The Iowa Dental Foundation (IDF) awarded eight scholarships this year, including five to dental students at the University of Iowa, two to dental hygiene students, and one to a dental assistant student. The IDF will spotlight the dental student winners each week, beginning with Melissa Draughn Williams.
"Growing up, I hated to smile," Melissa says. "I was congenitally missing #7 and spent my teen years without a tooth. After four years of braces, an implant, and a crown, I finally learned to smile. I could not believe how much one tooth could change my whole perspective. This is when I became interested in dentistry. I knew then that I wanted to be able to change lives by improving not only their physical appearance but their confidence as well."
Melissa is a member of Tau Sigma at the UI COD and has assisted in raising money for and treating veterans. Upon graduation in 2022, Melissa hopes to pursue a residency in periodontics and ultimately become a professor to educate the next generation of dentists.
Learn more about Melissa and all the 2021 scholarship recipients on the
IDF website, and please join us in congratulating these deserving students on their achievements.