Celebrating Black History Month 2024

Collage of 11 people
Black contributions to oral health care – both nationally and here at UCLA – are reflected on an interactive timeline created by the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee.
February 1, 2024

February is Black History Month! In celebration, the UCLA School of Dentistry's Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee has created an interactive timeline of Black contributions to oral health care, from early practitioners like Dr. Robert Tanner Freeman and Dr. Ida Gray Nelson Rollins, to Dr. Jeanne Craig Sinkford – the first female dental school dean in the U.S. – to some notable accomplishments here in Westwood. Find a preview below, and click here to explore the timeline yourself.

In addition, UCLA's chapter of the Student National Dental Association (SNDA) and Students for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (SIDE) have several exciting events planned over the next month:
• Feb. 2: Viewer's Choice Movie Night (hosted by SIDE)
• Feb. 7, 14, 21, and 28: Listening sessions for The New York Times' 1619 Podcast, an audio series on how slavery has transformed America (hosted by SIDE)
• Feb. 9: Lunch and Learn with Delano Hankins Jr., D.D.S. '19, discussing his journey after dental school and the process of opening a practice before 30 (hosted by SNDA)
• Feb. 9: UCLA Women’s Basketball's Black Excellence night, in partnership with UCLA's Black Graduate Student Association (hosted by SNDA)
• Feb. 23: Resident and Dental Student Mixer at Barney’s Beanery in Westwood (hosted by SNDA)
• March 1: Volunteering at Environmental Charter Middle School's Unity Fest, in partnership with Scrubhub Inc. (hosted by SNDA)