Four 1998 graduates of the Texas A&M School of Dentistry have joined forces to create the Baylor College of Dentistry Class of 1998 Endowed Scholarship, a scholarship program for second- and third-year dental students. Graduates Dr. Don Le, Dr. Hung Pham, Dr. Suketu Kapadia and Dr. Darin Ward led the project, according to a Press release from A&M College of Dentistry.
They have partnered with the School of Dentistry and the Texas A&M Foundation and are working to raise at least $250,000 over the next five years, said Ian Wilson, director of development for the Texas A&M Foundation.
Once established, the foundation will award four scholarships annually—two for sophomores and two for sophomores. One scholarship per year will be awarded based on financial need, and the other will be given to the “most outstanding” students who have “provided exemplary service to the school and their fellow students.”
The A&M College of Dentistry in Dallas, merged with the Texas A&M University System in September 1996 before becoming a founding member of the A&M Health Science Center in 1999. In 2013, it became a college on A&M’s main campus.
In the press release, Le said that some of the graduates felt lost when the school joined the A&M system, but they still “understand that the spirit and mission of the school are the same.”
“In this way, we hope to help people look beyond the name and focus on the school itself,” he said.
After their 25th class reunion, Dr. Suketu Kapadia – who had been instrumental in keeping the class of 1998 connected through a WhatsApp group – began informing the alumni about the idea.
“From then on, he played a key role in putting the foundation together,” Dentistry said in a press release.
Le and his wife, Dr. Cindy Le, have established two other foundations in the past: a scholarship fund for sophomore students in 2014 and a $50,000 building grant for the School of Dentistry in 2018. With this experience, Le has taken on an important leadership role, the press release said.
The ultimate goal is for at least 50 graduates to participate and donate to the Baylor College of Dentistry 1998 graduating class scholarship, Le said.
