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School of Dentistry SaysGoodbye to Long-serving EmployeesUDM School of Dentistry expresses appreciation and bids a fond farewell to the followingretiring faculty members who have served the School for a significant portion of their careers.Dr. Lawrence Abbott, Associate Professor, Department of Restorative Dentistry, retired from theUniversity in January, 2013. Dr. Abbott joined the School of Dentistry after teaching as an Associate Professorat the University of Louisville. With over 20 years of service as a tenured Associate Professor at the University,Dr. Abbott will be missed. As an active member of the clinical administration, he has served as both theAssociate Dean for Patient Care, and the Clinical Quality Assurance Officer. With an interest in investing in hisstudents through innovative teaching activities, Dr. Abbott was also recognized for Outstanding Pre-clinicalFaculty Member as voted on by the freshman class in 1998, 2001, and 2007.Dr. Lawrence AbbottDr. Zenon KossakDr. Zenon Kossak, Clinical Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Oral and MaxillofacialSurgery, retired from the University, effective June 30th, 2013. Dr. Kossak joined the School of Dentistry fromthe Macomb-Riverview Hospital Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Training Program where he taught. Dr. Kossakhas contributed to the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery as a lecturer, both locally and nationally, in theareas of TMJ surgery, implantology, and oral cancer surgery. In addition to his involvement in several medicaland dental societies, Dr. Kossak is a Diplomat of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, aFellow of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, and an Associate of the AmericanAcademy of Cosmetic Surgery. Dr. Kossak’s education, training, and extensive experience in oral andmaxillofacial surgery has been an asset to the School of Dentistry.Dr. Jackson Linger, Associate Professor, Department of Restorative Dentistry, will retire from theUniversity, effective August, 2013. With academic appointments at both the University of Detroit Mercy andthe University of Michigan, Dr. Linger has spent his career educating the next generation of dentists. With over18 years of service at the University, he served as Co-Course Director for numerous classes, such as: DentalAnatomy, Introduction to Operative Dentistry and Part I of the Board Review. While serving on multiplecommittees and participating in various professional organizations, Dr. Linger always made time for hisstudents. His investment in the student’s education and commitment to learning will be missed on campus.Dr. Virginia MerchantDr. Virginia Merchant, Professor, Department of Biomedical and Diagnostic Sciences, will retire from theUniversity effective August, 2013. Dr. Merchant joined the Department of Microbiology and Biochemistry fromEmory University in Atlanta, GA. During her tenure, she served in various roles including chairing the Schoolof Dentistry’s Faculty Development Committee and then becoming Director of Faculty Development. She alsoserved as the first Chair of the University’s Faculty Development Committee. In addition to her teaching duties,Dr. Merchant made time to serve as the Editor of the Leading Edge for seven years, the Editor of the DetroitDental Bulletin for nine years, and was elected by her peers as Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of the MichiganDental Association in 2010. Her presence will certainly be missed, as we thank her for her 33 years of service.WWW.DENTAL.UDMERCY.EDU 19