Thank you to all who participated in this year’s Research Day, mentors, presenters, judges and attendees. 

Research Day 2024 Award Winners

Dental Hygiene Student Award

(First, second and third place sponsored by Sigma Phi Alpha -Dental Hygiene Honor Society)

First Place: Heidi E. Berczes

Nutrition and Oral Health

Second Place: Hannah Faison

Sleep Apnea and Oral Health

Third Place: Breanna Walker

Mental Health and Oral Health

Dental Student Awards

First Place (Sponsored by AADOCR/Dentsply Sirono and the SRG): Calvin Yeager

Biochemical Evaluation of the Protein-Protein Binding Site of HPV16 E2 and TopBP1 Proteins

Mentor: Dr. Morgan

Second Place (Sponsored by AADOCR and Omicron Kappa Upsilon - OKU): Sarah Heise

Prevalence of Mental Illness and Marijuana Use in Dental Emergency Clinic Patients

Mentor: Dr. Abubaker

Third Place (Sponsored by ASDA): Ali Mojarad

Impact of Fully Guided Surgery on the Position, Primary Stability and Prosthesis Design of Implants Immediately Placed in Extraction Socket: An In Vitro Study

Mentor: Dr. Siqueira

ADEA Academic Dental Careers Student Award: Jared Bergman 

The Best of All Worlds: The Life of a Clinical Academician Core Project: Evaluation of Virtual Reality Simulation in VCU’s Dental Education - Administration of Local Anesthesia

Mentor: Dr. Glickman

Resident Award

(Sponsored by the VCU School of Dentistry Office of Research)

Dr. Katherine J. Hayes

Outcomes of Anterior Crossbite Correction on Alveolar Bone Morphology in Patients with Cleft Lip and Palate

Mentor: Dr. Shroff

Graduate Research Award

(Sponsored by the VCU School of Dentistry Office of Research)

Katelyn Hustus

Investigating the Role of a Putative Phospholipase in the Pathophysiology of Porphyromonas Gingivalis

Mentor: Dr. Chris Li

George W. Burke Jr. Graduate Student Fund for Oral Health Research:

Colin G. Hawkes

Gingival Epithelial Cell Interactions with the Underappreciated Periopathogen Selenomonas sputigena

Mentor: Dr. Dan Miller

Postdoctoral Research Award

(Sponsored by the Philips Institute for Oral Health)

Dr. Kurni Kurniyati

A dual domain bacterial virulence factor annihilates host innate immune defenses via degrading complement factors and blocking neutrophils chemotaxis

Mentor: Dr. Chris Li