UI Dentistry project gets $100,000 gift

IOWA CITY -- University of Iowa College of Dentistry graduate John Olmsted and his wife, Frankie, of Greensboro, N.C., have committed $100,000 to support the college.

In recognition of the gift, the UI will establish the Olmsted Family Endodontic Faculty Suite in a new addition to the Dental Science Building.

"This building project represents a pivotal moment in the history of our college," said David Johnsen, dean of the UI College of Dentistry. "Thanks to generous gifts from loyal alumni and friends like John and Frankie Olmsted, we can invest in the future of our college, and in Iowans' improved oral health."

Costs for the multi-year renovation project  are estimated at $60 million, with at least $10 million of that to come from private support. The renovations will transform the 35-year-old Dental Science Building by adding space and updating and expanding clinical areas, increasing classroom and student space and upgrading dental research facilities. The college's general and specialty dental-care clinics receive about 125,000 patient visits each year.

John Olmsted completed two of his academic degrees at the UI, receiving his bachelor's degree in 1972 and his dental  degree in 1975. Frankie Olmsted served as a dental lab technician at the UI College of Dentistry from 1972 to 1976. John Olmsted is a past chairperson of the American Dental Association Annual Meeting and past president of the American Association of Endodontists.  John and Frankie Olmsted are members of the University of Iowa Presidents Club, which recognizes the University's most generous contributors.