Since 1982, the APHA Oral Health Section has awarded the John W. Knutson Award to an outstanding dental public health professional. This year’s recipient of this prestigious award is our colleague and friend, John Rossetti, DDS, MPH.

Dr. Rossetti is the current lead Head Start oral health consultant for the Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).  Dr. Rossetti has also served for 13 years as the chief dental officer for MCHB, HRSA, and as chief dental officer, Dental Services Branch, Indian Health Service. He has held many other positions of leadership in dental public health. His accomplishments are impressive and have had an enormous impact in dental public health policy and programs at the local, state and federal levels.

This year, we had six outstanding professionals who were considered for the award. The committee members want to thank all who submitted nominations. They are: Donna Altshul, Clifton Dummett, Sharavana Gajapathi, Wynn Grossman, Katrina Holt, Alice Horowitz, and Hiroko Ida. Also, many thanks to those who wrote letters in support of their candidates.

The John W. Knutson Award ceremony will be held on Oct. 27, 2008 (Monday) at the Marriott Hotel and Marina from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. during the 2008 APHA Annual Meeting in San Diego. The Knutson Award will follow the Anthony Westwater Jong Memorial Community Dental Public Health Student award from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m. at the same location.

A dinner to celebrate the awards will be held following the ceremony at the Chopahn Afghan restaurant at 750 6th Ave, Gaslamp Quarter  (it is walking distance from the Marriott Hotel and Marina). You are all invited to attend the dinner with friends and colleagues. The price is $45 per person.

Many thanks to the committee members and to Kathy Lituri who assisted with all the logistics of the award.

Come join us in the celebration of Dr. John Rossetti’s outstanding 35+ years of dedication and service to dental public health in the United States.

Additional information regarding the award to follow. In the meantime, please contact me if you have any questions.

Submitted by

Andrea Azevedo, DDS, MPH

andreaazevedodds@yahoo.com

2008 Chair, APHA Oral Health Section John W. Knutson Distinguished Service Award in Dental Public Health

The 2008 John W. Knutson Award committee:

Brian Burt (2007 John W. Knutson Award recipient)

Charla Lauter (2009 Committee chair)

Larry Hill (2010 Committee chair)

Jane Steffensen (2011 Committee chair)