EV4: Educator Symposium (Ticketed Course)

Description

Combined Educator Symposium

Date: Wednesday, October 28, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Topic: Calibration – The Why and The How?
Moderators: Sejal Thacker, Monica Gibson, Alex Gillione
CE Credits: 3.0

This course meets the Dental Board of California's requirements for 3.0 continuing education credit.

Description

Educators will analyze the role of faculty calibration in promoting fairness, consistency, and educational quality across didactic and clinical learning environments, including its relevance to accreditation standards and institutional accountability. Participants will examine how calibration influences faculty alignment, self-reflection, and professional development while supporting shared expectations in teaching, assessment, and feedback across diverse faculty groups. The session will also compare educational and institutional outcomes associated with calibration practices, including assessment reliability, learner performance, learner perceptions, and program effectiveness. Attendees will identify barriers and explore practical, scalable, and innovative calibration strategies across instructional settings and evaluate their impact using meaningful metrics related to faculty performance, learner experience, and educational consistency.

Objectives

  1. Evaluate how faculty calibration can influence student perceptions of fairness, consistency, and educational quality across courses and clinical settings.
  2. Identify common barriers to effective faculty calibration, including challenges related to faculty engagement and buy-in.
  3. Determine what evidence of calibration satisfies CODA standards.

Breakout Sessions

Predoctoral Educators Breakout Session

Topic: From Classroom to Clinic: Teaching Periodontal Surgery and Dental Implants in Pre-Doctoral Education
Time: 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Moderator: Alex Gillione
CE Credits: 2.0

Description

Participants will explore how periodontal surgery and dental implant education are incorporated into predoctoral curricula at various dental institutions. The session will compare instructional models, including didactic education, simulation experiences, and clinical exposure, while reviewing CODA expectations and accreditation standards related to periodontal surgery and implant education in predoctoral programs.

Objectives

  1. Introduce the scope and challenges of incorporating periodontal surgery and dental implants into predoctoral education.
  2. Explore how different institutions structure periodontal surgery and implant education, including elective versus mandatory formats and hands-on versus observational experiences.
  3. Identify which clinical procedures should be observed, assisted, performed, or referred by predoctoral students.

This course meets the Dental Board of California's requirements for 2.0 continuing education credit.

Postdoctoral Educators Breakout Session

Topic: How to Train Our Residents for the Business of Dentistry?
Time: 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Moderators: Sejal Thacker, Monica Gibson
CE Credits: 2.0

Description

This session will explore essential practice management training strategies and curriculum components for residency education, including accurate coding, compliance, reimbursement, and medicolegal and ethical responsibilities critical to early-career dentists. Participants will review practical approaches for teaching practice management, business fundamentals, ethical decision-making, and preparation for independent practice. The session will also analyze contemporary dental practice models and employment structures while preparing educators to guide residents in evaluating contracts, workplace culture, compensation, and career transitions.

Objectives

  1. Determine why and how to cultivate a culture of business education within residency programs.
  2. Equip educators with a structured checklist of key questions residents should ask during practice interviews, focusing on culture, mentorship, productivity expectations, compensation models, and long-term growth opportunities.
  3. Analyze common contract structures and negotiation points, enabling educators to guide residents on critical elements to review, red flags to identify, and strategies for seeking clarification or modification.
  4. Explain the importance of accurate coding in residency training, including its impact on compliance, reimbursement, and practice readiness.
  5. Identify key medicolegal and ethical responsibilities relevant to private practice and early-career dentists.

    6. This course meets the Dental Board of California's requirements for 2.0 continuing education credit.

CE Hours: 5

Disclosure(s):
Sejal Thacker, DDS, MDSc: No relevant disclosure to display
Monica P. Gibson, BDS, MS, PhD, FRCDC: No financial relationships to disclose
Alex Gillone, DDS, MS: ECU Health FOundation: Research through University (Receipt of Grant Money) (); ITI Section USA: Speaker: Receiving Direct Honorarium (); NCBDE: Other ()
Nicolaas Geurs, DDS, MS: ABP: Officer in a For-Profit Company; Officer in a Not-For-Profit Company; or Officer in National or International Professional Organization (not AAP) ()
Vanchit John, DDS, MSD: No financial relationships to disclose
Binnaz Leblebicioglu, DDS, MS, PhD: GC Corporation: Research through University (Receipt of Grant Money) (); ZimVie implant company-research contract in progress: Research through University (Receipt of Grant Money) ()
Anuja Doshi, DDS, MS: Western Society Of Periodontology: Officer in a For-Profit Company; Officer in a Not-For-Profit Company; or Officer in National or International Professional Organization (not AAP) (), Speaker: Receiving Indirect Honorarium ()
Acela A. Martinez Luna, DMD, MS: No financial relationships to disclose
Lea Hachem, DDS, MS: No financial relationships to disclose
Jennifer Bain, DMD, PhD, MSPH: American Board of Periodontology: Other ()
Gregory A. Toback, DMD, MS: No financial relationships to disclose
Ralf Schuler, DDS, MSD, PhD: No financial relationships to disclose
Hollis Lai, PhD MBA MEd: No financial relationships to disclose