Dine & Discover Dentistry

This has now been the 3rd Annual Dine and Discover Dentistry event that the KDA has put on with the first being in 2023. "Dine and Discover Dentistry", don't worry, that's a mouthful for us too, so we dubbed it: "3D". The 3D event invites twenty-five D3 and D4 dental students from UMKC School of Dentistry to join us as we tour three dental offices around the Johnson County in Kansas, i.e. the Kansas side of Kansas City.

The KDA rents a shuttle to pick up students and take them to each of the three locations. Each office space hosts one portion of the progressive dinner tour with the first being the stop for appetizers, the second, the main course, and last, the dessert all paired with an accompanying wine or spirit. Students also receive free headshots! Look at these charming, emerging dentists!

Sponsors included: Trident CPA Services (jim@tridentcpa.com), Tax Favored Benefits (connoro@tfbusa.com), Henry Schein (mark.keogh@henryschein.com), CARR Real Estate (scott.thornburg@carr.us), and last but not least, Holladay Distillery, a courtesy of Dr. Taylor Merklein (Atchison) and her family.

A special thank you goes out to KDA Members: Drs. Stephen Huber, Kory Kirkegaard, and Andrew Taliaferro for opening up their office spaces allowing us and the dental students to tour their office and enjoy some good food together.

Students were able to experience firsthand what practice ownership entails. According to Dr. Jill Jenkins (who initiated the idea back in 2020), "students commented that corporate dental groups 'wine and dine' them often, but this was their first opportunity to have a live experience and talk with owner dentists who built their own offices in a program setting."