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Dean has been honored with the Gies Award for Eminence in Vision and Leadership by the American Dental Education Association’s Gies Foundation.

“Dr. Feldman’s work has been transformative for dental education,” said Marsha Pyle, president of the Gies Foundation. “She has the ability to focus comments and action for some of the most critical challenges facing our profession. Because of her work, we have seen progress on these challenges.”

Feldman, a Distinguished Professor, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor of arts degree, a doctor of medicine in dentistry degree and a master of business administration degree in health care administration. She has been a faculty member at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine since 1988 and has been leading the school as its dean since 1999.

During her tenure, Feldman has led efforts to create transformative educational experiences for students. For instance, she oversaw the launch of the school’s , which trains foreign dentists to practice in the U.S. She has led major facility renovations, including the building of a new clinical wing and the ongoing preclinic redesign. She also helped improve access to dental care of New Jersey residents with launch of special patient programs, such as Vet Smiles Program. Moreover, her clinical trials made the school a hub for innovative and impactful research.

“She has just completed a very large, multi-center National Institute of Health–funded study she did while being a dean,” said Brian Strom, chancellor of Rutgers Health. “Despite not having formal training in clinical trials, she successfully navigated the complexities of the process while simultaneously leading her school — a remarkable achievement that deserves recognition and respect.”

Feldman’s colleague Lily Garcia, professor and dean of Texas A&M University College of Dentistry, echoed similar sentiments. “She is truly deserving of this as a visionary leader,” said Garcia. “She has tenancy and resilience and considering she’s probably the longest-standing [dental school] dean at this time, she has learned to be adaptive, creative and be ahead of the curve in dental education.”

Clark Stanford, another colleague who is dean of the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and Dental Clinics, said he was thrilled Feldman was chosen for the award “because I can’t think of another dean that has been as consistent and wonderful as she has been in articulating a vision to help to move the profession forward.”

Feldman said the award is a testament to everyone she has worked with over the years. But her personal secret to success is passion.

“When I give advice to people, I always emphasize to them that they should be pursuing what they’ve got a passion for,” said Feldman, adding that she found her passion in dentistry, education and research. “Because if you’ve got a passion for something, then you’ll probably be pretty good at it.”