Students and their loved ones, donors, faculty and staff all gathered to honour the Class of 2020 at the annual 17th Annual White Coat Ceremony on September 12th. The ceremony marks the transition from classroom to clinic, from text book learning to hands-on learning and this year’s ceremony was bursting with emotion and excitement as third year students dawned their White Coats and took their pledge.
Highlights of this year’s events included a welcome speech by Dr. Samer Abi Nader and a student address made by Magdalena Klus, DMD’19 and Kate Zhang DMD’20. Making this year’s event particularly special was Dean Elham Emami keynotes speech. As she begins her tenure as Dean, she shared her journey to get where she is today as the first female Dean of the Faculty, and how important it is to be adaptable, relating to students as they enter this new phase in their training.
The White Coat Ceremony is also an awards night and the moment to honour students who have demonstrated outstanding academic excellence and our donors who support them. This year Daniel Richmond, DMD’19, made a tribute to all donors thanking them for their commitment to students.
“To all the donors, your support towards our education has helped create an environment where school reigns supreme and education can be our primary focus. In this situation, we are free to become…well anything…because we have the power to be as creative as we want to be and the power to reach for our goals. By investing in our education, you help train dentists that are prepared to meet the needs of a diverse population, including those who are underserved.” - Daniel Richmond
For a full list of awards see the 
2018 White Coat Ceremony Program. View all photos from the evening here.
