Dental Graduate Reaches Out to Urban Youth

By Ami Finkelthal

When Marcus Johnson receives his D.D.S. degree today, he will have fulfilled the spirit of the unique scholarship that enabled him to attend the NYU College of Dentistry (NYUCD). After earning his B.A. from Rutgers University, Johnson received a four-year, $100,000 NYUCD scholarship established to increase the number of underrepresented individuals pursuing careers in dentistry.

      In keeping with this objective, Johnson cofounded the Student Community Service Committee in his first year at NYUCD and began planning its first major project —an outreach program to encourage underrepresented youngsters in New York City public schools to consider careers in dentistry.

      “Much effort had been put into encouraging minority youth to pursue careers in medicine, but little had been done to stimulate interest in dentistry,” says Johnson. “I put together a program that presented dentistry in a way that the kids would find engaging.”

      Johnson and more than a dozen other NYUCD students launched Operation Dental Success in fall 2005 with a presentation to eighth grade students at Manhattan’s Salk School of Science featuring photos of rap stars flaunting silver and gold teeth. Having captured the youngsters’ attention, the NYUCD students then presented more mainstream aspects of dentistry. They discussed prevention to help teeth last a lifetime; addressed the links among smoking, drug use, and oral health problems; and demonstrated how to take tooth impressions. The Community Service Committee won a President’s Service Award in 2007 for Operation Dental Success, which has since been incorporated into the Salk School curriculum and is taught annually by NYUCD student volunteers.

      For the past three years, Johnson has also helped organize the annual New York City Oral Cancer Walk, founded by NYU dental students. This summer, Johnson will enroll in a program that jointly awards a certificate in general dentistry and a master’s degree in dental public health. He plans to combine private practice and teaching and also to pursue elective office in order to raise awareness of the need for expanded access to oral healthcare for the underserved.

Marcus Johnson