Newswise — Pittsburgh (June 14, 2016) — Today during the American Dental Hygienists’ Association’s (ADHA’s) 2016 Center for Lifelong Learning (CLL) at the 93rd Annual Session (AS), Betty Kabel, RDH, BS, of Fort Walton Beach, Fla. was installed as the organization’s 2016-17 President, along with the ADHA’s new slate of officers for the upcoming 2016-17 year.
“It is truly an honor to represent my colleagues in the coming year,” said Kabel. “I look forward to collaborating with all those in health care as we strive to do what's best for the patients we serve.”
A member of the ADHA since 1992, Kabel has served in leadership positions at the local, state and national levels. She was the original founder of her local component, the Emerald Coast DHA, in 1998. In 1997-1998, Kabel was named president of the Florida Dental Hygiene Association (FDHA), and she served as the organization’s legislative chair from 1998 to 2012. Kabel served as District IV trustee from 2012 to 2014, and has been a member of the ADHA Executive Committee since 2013. She also served as the board advisor to the Council on Education from 2012 to 2014.
Kabel attended Florida’s Pensacola Junior College, earning her Associate of Science degree in dental hygiene in 1987. She then graduated with honors in 1993 from the University of West Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in program development.
Currently, Kabel manages a dental outreach program for a federally qualified health center in Florida, a center where she developed and implemented a school-based prevention program that provides preventive services and dental outreach to elementary school children. Previously, she was an adjunct faculty member at Pensacola Junior College and professional educator with Philips Oral Healthcare. She has been honored several times for her effort to improve oral and overall health, including the FDHA Distinguished Service Award in 2013, as well as the ADHA Discus Dental Distinguished Service Award in 2007.
Kabel succeeds Jill Rethman, RDH, BA, of Prescott, Ariz., as president. Rethman will remain an ADHA officer, serving both as ADHA immediate past president as well as the 2016-17 chair of the ADHA Institute for Oral Health.
Additional ADHA officers newly installed at the ADHA’s 93rd Annual Session include: Tammy Filipiak, RDH, MS, of Mosinee, Wis., president-elect, and Michele Braerman, RDH, BSDH, Fallston, Md., vice president. Individuals remaining in their positions included Treasurer Donnella Miller, RDH, BS, MPS, of Clarksville, Tenn., and speaker of the house is Carolyn Roberton, RDH, BSDH, of Auburn, Wash.
The newly installed district trustees for 2016-17 are as follows:
Vickie Nardello, RDH, MS of District II (Conn., N.J., N.Y., Pa.)
Dawn Ann Dean, RDH, MSDH of District III (Del., D.C., Md., Va., W. Va.)
Annette Lincicome, RDH, MSDH of District XII (Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Nev., Ore., Wash.)
District trustees returning in 2016-17 are as follows: Peter Gangi, RDH, BS Ed, of Methuen, Mass., District I (Maine, Mass., N.H., R.I., Vt.); Jessica Kiser, RDH, BS, MS, of Castle Hayne, N.C., District IV; Sharlee Burch, BSDH, MPH, EdD, of Lexington, Ky., District V (Ind., Ky., Mich., Ohio); Diana Saylor, RDH, of Nashville, Tenn., District VI (Ala., Ark., La., Miss., Tenn.); and Matt Crespin, RDH, MPH, of West Allis, Wis., District VII (Minn., N.D., S.D., Wis.); Lisa Moravec, RDH, MS, of Scottsbluff, Neb., District VIII (Ill., Iowa, Kan., Mo., Neb.); Valoree Althoff, RDH, BS, of Farmington, N.M., District IX (N.M., Okla., Texas); Barbara Dixon, RDH, MEd, of Salt Lake City, Utah, District X (Colo. Mont., Utah, Wyo.); and Lin Sarfaraz, RDH, of Fullerton, Calif., District XI (Ariz., Calif.).
