Dear fellow alumni,

I am so thrilled to be the new president of the alumni association. During this wild year of uncertainty, we need to lean on each other now more than ever! We find ourselves in a unique situation in which we are learning to connect in new and exciting ways. Although it may be bad for our teeth, I am ready to work with you to turn lemons into lemonade! Who’s with me?

Let’s build a bigger and better alumni association we can be proud of! In the book The Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman, the character Socrates says, “the secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” My number one goal as president is to increase the involvement of our association. Temple prides itself on having a diverse population of students from all over the country. Unfortunately, we only seem to have involvement from those still in the area. As we transition our meetings to a Zoom platform, I will be looking to create mini alumni associations in every state. I am looking to you to step up and reach out to me about being your state representative.  

It’s time to reconnect! When was the last time you spoke to your dental school classmates? When was the last time you came back to the school to see the remarkable changes and remodeling that has occurred over the past 10 years? Now is the time! 

It’s time to pay it forward. The financial support that you offer to the alumni association goes to help fund events that directly benefit current students. Besides supplying grants to the various clubs and organizations, it is the alumni association that provides stress-reducing events such as ice cream socials, wine and cheese happy hours, and snacks to keep students going while taking their clinical board exams.

Who better to support our current students than someone who has been in their shoes? The focus and purpose of the alumni association is to provide for our current students, and to create stronger networks to facilitate a smooth transition into the workforce upon graduation.  

I thank you all again for giving me the opportunity to represent your needs and the task of bringing new life to the alumni association. We are Temple Made and Temple Strong! Together, let us pay homage to the university that has afforded us the ability to be part of the best profession.

Sincerely,

Rachel Bresler, DEN 14