GSDM welcomes back alums for 2022 Alumni Weekend
Almost 100 GSDM alumni turned out on a recent Friday night for the school’s first Alumni Weekend reception since 2019. The event featured a new location – the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport – and a new dean: Dean Cataldo W. Leone, who was named the school’s fourth permanent dean in November 2021.
“Alumni Weekend is always a wonderful opportunity for everyone to reconnect with classmates, colleagues, faculty, and staff. It’s a time to reminisce about shared memories and experiences, all while making new memories!” said Dean Leone.
Dr. Maryam Shomali CAS 87 ENDO 93, president of the school’s Alumni Association, also welcomed her fellow alumni, sharing how much it meant to her to address them as the leader of their alumni association.
“Family means a lot to me,” Shomali said. “Not only the family I was born into, or the family I built and nurtured, but also the family that I was adopted into – the Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine family. This is a family I have always respected and have grown to fully appreciate throughout my dental career. This is why I am so honored to be able to lead this special part of our school.”
Alumni mixed and mingled for several hours, feasting on ricotta crostini, Vietnamese spring rolls, crab cakes, and other hors d’oeuvres, catching up with former classmates, and enjoying the views from the room’s patio.
The Friday night reception was just one of several events held during Alumni Weekend. GSDM alumni were welcomed back to campus on Saturday afternoon for tours of the recently expanded and renovated school; the school also hosted a CE course Saturday morning for interested alumni on the influence of facial growth in modern comprehensive dental rehabilitation, taught by Dr. Hamid Nassery DMD 92.
The weekend was capped off with the “Best of BU Alumni Awards,” during which the school’s own Dr. Cherae M. Farmer-Dixon DPH 14 was one of seven alumni from across the University’s schools and colleges to receive the Distinguished Alumni Award.
Dr. Farmer-Dixon is dean of the School of Dentistry at Meharry Medical College. She is the third woman to head Meharry dental school and remains one of a few select women nationally who serve as a dental school dean.
“This honor is extremely well-deserved, as Dr. Farmer-Dixon is a visionary leader and an inspiring role model,” Dean Leone said. “Dr. Farmer-Dixon’s professional development is a compelling story – she has overcome barriers in race, gender, and academia itself while achieving her many successes.”