Lasting Impressions | Winter 2014

Dental Company, which has donated all the supplies, and Team Smile, a national nonprofit group, to recruit sports profes- sionals for the event. Buscemi has coordinated the event for the past three years. But, she has taken part in the program for the past five years. It is, she admitted, a labor of love and pride. She will coordinate it one more year, before entering private practice. “At the end of the day, it’s so rewarding. The dental students learn by being with the kids and treating them,” she said. “Our responsibility as the premier dental school in South Flor- ida is to give back to our community and further help eliminate the problems our chil- dren and their parents have in getting the quality, affordable oral health care needed,” said Buscemi. (By the way, for Hollywood buffs, yes, Amanda Buscemi is related to actor Steve Buscemi of Fargo and Boardwalk Empire fame. They have a great-grandparent in common.) Lauren Grunbichler heard about Give Kids A Smile Day through one of her children’s tutors and thought it would be a good experience for her girls, ages 4, 10, and 12. “It was very professional. My little one was very excited. They did a really good job making sure that every- one was happy,” said Grunbichler, who attended last year’s event and lives in Margate. Grunbichler said she would recommend the event for others. “What really impressed me is that everybody took their time. There was no feeling of being rushed,” she said. “The dental students made sure that each child’s ques- tions were answered and care was complete. And then they were backed up by faculty dentists.” Buscemi is especially proud that more than a quarter of the students at the College of Dental Medicine will participate. Those students, she said, “learn how underserved dentistry is in the state of Florida, and how many children don’t receive rou- tine dental care.” Dental students who participate in the event receive community service credit for their time. More important, the students receive training in real-world situations. They can then apply that training to their classes. “It’s rare that third- and fourth- year students would be able to work with that many children, especially at one time,” said Bus- cemi. “That experience is so valu- able. We are getting on-the-job training and seeing how to apply techniques we are learning in class to patients.” Peter A. Keller, D.D.S., execu- tive associate dean at the college, is impressed with the dental stu- dents’ hard work to make the event a success—and unique to NSU’s College of Dental Medicine. “Our Give Kids A Smile Day is unlike any experience performed by any dental school in the country. Ours is one large party that is hiding a free dental clinic experi- ence. We always have guests from other states at our event who promote Give Kids A Smile Day in other dental schools. They have all stated that none of the other Give Kids A Smile Day events are conducted in a party setting like the one at NSU’s College of Dental Medicine. The students, faculty and staff members, admin- istrators, guests, par- ents, and patients all leave looking forward to the next year’s event,” said Keller. A junior majoring in biology, Brandon Holecek has participated for the last three years. “The ben- efits,” said the would-be oral sur- geon, “are not only kind of a foreshadowing of what you’ll be doing in the future, but also, it’s a great networking opportu- nity. You interact with faculty members, even the dean.” But beyond that, he said, “It’s a humbling experience; I enjoy doing something that helps make somebody happy and healthier, which is why I got into this in the first place.” ◆ NSU COLLEGE OF DENTAL MEDICINE x 9 The Give Kids A Smile event lets children combine play with learning about dental care (with the use of an iPad).