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The early Dental Branch building was without air-condition.
It was so hot students worried about sweating on their patients.
As a proprietary institution, the Dental Branch was fiscally
unfit, causing faculty members at one point to work for free.
Yet, the success of a new building in the Texas Medical Center,
numerous technological advancements and a consistent family
atmosphere not only kept the school afloat, but on solid ground.
Millions of memories tell 100 years worth of trial and triumph
at the Dental Branch. Those who know and love this institution
can remember the best and worst times, all of which make us
what we are today.
Ken Jones, D.D.S., a UTDB alum
Jones said his memories of the Dental Branch
include John Victor Olson, D.D.S, who served the longest tenure
as dean, from 1952-82. Jones said he spoke softly but strong.
“He was a man of few words, but when he did speak you
knew he meant what he said. He was well thought of and liked
by almost everyone.”
Jerry Long, D.D.S. president-elect of the UTDB Almuni
Association
Some of Long’s most vivid memories
of dental school revolved around the unfavorable financial
situation of the day. He recalls that educational loans were
not as available in the 1960s as they are now, leaving many
dental students to rely on family and other creative ways
to pay their tuition.
"Students usually worked on the weekends,
during the holidays and certainly in the summers to make ends
meet,” Long said. “The Texas Medical Center hospitals
employed dental students as medication nurses, orderlies,
and phlebotomists. “One of my classmates even delivered
milk door to door in early morning runs before school started.
My mother baked pies and cakes at our home and sold them at
the local grocery on the weekends to help finance my dental
education. “Stories were always circulating about parents
who were worried about meeting the next tuition deadline.”
W. Bonham Magness, D.D.S., a 1956 graduate of the Dental Branch and practicing orthodontist
“In June1952, I had an experience that is still vividly etched in my mind. As a member of the freshman class at the University of Texas Dental Branch at the corner of Fannin and Blodgett, I gathered with my fellow dental school rookies. The sixty-six of us gathered in an amphitheater type room to be welcomed into the world of dentistry by Dean Frederick C. Elliott.
What an introduction it was. Dr. Elliott spent the better part of an hour making us realize how fortunate we were to be a part of this wonderful profession. He challenged us, cajoled us, encouraged us and had us prepared to go to battle for the dental profession. He spoke straight from the heart and as I realized later, he had a big, big heart even extending beyond the dental school. He was perhaps the leading individual in the formation of the Texas Medical Center.
At that time the genius of this gifted individual was beyond my concept, but I have come to realize what a man of vision he was. It is one thing to have vision, but it is another to be able to convey a perception that still exists in my mind almost fifty years later.”
What do you
remember?
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