SIUE Alumnus Savoca is Commencement Speaker for School of Dental Medicine

EDWARDSVILLE - Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine (SIU SDM) emeritus faculty and SIUE alumnus Dr. Dennis “Denny” Savoca will address 58 SDM students receiving their doctor of dental medicine degrees at the SDM’s commencement ceremony at 10 a.m. Sat., June 1, in the SIUE Morris University Center Meridian Ballroom. The commencement ceremony can be viewed live on siue.edu/tv.

In 1976, the SDM hired Savoca as an assistant professor in the Department of Restorative Dentistry. While serving as a faculty member at the SDM, Savoca also earned a master’s in educational administration from SIUE.

Savoca later served the SDM as section head of operative dentistry and assistant dean for clinical affairs, before retiring in 2006 as an associate professor and associate dean for clinical affairs. In his retirement, he continued to serve the SDM as a part-time faculty member for a number of years. He continues to serve as a member of the SDM dean’s advisory board.

Savoca began his career at The Ohio State University College of Dentistry, earning a DDS in 1969. Shortly thereafter, he joined the U.S. Army as a Captain in the Dental Corps and was stationed at Fort Benning, Georgia for two years.

After serving his country, Savoca joined a group dental practice in Cincinnati and subsequently started a solo private practice in Edgerton, Ohio before arriving at the SDM.

Savoca continues to enjoy an active membership in the American Dental Association, the Illinois State Dental Society and the Madison District Dental Society. He continues to serve the local chapter of the national dental fraternity Omicron Kappa Upsilon, Nu Xi Chapter.

A reception for students, faculty and family members will follow in the Goshen Lounge.

The SIU School of Dental Medicine students manage approximately 35,000 patient visits each year at its patient clinics in Alton and East St. Louis. In addition, students offer oral health treatment, screenings and education to more than 10,000 people annually through a wide variety of off-campus community outreach events. These opportunities provide students the training they need to graduate and become highly skilled dentists. The School of Dental Medicine is a vital oral health care provider for residents of southern and central Illinois, and the St. Louis metropolitan region.

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