HSDM Dean Receives Achievement Medal

Dean Bruce Donoff

Dean Bruce Donoff was honored in December 2011 with the Achievement Medal from the Alpha Omega International Dental Fraternity. Donoff received the medal at the organization's Honors Night event in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. As a recipient of the Achievement Medal, Donoff is in good company; previous recipients include such medical and scientific luminaries as William J. Gies (1939), Albert Einstein (1951), Jonas Salk (1955), and Judah Folkman (2004). The first recipient was HSDM's own LeRoy M.S. Miner, DMD1904, who was dean of Harvard Dental School from 1924 to 1944 and a professor of clinical oral surgery.

Donoff offered remarks during the Honors Night program, reflecting on the question of whether it is important to be recognized for one's good work. One must recognize and acknowledge the good that others do, he said. But, accepting the recognition by Alpha Omega International, Donoff nevertheless spoke about the primacy of impact over recognition, about "the ideal of good that is unrecognized, doing good for its own sake, doing good-whether raising your family, doing scientific research, fostering and promoting a profession, or whatever the good is that you do-because you believe in it, because it is larger than you."

Donoff sees his own impact in the achievements of others. "I hope the accomplishments of my children and those of the many students, residents, and fellows with whom I have been able to interact attest to some small impact that I have had for the good," he said. "I honestly don't know how any health professional's career could be considered full without interacting with men and women in training."

Donoff concluded his remarks with a nod to the future. "This recognition for me substantiates my belief in doing good. I am grateful for having been lucky enough to have made an impact, to have optimism, and to have enjoyed the profession of dentistry as a career," he said. "I thank you for this recognition and accept it based upon what I hope has been, and will continue to be, a positive impact on the profession."