Eight DMD students from the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry (UKCD) had the privilege of attending the American Student Dental Association (ASDA) National Leadership Conference (NLC) in Chicago, Illinois, held in late 2022. This is an annual leadership conference that emphasizes skills students will need to be a successful business owner, team leader, or manager in their dental career.

Shelbi Broeking, a member of ASDA and the social media chair for the ASDA chapter at UKCD said,“NLC was an exciting and beneficial experience! It was a privilege to be able to gather with students from around the country to improve our leadership and network. The highlight of the conference was the keynote speaker, Josh Sundquist. His perspective on life was such a joy to listen to and set a wonderful tone for the rest of the weekend—where we enjoyed various CEs, a boat cruise, a technology expo, and more!”

"I enjoyed attending ASDA’s National Leadership Conference because of the variety of continuing education courses offered which allowed us to learn about several areas of interest. I thoroughly enjoyed the sessions I attended about dental trauma and triage, eldercare, and losing the perfectionist mindset. During the conference, networked with dentists and dental students from all over the United States and even got to attend two socials, one on a river boat and the other at a speakeasy. In our free time, we were able to explore Chicago, my personal favorite being our visit to Cloud Gate,” said second-year student Victoria Crane. 

Also, congratulations to Ciara Sandefur, UKCD second-year DMD student, for being one of the few students nationally to receive a scholarship from Aspen to attend the ASDA National Leadership Conference in 2022.  

Third-year student Stephen Click shared, "I enjoyed NLC as it gave me the opportunity to explore the many different aspects of dentistry that I may not be exposed to in school. There was a technology session where companies all across the dental field were allowed to showcase their newest and best methodologies or machines.” 

Click also appreciated the many educational opportunities and networking with other student dentists who have the same passion for being a leader.