Bulletin
| Supreme Chapter Volume XXXVI October 2001 |
President's
Address 2000-2001
by Dr. O. Ross Beirne
It has been an honor and pleasure to serve as President of Omicron Kappa
Upsilon’s Supreme Chapter. I want to take this opportunity to share some
comments concerning another honor society, Phi Beta Kappa, that I believe are
also true for Omicron Kappa Upsilon. Dr Leroy Rouner, Professor of Philosophy at
Boston University, recently wrote that Phi Beta Kappa "is gloriously
useless." He then went on to explain his comment. I believe his comments
are also relevant to Omicron Kappa Upsilon.
What practical purpose does an honor society like Omicron Kappa Upsilon serve in
a school that trains dentists? I believe like Dr. Rouner that membership in
Omicron Kappa Upsilon is "gloriously useless." Today we sometimes
focus too much on the usefulness and relevance of an education. Although a
particular topic or techniques may be useful today, we don’t know that it will
be useful in the future. Dental education involves teaching more than a
practical skill; it also requires that students obtain a broad and deep
appreciation for ethical patient care and life-long learning. A well-educated
dentist must know much more than how to restore teeth. He or she must restore
and maintain the oral health of patients in an environment of increasing
information and technology.
Honor societies like Omicron Kappa Upsilon and Phi Beta Kappa are not
organizations with practical goals. They are organizations whose goal is
celebration. Dr. Rouner said "we are more like a party than a
program."
If our organization is useless, how can it be glorious? A popular image of an
honor society like Omicron Kappa Upsilon is that it recognizes individuals that
are smart. Like, Dr Rouner, I believe the Omicron Kappa Upsilon chapters as well
as the Supreme Chapter recognized individuals who have wisdom and high ethical
standards. Membership in OKU is glorious because it is not an instrument for
reaching a goal, it is recognition of a love of leaning and of individuals who
are kind to their patients and leaders in the profession.
It is extremely important that we continue to recognize students who have been
outstanding academicians and leaders. In addition to recognition of students,
the Supreme Chapter with support from local Chapters has initiated programs to
recognize and encourage individuals to become the future teachers and
researchers in dentistry. The Craig and Leeper Awards are modest programs that
recognize outstanding dental faculty. We cannot have excellent dentists unless
we have outstanding faculty.
Dr Delahanty, your incoming President, has some outstanding ideas for enhancing Omicron Kappa Upsilon’s role in recognizing and encouraging young faculty to succeed in dental education. I certainly will do everything I possibly can to support his ideas. I want to thank all of you for your continued support of Omicron Kappa Upsilon and encourage you to become involved in some of the new and exciting programs that your Board of Directors under Dr. Delahanty’s leadership, is developing.
It has been a great pleasure to work with all the members of the Board and Jan
John and Jon Suzuki who are the backbone of Omicron Kappa Upsilon. I wish
the new Board all the best for the upcoming year and I continue to be honored to
be a member of this gloriously useless organization.
