Student Jenny Jongnok Lee, Class of 2013, University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry, won the 2011 American Dental Association Foundation’s George C. Paffenbarger Student Research Award, which is conferred in collaboration with the Academy of Operative Dentistry (AOD). Lee received the award during the 2012 AOD Meeting held in Chicago.
Her research project is entitled “The effects of naturally occurring oligomeric proanthocyanidins on root caries remineralization.” Lee received a plaque and $6,000 to carry out her research proposal. She is required to present her research findings during the next AOD meeting in 2013 at the clinic table session.
Lee’s mentor is Dr. Ana Bedran-Russo, Assistant Professor, Restorative Dentistry, UIC College of Dentistry.
The summer before her D-1 year, Lee participated in the College’s Summer Student Research Program.
The award is named for George C. Paffenbarger, an internationally recognized authority on dental materials and a pioneer in the development of specifications and standards for testing materials. The ADA Foundation’s Paffenbarger Research Center also is named in his honor.
The award is open to dental students who wish to undertake novel research relevant to contemporary operative dentistry. The research projects must be related to the clinical practice of operative dentistry and cariology.