HSDA Holds First Meeting of School Year

Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine’s (GSDM) Hispanic Student Dental Association (HSDA) chapter held its first general meeting of the fall semester on Tuesday, September 24, 2013, in G-302. Around 20 students attended the meeting as they enjoyed pizza.

BU HSDA is affiliated with the national Hispanic Dental Association (HDA). HDA is dedicated to promoting and improving the oral health of the Hispanic community and providing advocacy for Hispanic oral health professionals across the United States.

The executive board began the meeting by introducing themselves: Kenia Rodriguez DMD 14 (President); Antonio Maceda-Johnson DMD 15 (Vice President); Michelle DaRocha DMD 15 (Treasurer); Karina Vergara DMD 14 (Secretary); Matthew Green DMD 15 (Community Outreach Chair); and Khamir Patel AS 15 (AS Representative).

The meeting attendees evaluated the current HSDA t-shirt and offered color suggestions for the 2014 design.

Rodriguez outlined upcoming volunteer opportunities, such as an outreach program with the elderly Latino community in Jamaica Plain. She also discussed the 23rd annual meeting of the HDA, which was held in Boston on Friday, September 27, and Saturday, September 28. Fifteen HSDA members attended the annual meeting. Several HSDA members also attended the Massachusetts Hispanic Dental Society’s gala at Spinelli’s in East Boston on September 27.

Rodriguez closed the meeting by introducing the group to the HDA website and meeting attendees began reviewing panels and continuing education courses. Attendees were informed of the upcoming Spanish dental workshop where they would receive their Spanish-English dental dictionaries and review basic Spanish dental vocabulary to aid them in the Patient Treatment Center.

Photos from the meeting are available on Facebook and Flickr.