Student Leaders for Social Change

ADEA Student Leaders for Social change

The ADEA Student Leaders for Social Change (ADEA SLSC) brings together dental and allied students from across the United States and Canada to engage in dialogue, thought partnership, collaboration, and networking at the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition.

The ADEA Student Leaders for Social Change is a day-and-a-half program that assists participants in developing leadership skills to prepare them as leaders of inclusive excellence within their schools and programs and to engage fully in a global society. The program is for emerging student leaders who aim to effect positive change through serving and improving the lives of a wide array of people and communities.

The program incorporates interactive activities, dynamic speakers and a collaborative project. The program components equip participants with knowledge and skills that allow them to enhance their leadership styles and strengths. ADEA SLSC participants walk away with new connections, information, and tools to support their growth and training as a future oral health professional and leader.

The ADEA SLSC components include:

• Professional development and learning opportunities for student leaders.
• Active engagement around topics of leadership theory and development, problem-solving, networking, collaboration, and social change.
• Construction of an individualized leadership plan and resources.
• Exploration of leadership topics focused on inclusive excellence, oral health disparities, and strategies for serving underserved and historically marginalized communities in oral health.
• Cultivating a values-based leadership approach for supporting and fostering self-care, balance, and well-being for oneself and their community.

2025 ADEA Student Leaders for Social Change

The 2025 ADEA Leaders for Social Change will be a day-and-a-half program at the 2025 ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition in National Harbor, MD.

The 2025 ADEA SLSC will focus thematically on identifying and navigating structural barriers within oral healthcare, through policy and advocacy, to further health equity.

The program features lectures, interactive activities, networking opportunities, and a collaborative project to deepen participants’ learning. Through engagement with experts in oral health, health equity, and education, participants will critically examine research, resources, and their own knowledge to shape their role in advancing oral health education and access within their communities.

Registration Process

Dental school deans and allied dental program directors are encouraged to support their students’ travel, lodging and registration to the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition.

The target audiences for the ADEA SLSC are students in oral health education interested in advancing a humanistic and inclusive environment within their dental schools or allied dental programs and serving historically underserved and marginalized populations within oral health communities.

New for 2025, there is a $25 fee for the ADEA Student Leaders for Social Change in addition to the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition Registration.

To register a student, visit the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition registration page and follow the prompts.