ADAA fellowship/mastership: a New Year's resolution.

April 2007 will mark the 10-year anniversary of the ADAA Fellowship Program offered to its active membership. Long a standard of achievement, Fellowship or Mastership in one of America's health care organizations has been a coveted level of recognition, and a recognized and time-honored accomplishment amongst one's peers. As we begin the New Year, many of us will make resolutions that affect our personal lives; why not make a professional resolution? To aid in making your resolution easier, ADAA is offering a special enrollment rate of just $20 until May 31, 2007, to join the hundreds of members currently enrolled. For some of you, the resolution may entail enrollment in the Fellowship program. For existing Fellows, the resolution may entail enrolling in Mastership. For members enrolled in either program, your resolution may entail completing your requirements and attending the Convocation Ceremony in fabulous San Francisco!

Fellowship and Mastership within the ADAA is only available to current members and only to those with documented educational achievements in specified areas. Today, there are over 400 members enrolled in the Fellowship program and more than 30 have continued onto the Mastership program once achieving Fellowship.

Both programs offer two challenging pathways: business and clinical. One does not have to be an administrative assistant to challenge the administrative pathway and vice versa; you may choose either program based on your area of interests. The Fellowship program consists of continuing education from approved sponsors in specific categories totaling 300 credit hours in lecture, participation, home study, and ADAA-sponsored coursework. Those who have already achieved the status of DANB Certified Dental Assistant, (or COA or COMSA) are halfway to achieving Fellowship, and will automatically receive 150 hours of credit with proof of current certification after enrolling. Members who are DANB Certified Dental Practice Management Administrators will receive 100 hours of credit with proof of current certification upon enrollment. Members who are non-CDAs but are registered dental assistants in California, Minnesota, or Michigan are also eligible to receive 150 hours of credit with proof of current state registration after enrolling. The maximum number of credit hours awarded for an existing credential will be 150 hours. A record of all CE hours submitted will be held in ADAA's Fellowship/Mastership files and as an extra benefit, each enrollee will receive an annual printout of CE submitted through the year.

Upon completion of the Fellowship program, successful participants will be recognized at ADAA Annual Conferences through a joint convocation ceremony. National recognition will be provided through the ADAA's professional Journal and press releases. Once you have achieved the level of Fellowship in the ADAA, we encourage you to consider the merits and benefits of ADAA Mastership.

As an extension of the Fellowship program, the Mastership program has an emphasis on new technology used in dentistry today for the clinical pathway and detailed organizational subjects for the business pathway. A total of 400 credit hours are needed in specific subject categories through lecture, participation, home study and ADAA-sponsored coursework. Credit is also offered for dental-related college coursework, publications and dental community service. Recognition of Masters is the same as for Fellows. Masters will also receive a special Mastership gift.

Members enrolled in either program have a maximum of ten years from the date of enrollment in that particular program to complete the pathway. ADAA encourages enrollees to begin submitting their reporting forms well in advance of the July 31st deadline for the year in which they anticipate receiving their award. With the inception of the programs in 1997, many members will be reaching the ten-year mark in 2007. Members who had enrolled in the Fellowship program in July 1997 will need to complete their requirements and submit an application for the award by July 31st, 2007, in order to receive the award at the Annual Conference in 2007. No extensions are being granted.

For more information on either exciting program, or to enroll in this program, please contact Santos Robles at central office: [phone] ext. 211 or [e-mail] or visit our website: dentalassistant.org. For guidance or encouragement on completing your program, please email ADAAFellowship@ aol.com.

As the profession of dental assisting advances, we encourage you to do the same. To date there are 58 Fellows and eight Masters. We look forward to you joining the ranks of this accomplished group!

If you are ready to challenge yourself with these unique opportunities and make a New Year's resolution to yourself, please submit a Fellowship/Mastership enrollment form and begin your journey to increased insight into the dental profession.

By Natalie Kaweckyj, RDA, CDA, CDPMA, COA, COMSA, MADAA

Natalie Kaweckyj, RDA, CDA, CDPMA, COA, COMSA, MADAA, is ADAA's Seventh District Trustee, Chairman of the Council on Legislation and Vice Chairman of the Council on Education. She is active in local, state, and national dental assisting associations and is past president of the Minnesota Dental Assistants Association. Nationally, she was elected secretary in 2002 and is a past director of the ADAA Foundation. She has served on the ADAA Finance and Education Councils, and has authored the ADAA courses on Geriatric Dentistry, Oral Cancer Genetics, and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.