This article was originally featured in the spring 2024 edition of Dentistry magazine, published by the school’s Communications Department.

Shadowing opportunities within local dental offices did two things for first-year VCU School of Dentistry student Emiliya Shulgun.

As she expected, it solidified her passion to become a dentist. But it also did something else, said Shulgan, whose family moved from Belarus to Virginia in 2003, in that it revealed to her how little she knew about oral hygiene and oral health. That realization ultimately strengthened her resolve to help other immigrants achieve healthy smiles.

Shulgan said her parents left their native country to build a better life in the US and have always supported her career goals. Shulgan acknowledged that dental school is expensive but said the scholarship has eased some of those financial burdens.

“I want to pass my knowledge along to other immigrants and not let language, beliefs or socioeconomic status stand in the way of my patients receiving healthy smiles,” Shulgan said. “I wanted a career where I could feel a sense of fulfillment at the end of each day, and a dentist’s ability to impact someone’s self-confidence, alleviate pain and improve systemic health fit these criteria.”

Shulgan is the most recent recipient of the Oonagh Loughran, Ph.D., and Iain Morgan, Ph.D., Scholarship, which is offered to first-generation dental students. The scholarship was established by the husband-and-wife team of Dr. Morgan, director of the Philips Institute for Oral Health Research at the VCU School of Dentistry, and Dr. Loughran, the school’s associate dean for graduate studies.

Morgan and Loughran, from Scotland and Ireland, respectively, leaned on their own experiences as their inspiration for establishing the scholarship. Unlike their parents’ generations, shifting cultural changes and social mobility in their countries offered new opportunities to them.

Morgan’s father left school at age 14 to work in a factory, and his mother left at 15 to work as a seamstress.

“But as soon as they saw things change in society, with the government offering scholarships to pursue education,” Morgan said, “my mother encouraged me to take advantage of that.” Loughran echoed those thoughts.

“My mother knew what she missed by not being able to finish school,” Loughran said. “When it came time for my own education, she advocated for my pathway to college. She put in our minds that we’re going to go to college and be successful and change our life’s trajectory.”

Loughran acknowledges that today’s students — particularly professional students such as those seeking to be dentists — face a harder time navigating higher education.

“It’s so much more expensive, and with that prospect of debt and a lack of support,” she said, “It can be daunting.”

Morgan said if it were not for a scholarship, he would not have been able to continue his education. The Oonagh Loughran, Ph.D., and Iain Morgan, Ph.D., Scholarship pays that opportunity forward.

Simply put: “It’s the feeling that someone cares,” he said.

“It is encouraging to know that there are faculty, administration and peers who want me to succeed and are investing in my education,” said Shulgan. “We are thankful for every bit of support we get, and it has already made an impact on my time here at VCU.”