Danielle “Danni” Burgess, a first-year resident in Harvard School of Dental Medicine’s Periodontology program, was inspired to pursue a career in dentistry so she could help individuals like her grandmother who struggled with periodontal disease and tooth loss. A new Periodontology Fellowship is helping her take a step closer to her dream. Burgess is the first recipient of the fellowship that was funded last year with the support of the program’s alumni and friends.

“I grew up in Seaforth Village, Jamaica. I was raised by my grandmother, who struggled with periodontal disease...

Drs. Siobhian M. B. Sprott, and Shelly D. Taylor were recently awarded the Joseph L. Henry Oral Health Fellowship in Minority Health Policy for the 2020-2021 academic year. The Joseph L. Henry Oral Health Fellowship in Minority Health Policy, awarded each academic year, is an academic degree-granting program with the goal of preparing the next generation of leaders in minority health, health policy, and oral epidemiology. The program is named after Harvard School of Dental Medicine’s first African American full professor, Joseph L. Henry who also served as the School’s interim dean from...

Fifty years ago, Dolores Mercedes Franklin, DMD74, PD76, became the first woman of color to attend Harvard School of Dental Medicine and one of the first five women to earn a DMD degree. A trailblazer throughout her life, Franklin, a global leader in oral health policy, achieved many firsts in her career, paving the way for future generations of women and individuals of color in dentistry.

Today, she sees a pressing need to address racial inequities in oral health care in light of COVID-19. She...