and the American College of Dentists. Merciful Creator, please grant us to resolve capacity and compassion to engage the pandemic and all of its challenges. As the death toll steadily rises, help us to take care of one another. And now we offer a moment of silence for all the individuals that we have lost, for we remain in our hearts in perpetuity. Amen. Please be seated. I am privileged to introduce the officers and regents of the American College of Dentists. Our officers, President-elect Leo E. Rawls, Vice President Richard E. Jones, Treasurer Robert M. Lamb, past President Thomas J. Connolly, Executive Director Teresa S. Gonzalez, Editor David W. Chambers. Our regents, Regent-at-Large Robert A. Fiella, Regent-at-Large Teresa A. Dolan, Regent-at-Large Steven M. Pachuta, Regent-at-Large Seal A. Feldman, Regent Regency I, Paula K. Friedman, Regent Regency II, David A. Anderson, Regent Regency III, Carol M. Haynes, Regent Regency IV, Terry L. Norris, Regent Regency V, Charles F. Squire, Regent Regency VI, Douglas W. Bogan, Regent Regency VII, Gary S. Yanomoto, Regent Regency VIII, Lance M. Rucker. Welcome to the American College of Dentists Foundation, Patricia L. Blanton. Our liaison to the Board from the American Society for Dental Ethics, Tony M. Ruka. Our liaison from the Student Professionalism and Ethics Association, Michael C. Maru, and our regent intern, Eric G. Clintmom. Your Board has served you well in 2020. I know they will continue to guide the College on a productive course in the year ahead. My thanks to all of you for all you do to bring the work of the College to fruition. The College is organized into eight geographic regencies and further organized into 52 sections. The sections of the College serve as a vital force in connecting our constituent fellows and extending the College's influence into the communities we serve and have served for 100 years. On the occasion of our centennial celebration, we wish to recognize our sections and their contributions. It is always a pleasure to present awards and to recognize the work of our individual sections. The first award to be presented is the Section Newsletter Award. Effective communication is a prerequisite for a healthy section. The Section Newsletter Award is presented to an ACD section in recognition of outstanding achievement in the publication of a section newsletter. The award is based on overall quality, design, content, and technical excellence of the newsletter. The Washington section is the winner of the Section Newsletter Award for 2020. The editor of the Washington section newsletter is Robin J. Henderson. The second group of awards relates to the model section designation. The model section designation is actively pursued by sections. The purpose of the program is to encourage section improvement by recognizing sections that meet standards of performance in four areas. Membership, section projects, ACD Foundation support, and commitment in communication. This year, the Atlantic provinces, Hudson Mohawk, Kansas, Louisiana, New England, Oklahoma, Ontario, and Washington sections earned the coveted model section designation. This is no small achievement and we applaud their efforts. Throughout the year, we have attempted to keep the fellowship informed of college business. We will take a few minutes this morning to present some key information. First, I would like to recognize our Executive Director, Dr. Theresa Gonzalez, who will provide an orientation on the American College of Dennis and provide a brief report of college activities. Thank you, President Rawls. Good morning, fellows and friends of the college and a very special good morning to the soon-to-be fellows of the American College of Dentist. It is my privilege this morning to give you a brief overview of this prestigious organization, one with a distinguished past and an equally exciting future, the American College of Dentist. Let's start with what is the college? The notion of college generally conjures up images like this and rightfully so. But what is the American College of Dentist? To answer this, we must talk about the concept of a college in the organizational sense. A group of dentists sharing common interest and ideals with an azimuth set on excellence and professionalism. You might be wondering, how did I get invited for fellowship in this august organization? It was not an accident. You were invited to join the college because you were a leader and because you've made significant contributions to the profession and society. True, this is a special organization but is made special by its constituent fellows. In Maslow's hierarchy of needs, two of the most valuable psychological needs we have as human beings are the need to be appreciated and the need to belong. These needs are met through peer-to-peer thanks and recognition. Today, you are family and we welcome you to the college. Individuals often call the office and request information about joining the college. We thank them for their interest and remind them that to become a fellow, you must be invited by your peers and only after considerable accomplishment and the requisite sustained commitment. This afternoon, you will be joining Dentistry's Finest. The American College of Dentist has been a critical force in shaping the dental profession over the past century and we are poised to begin our second century of service to both the profession and to the public which we are privileged to serve. In the weeks and months to come, you will have a chance to better understand the history, structure and directions of the college. I hope I can encourage your interest to actively participate in this outstanding organization. The American College of Dentist came into existence in 1920. This era is known as the Roaring 20s and post-war prosperity was responsible for much of that roar. Now, since most of you weren't around then and even your grandparents were haploid cells, let me point out that this was a period of great change in the health professions and dentistry. The Flex2 Report had recently been published and was having a profound effect on medical education. Dental education appeared vulnerable to a similar challenge. Proprietary dental education was also quite common and was tarnishing our profession. Advanced education and training were extremely limited. Dental research was rare and the little work that was being done had few avenues for being effectively communicated. Commercial control of dental journalism was rampant. In short, dentistry was facing enormous challenges. The concept of an organization without political ties that could shape dentistry was first envisioned by four leaders of the profession. John Kanzit, H. Edmund Frizel, Otto King. These individuals were the top three officers of the American Dental Association, then called the National Dental Association. The fourth member was Arthur Davenport Black, son of Green Varderman Black and the president of the National Association of Dental Faculties. It is significant that these leaders of organized dentistry found it necessary to form another organization, the college, to address their concerns about those issues facing dentistry. 100 years ago on August 20th, 1920, the four organizers and 10 other leaders of the dental profession met at the Copley Hotel in Boston to found the American College of Dentists. While unable to attend in person, nine other distinguished leaders from around the country also joined the founding ranks in absentia, providing a total of 23 founders. Let me emphasize this, this was literally a who's who of dentistry for the time. Their actions resulted in the formation of the oldest, most accomplished, most influential, and most prestigious organization of its time. The basic principles that gave rise to the college became its very existence and have endured for more than 100 years. To elevate the standards of dentistry, to encourage graduate study, and to grant fellowship to those who have done the meritorious work. These ideals represented rather bold measures for the times. They also provided the basis for the college's vital professional role in the years to come. Note that even at the dawn of the organization, there was an emphasis on ethical conduct of its members. The college was founded as an apolitical, independent organization with membership by invitation only. The selective and confidential nomination process makes the college unique among dental organizations. These principles endured today. Now it is impossible for me to effectively convey the detailed history of the college in the allotted time. However, as the next few slides illustrate, the college immediately immersed itself in the midst of the most critical and complicated professional issues, beginning with direct involvement with the Carnegie Foundation to reshape dental education. From the beginning, the college has emphasized efforts in education and has successfully worked as a direct catalyst for careful study and change in this area. The college was the only organization of the time, stressing what we would call today, continuing education. In the years that followed, the college continued to exert significant influence in a number of these areas. The college was extremely instrumental in the formation of the American Association of Dental Editors. In the 1930s, the International Association of Dental Research, the International Association of Dental Editors Journal of Dental Research, was foundering and on the verge of collapse. The journal was literally saved through college intervention. The funds raised by the college to save the Journal of Dental Research formed the basis of what would become the William J. Guy's Foundation for the advancement of dentistry. Now the Adia Guy's Foundation. represents all aspects of the profession. This has also enabled the college to become effectively involved in a wide range of practice related issues. The college has long been concerned with dental care delivery and these are but a few of its key activities. Most notably, the American College of Dentists has come to epitomize ethics and professionalism in dentistry. This has been and will continue to be a principal focus of the college. The college has sponsored ethics summits and co-sponsored major symposia. We're currently focused on a Gysian-style update of ethics and the debate that this seminal publication will undoubtedly generate. An ADA Continuing Education subject category of ethics, law, and professionalism was approved by the American Dental Association Council on Dental Education and Licensure as a direct result of college action. We also have issues in dental ethics section in our journal, making it the only major forum for refereed articles in dental ethics. Our Ethics Handbook for Dentists provides virtually all dentists with a guide to ethics, professionalism, and ethical decision making. We have an ever-growing compilation of online courses and activities in dental ethics. Yesterday we offered a three-hour special ethics course devoted to ethics education in the morning and then looked at the character, the profession, as well as the virtues and values that define leadership. For these reasons and so very many more, the college has been viewed as the conscience of dentistry. A number of years ago, the college initiated a major fact-based report on ethics, similar to a state-of-the-union report on ethics and dentistry. This report, as I mentioned, inspired by the 1926 landmark report on dental education by Dr. William John Giles. As a centerpiece of our centennial celebration, Dr. David W. Chambers prepared the highly anticipated American College of Dentist Ethics report, The New Professionalism. This 520-page book is a must-read and will figure prominently in the phase development of our future coursework and college communications. I mentioned our online courses in dental ethics. You can earn up to 44.5 hours of continuing education credit from our courses. We have 44 courses with many more planned. Over 155,000 courses have been taken to date. The honor of fellowship was established to recognize outstanding dentists at a time when the profession was in serious disarray. To single out dentists to enroll models. In doing so, we promoted excellence for the profession by recognizing excellence. Fellowship continues today with the same expressed purpose. Our official mission, as seen here, is to advance excellence, ethics, professionalism, and leadership in dentistry. Our strategic plan is logically centered around accomplishing these myriad missions. The college holds the profession to its highest ideals through meaningful use programs and projects at the local and national levels. We champion initiatives in such areas as quality, high standards, leadership, continuous improvement, professional development, ethical comportment, and more. We seek the best for dentistry. Now let me briefly turn your attention to our organizational structure. The college is based upon one primary element, you, the fellows. Organizationally, we have four levels. Fellows, sections, regencies, and the Board of Regents. The governance of the college at the national level is through the Board of Regents. The Board consists of officers, elected regents that represent the eight geographic regencies and appointed at-large regents, representing different spheres of influence. A geographical structure was introduced in the early stages of the college to facilitate interaction and communication among fellows and to encourage grassroots involvement. We currently have 52 sections grouped into eight geographic regencies, and we are working toward a 53rd section with the Student Professionalism and Ethics Association. Although this map depicts most of North America, I call your attention to the listing of our European and other international colleagues within the section and regency structure. You may already know many fellows of the college. I could use various statistics to describe our membership. These may be of interest, but with the time available, I would like to discuss one common thread that really stands out, and that is all fellows are leaders. This includes leaders in organized dentistry, academics, research, federal service, the community, and other areas. We are composed of leaders and we have a leadership role. To quote Dr. Bakkerby in his 1963 presidential address, the college has many functions, but its basic mission, its reason for being, is leadership. That is, to provide leadership, and I don't mean authority, I mean influence. Harold Hillenbrand made a very insightful comment over 55 years ago that seems so appropriate today. He said, the greatest danger in the next few years is not invasion by the government, but rather the loss of leadership by the health profession. Fellows, this is where the college and you, our fellows, must continue to provide the guidance and vision our profession so desperately needs. Currently, there are over 7,700 fellows. Less than 3.8% of dentists are invited into fellowship. The college was formed for leaders and by leaders. For nearly a century, our fellows have courageously advocated, shaped, and led the profession. From its inception, the college has sought to honor dental professionals for their leadership and contributions through a process free from political influence. Let me offer a glimpse of the process. Your accomplishments were first recognized by two fellows in good standing who prepared a nomination packet on your behalf, and hopefully without your express knowledge. Your nomination was submitted to the college's executive office and it was then reviewed by a committee of five highly distinguished fellows who considered your nomination without knowing the identity of your nominator or seconder. What this means is that you did not get into the college because of any special connection. This confidential peer review process has been refined only slightly over the years and continues to be of utmost importance to our college. The key features summarized here reinforced the quality and fairness of the process. It is important to remember that the process is confidential. It is also a very selective process. There is no blanket approval of nominees. We see quality, not quantity, the best qualified if you will. Fellowship is based on who you are and what you have done, not on whom you know. Selection for fellowship is no small accomplishment and your individual performances delivered you here today. The college has many ongoing projects. I've already mentioned a number of established successful college projects. These include our ethics summits, online ethics courses, ethics handbooks, wallet cards, ethical dilemma videos, leadership courses, and so much more. Besides these, we also have an ambitious lineup of great emerging projects such as the practice ethics assessment and development program, the dental ethics survey. We also have a formal leadership program affiliated with Northwestern University and a leadership program affiliated with the Diaz Leadership Institute. The ACD ethics report, we have ethical dilemma videos, we have mentoring opportunities, and we are continually helping student ethics clubs. Projects are important and an important means to accomplish the college mission. These projects allow us to positively influence dentistry and oral health care. In recognition of outstanding accomplishments, the college was awarded the prestigious guys award for achievement in 2011 from the Diaz Foundation. The projects naturally generate opportunity cost and fortunately the college has an organizational partner, the American College of Dentist Foundation, which essentially serves as the fundraising arm of the college. The foundation was established in 1972 to enable the college to raise funds through tax deductible gifts, which in turn could be used to support projects and initiatives of the college. The college projects I summarized are virtually all supported by the foundation. Our foundation also enables us to provide our materials to schools and organizations on a complementary basis. The guys fellow and guys benefactor programs were started to recognize ardent supporters of the foundation. In the recent past, we have also received a one million dollar matching gift from Dr. Jerome B. Miller. Thanks to his generosity and yours, we reached our goals. The matching gift funds support the new ethics report. More recently, the Jerome B. Miller Family Foundation bequeathed an additional one million dollars to the foundation. This year, the college also received a bequest of more than five hundred thousand dollars from the estate of Dr. Julianne Bluett Foster and Dr. Roscoe Foster. As you are undoubtedly aware, Dr. Julianne Bluett Foster was the first female president of the college. As part of our centennial celebration, we have launched a highly successful capital campaign entitled Your College is on the move and we mean that quite literally and figuratively. Thank you for your generous support. Private philanthropy efforts provided a permanent home for the college in the west end historic district of Rockville, Maryland. And this beautiful building is slated for renovation and occupancy in the very near future. These are the three contiguous office condominiums purchased in 1992 by the foundation. They are located in suburban Washington DC in the area of Gaithersburg, Maryland. I would also like to mention that we have an attentive and very talented staff that can answer essentially any question you may have. Please do not hesitate to call me, our director of operations, Ms. Susan Pittman, our director of finance, Mr. Paul Dobson, or Ms. Erica Royale, Mr. Adrian Campos, or Ms. Moskan Sulehi. By the way, they have been critical to the production of this virtual meeting and convocation and I wish to take this opportunity to thank them for making this happen. Thanks to the very generous support of three donors totaling one and a half million dollars, in 2013 the foundation purchased a commercial office building in Rockville, Maryland. Our sincere appreciation is extended to Dr. Patricia Blanton, to the late Dr. Jerome Miller and to an anonymous donor who made this possible. This building is located in the heart of the historic district and is poised to become our new home for the college and foundation. Your college is on the move. The college provides a number of avenues for communication and interaction among fellows and within the profession. You will soon receive the college's newsletter, the ACD News, which provides information on the college activities and the fellows. You will also receive the Journal of the American College of Dentist, which was started in 1934 and for many years was under the editorship of Dr. William John Guise. The journal continues today under the expert editorship of Dr. David W. Chambers. It is a first class publication and something you can be very proud of. Now I mentioned becoming active in the college. You will have an opportunity to participate in college activities through section regency and annual meetings as well as other venues such as our conferences and our travel program. Our toll free number and our website and email addresses are readily available. Please take a look at our website when you get a chance. It contains a great deal of useful information. It includes an online membership directory for members only. Visit us often at acd.org. There are other tangible benefits to being a fellow. The college offers complimentary continuing education at our annual meeting and at our leader skills workshops and other conferences. This afternoon you will be officially inducted as a fellow of the American College of Dentist. The ceremony is steeped in a strong tradition. During the virtual ceremony you will be welcomed by the leadership of the college and fellowship is bestowed by our college. Among the symbols included in the convocation will be the college torch and mace. The torch symbolizes the vision and the guiding light of the founders. The mace, a traditional symbol of authority includes the engraved names of 20 of the most eminent contributors to the dental profession. During the convocation ceremony your name will be called but no rank, title or position will be announced. Thus the educator, the scientist, the general practitioner, the specialist, whether from a rural area or a large metropolitan area will receive fellowship in precisely the same manner. Your fellowship certificate is engraved only with your name. Although we contribute in different ways, our fellowship is equal. You have received a gold and enamel pen that is a replica of the college seal. We hope that you will wear this pen with pride for years to come as representing your commitment to a strong and vital organization. The college also has an official rosette available that incorporates the lilac and American rose colors. The rosette may be worn in lieu of pen depending on your stated preference. As part of my official duties I am obliged to provide a brief report on some aspects of the college convocation ceremony. Officially we have 326 candidates for induction as the legendary centennial cohort. There are also several new board members. The officers for 2021 include President Leo E. Rouse, President-Elect Richard E. Jones, Vice President Robert M. Lam, Treasurer Robert A. Thiala, Immediate Past President and President of the ACD Foundation, Stephen A. Rawls. We also have new Regents for 2021 from Regency 2, is Colonel Peter H. Guevara, and from Regency 5, Thomas E. Rainman. And finally, a region at large who will join the college this year is Joseph P. Crowley. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the following leaders for their service to the college. Regent, Regency 2, Dr. David A. Anderson, Regent, Regency 5, Dr. Charles F. Chuck Squire, and Immediate Past President Dr. Thomas J. Conley. Dr. Conley will continue his service with the organization as a consultant to the foundation. Soon you will be fellows with all the rights and responsibilities associated with so significant an achievement. So what happens now? I have tried to stress honoring dentists for meritorious achievements is only part of what the college is about. Fellowship carries with it responsibilities that you will be affirming this afternoon. What I would like to do is to articulate a few of the expectations. We have an expectation that you will be active in the college and participate in college events. We can really use your leadership and talent to help us continue to address the ongoing issues involving our mission accomplishment of excellence, ethics, and professionalism. I encourage you to become involved in your section. We also have an expectation that you will nominate qualified dentists for fellowship. Quite frankly, there is no better way to start your involvement with a college than through the nomination process. The nomination forms have been simplified and our office can give you all the help you might require. Expectations go two ways. I hope that you have an expectation that the college will continue to build on its proud history and record of accomplishment. I hope you will also have an expectation that the college as an organization will continue to develop activities and projects that encourage your participation. Time is valuable for all of us. We want the college to compete successfully for some of your time. It is your organization now and you have a stake in it. We want you to as proud of the college as we are. After all, you are the college's one and only Centennial cohort, forever known as the Centurions. Let me turn your attention to what's around the corner. Obviously, I hope you can attend and we can have an in-person annual meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 13th and 14th, 2021. Our very next travel program will be an Eastern European cruise slated for the summer of 2021. In review, candidates for fellowship, the American College of Dentist welcomes you. Let me conclude this orientation by making several key points. We advance excellence, ethics, professionalism and leadership. The honor of fellowship is very important because I've tried to stress the college does more than award fellowships. The college has a record of making a difference in dentistry. The college is not a political organization. The college is known and has been known as the conscience of dentistry. Leadership is a characteristic that is shared by all fellows. And lastly, you are exceptional people joining an extraordinary organization. Now, our second century of service begins and you are poised to usher in this new era. Ethics will continue to be a mission essential task for the college because as the ancient ethos portends, the best clinical care occurs in the context of a personal and professional relationship to gain the patient's support and trust. Trust is the bedrock. Trust is not negotiable. We welcome you to the historic Willard Hotel, the setting for your virtual convocation. I hope that you will come to more fully understand the strength and vitality of the college. It's proud history. It's promising future. It has been said that the most predictable future is the one that you create. You have already helped shape the future of the profession. Fellowship in the American College of Dentist offers you the very real prospect of joining your colleagues in shaping the future of the profession and this organization. Congratulations to each and every one of you. You are all immensely talented people and we are very honored to have each of you in our ranks. As the Executive Director of the American College of Dentist, it has been my honor and privilege to address you this morning. Now please enjoy the events that we have arranged in your honor. President Rawls, that concludes the orientation and the Executive Director's report. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Gonzalez. Next I would like to review the Treasurer's Report on behalf of ACD Treasurer Robert M. Lamb. I am pleased to inform you that the financial base of the college is strong. We continue to carefully plan and evaluate our programs and our expenses. It is important to note that the college is audited annually by an independent accounting firm. One of the most concentrated activities of your Board of Regents is developing meaningful viable programs that are consistent with our mission of advancing excellence, ethics, professionalism and leadership. As Dr. Gonzalez mentioned, your dues support a number of important initiatives. These activities make a difference in dentistry and you can be very proud of them. We have also explored different ways to raise non-duce revenue to mitigate the pressures of rising expenses. I strongly encourage you to help support our efforts to raise non-duce revenue by visiting the ACD Gallery at www.acd.org and by making bids on some of the great offerings at the Foundation's online silent auction. Thank you. At this time, Dr. Patricia Blanton will pay tribute to our deceased members. Thank you, President Rawls. May we take a moment to recognize friends and colleagues who contributed so much to the college and to dentistry. During the past year, a number of fellows have passed away, leaving a distinct void in our lives. The names of these fellows are revealed on the screen and they remain indignified repose in our hearts in perpetuity. As the last full measure of devotion, I will now add one flower to this spray of roses to honor our dear, departed friends and colleagues. Thank you, Dr. Blanton. Dr. Thomas Connolly, President of the American College of Dentist Foundation, has prepared a report for the Foundation. This report will now be read by Dr. Leo Rawls. Thank you, Mr. President. As you know, the American College of Dentist Foundation is the collaborative partner of the college, providing support to the specific programs and new initiatives of the college. Most of the projects that Dr. Gonzalez mentioned earlier involve our foundation. The foundation is very active for us in our efforts to improve our healthcare and elevate the standards of dentistry. Our plans to expand college programs face the stark reality that such ambitions are limited by the finances available to support these programs. As many of you are aware, in the recent past, we completed a highly successful $1 million matching gift campaign. The funds raised from the matching gift campaign are supporting the major report on dental ethics. The report followed the general model that William J. Guy's used for his 1926 landmark work on dental education. The family of the donor of the $1 million matching gift notified us that the college was bequeathed an additional $1 million to the foundation through Dr. Jerome V. Miller's estate. The estate of Dr. Julianne Bluett Foster, the college's first female president, bequeathed $500,000 to the college, and these funds will be used for a lead of development and scholarships from the Dr. Julianne Bluett Foster Fund. This year, the Gene Hopeman Fellowship Ambassador Program was established by Private Philanthropy to support our international outreach efforts related to fellowship. In addition to the previously mentioned philanthropy, a centennial capital campaign has been launched to usher in our next century of service to our profession. For larger gifts to the foundation, we established five circle giving levels. For donations of $1,000 or $5,000, we also have the Guy's Fellow and Guy's Benefactor programs respectively. Those two programs and the circle levels are described in detail on our website in our information brochures. I hope you will consider a gift to the foundation, whether as a circle member, a Guy's Fellow or Guy's Benefactor, a planned gift or bidding in our silent auction. Your support is most appreciated. Lastly, and similar to the ACD, it is important to note that the foundation is audited annually by an independent auditing firm. On behalf of Dr. Connolly and the ACD Foundation, it is my privilege at this time to honor 11 fellows of the college with the presentation of the ACD Lifetime Achievement Award for their 50 years of service and involvement in the American College of Dentists. This award was established by a generous contribution from Dr. Samuel D. Harris in 1986. Those fellows receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award for 2020 are Dr. Anthony L. DeMango, Manalapan, New Jersey, Dr. Arnold S. Feldman, Boynton Beach, Florida, Dr. Rupert E. Fixott, Stockton, California, Dr. Dominique C. Lurado, Golden, Colorado, Dr. Cesar Luzzi, Rome, Italy, Dr. Victor H. Mercer, Fisher's, Indiana, Dr. Henry I. Nahom, Laguna Woods, California, Dr. John B. Pike, St. Cloud, Minnesota, Dr. Evelyn M. Strange, Portland, Oregon, Dr. Hugh B. Tilson, San Antonio, Texas, Dr. Vern M. Tuller, Provo, Utah. Since it was not possible for any of the recipients to join us today due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns, their engraved medals and certificates will be delivered to them or presented by their sections. Dr. Anthony DeMango, Dr. Cesar Luzzi, Dr. Hugh Tillerson, pass away before today's ceremony and their awards will be shared with their families. That concludes the report of the ACD Foundation. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you, Dr. Rouse. Now it is my distinct pleasure to call upon our President-elect, Dr. Leo E. Rouse, to present his address. Dr. Rouse? Good afternoon, colleagues. It is a privilege to address you today as the President-elect of the American College of Dentist. Some of you know that I spent a few years in the United States Army as a dental officer and for me personally, a great professional development opportunity. In 1981, I had the experience of a lifetime. I was assigned as the dental clinic commander for the first brigade of the 8th Infantry Division, U.S. Army Mites West Germany. Believe you me, it was an experience. My commander was none other than Brigadier General H. Norman Swarskoff. He was the assistant division commander or the ADC of the 8th Infantry Division and the commander of the Mites military community. I learned several outstanding quotes from General Swarskoff. Leadership is a potent combination of strategy and character. But if you must be without one, be without the strategy. And the truth of the matter is that you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it. A major challenge in my job was the dental readiness of the first brigade and little did I know at that time that General Swarskoff was keenly aware of the value of oral health or lack thereof of the brigade's oral health readiness status. My challenge was educating the four battalion commanders of the importance of preventive dentistry and my focus mission of ensuring the oral health readiness of the brigade. We were successful with the brigade and oral health readiness and I am reminded often and sometimes daily of the quote from General Swarskoff. You always know the right thing to do, but the hard part is doing it. So yes, my battalion commander colleagues recognized the value of oral health readiness to ensure the wartime readiness of their units. Colleagues, that short story and experience is a segue into the balance of my conversation with you as current and new fellows in the American College of Dentist. Little did we know this time last year that we will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the American College of Dentist virtually because of COVID-19. To quote our esteemed Executive Director Dr. Teresa Gonzalez from early March to the present, we have been in what has been referred to as suspended animation. Well, here we are and guess what? It was a hard decision, but it was the right thing to do. The last time this was done, World War II. This illustrates another important aspect of leadership and this is agility. As our leaders actively engage diverse stakeholders, influencing and studying them while simultaneously learning from them. And as we say in the military, they do the hard right and lead from the front. And most importantly, they take responsibility for their actions. Your ability to lead and influence others brought you this far. Congratulations on your nomination. An invitation to fellowship in the American College of Dentist. And in my view, a tribute to your outstanding professional qualities and devotions to the dental profession. An active fellow understands the value of ethics, leadership and professionalism. We expect you to become fully engaged in the activities of your agency and section. We have a great deal of work to do as we engage the new normal of the dental profession. COVID-19 has created a change in how we practice, educate the next generation of dentists, and conduct research. Yes, we have faced a disruption that has forced us to adapt quickly, creatively and collaboratively. That is a quote from a recent journal of Dental Education Auto Entitled, COVID-19, Finding Silver Linings for Dental Education, May of 2020. We need leaders who will persevere in challenging times and exhibit intellectual honesty with transparency and at the heart of collaboration. More specifically, the time is now to look seriously at the integration of dental and medical education. After all, we are a community of primary care providers committed to evidence-based outcomes. We understand predictive disease and the critical time of therapeutic intervention. This is what we do. As we look at the new normal, what about the next 100 years of the American College of Dentist? Here is what I do know. Yes, we will continue our mission of advancing excellence, ethics, professionalism and leadership in dentistry. Many of you know that college is widely regarded as the conscience of dentistry. We must recognize the importance of diversity to the success of the American College of Dentist. As a college, we represent the fabric of our profession, reflective of the diverse citizens we are asked to treat. As leaders, we must ask the question, can we do it? Should we do it? And why? I submit to you, now is the time. To use a quote from Congressman John Lewis, we must step into good trouble. As an individual who has regularly engaged in good trouble, I know that we cannot shy away from the many issues that affect us as healthcare providers on different levels and on multiple fronts. We must look at the opportunities and responsibility to move the needle to health equity. We need leaders in our college who understand the need to eliminate disparities in health and achieve health equity. We need leaders who care enough, who understand the social determinants of health, have the courage to do enough and who will persevere until the job is done. Colleagues, there is an old quote, people don't care how much you know until they know how much you do care. Recently, Healthy People 2030 was relieved with objectives for oral health. We need to continue inspiring remedies to what U.S. Director General David Satchin referred to as the silent epidemic of untreated oral disease in America. Many of you are aware of recent documents where a plan was proposed to lead a multifaceted integration of oral health into overall health. Several studies and recent interests strongly suggest that the inclusion of oral health in primary care improves access to care and general health outcomes while reducing health care costs, specifically articles by Murthy and quality health. Not to be redundant, the American College of Dentist reflects the tenets of leadership, ethics, professional behavior, and we must engage and lead forward in the foxhole as health care providers to influence and advocate for sustainable partnerships with those organizations who share our mission and goals. Colleagues, as I close my conversation with you, I must share with you a pearl of wisdom that I received as a freshman dental student in 1969, 51 years ago from Dr. Joseph L. Henry, Dean of the Howard University College of Dentistry. I have shared these pearls as a speaker at five commencement exercises and I feel that it is important that I share with you as new fellows and current fellows of the American College of Dentist. I ask for your indulgence if you've heard it before and one of my commencement addresses or as a Howard alum during the tenure of Dr. Henry. Dean Henry called it the five fingers of dentistry. I take in the liberty of renaming it the five fingers of health care providers. Become and remain socially conscious. Remain community oriented. Stay civically active. Be involved in advocacy. Be politically informed and always be professionally competent. Thank you very much and I wish you well as a new fellow in the American College of Dentist. Let us continue to make a difference in our outstanding profession. Welcome home. We have been waiting for you. Thank you, Dr. Rouse. We wish to extend our very best wishes to you as you lead the college forward in the coming year. That concludes the 2020 annual business meeting of the American College of Dentists. Thank you for joining us.