"During dental school I felt it important to stay involved in organized dentistry and ADEA was one of the orgs I happily invested more time although school itself was very busy. From ADEA I gained a sense of purpose and felt I was giving back to the school that I was learning so much from through PMP. I had the opportunity to network with students nationally while traveling to ADEA conferences to better understand and see how other dental curriculums were operating and made great friends throughout those travels. While the time commitment especially in the roles that I played was significant, growing an organization and this one in particular at UIC has been so so worthwhile especially to see as just a few years later how much more it has grown with the hard work following. That time commitment and hard work built also a strong sense of camaraderie, friendship, and teamwork with people that I worked with through ADEA that I still continue to lean on now. Fast forward a few years, a few more mentors and few more suggestions leading me to my part time position here right back to UIC into academics. So in not so short description, ADEA has played a key role in the formative years of my dental school and even more my career."
