Shils Entrepreneurial Fund

Advancing Oral Health Entrepreneurship and its Impact on Overall Health

The Shils Annual Awards Program recognizes organizations, programs, clinicians, executives, and other healthcare leaders for their significant positive impacts on the oral health of the public.

“Since we first conceived of these awards, they’ve prominently celebrated the innovators, big thinkers, and fearless entrepreneurs whose vision for our industry has shaped the oral health of so many. The honorees continue to exemplify Dr. Shils’s belief that the values of entrepreneurship and education create long-lasting and far-reaching impacts when carried into the public health sector.”

– Steven W. Kess, President of the Dr. Edward B. Shils Entrepreneurial Fund’s Board of Directors.

Description of Awards:

Innovator Awards: This award is given to people and programs from across the health care community in recognition of their bold impact on the field and their respective communities. The categories include:

  • The Shils -Meskin Award, our highest honor award, is given to those who have made outstanding contributions to dentistry or its allied sciences, and is named for two distinguished clinicians, researchers, and educators: Dr. Edward Shils and Dr. Larry Meskin.
  • The Cohen-Volpe Award is given to those who made great innovative strides in the health care space and honors Dr. D. Walter Cohen and Dr. Anthony Volpe.
  • Excellence in Industry
  • Excellence in Community Service/NGO
  • Excellence in Academic/Research
  • The Special Recognition Award is given to individuals, organizations or programs that have made significant positive impacts on the dental community. 

The Board of Directors seeks nominees from all parts of the dental community.  We recognize that the dental industry, the academic community, dental clinicians and organized dentistry, and community-based organizations each have distinct and valuable resources to contribute to the advancement of the practice of dentistry and the delivery of oral health care to all people.

Shils Past Award Winners

View Complete List of Past Award Winners
Name/OrganizationYear of AwardType of Award
1300 Smiles and Youth With A Mission Medical Ships – Australia2013Special Recognition Award
3M ESPE2014Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Michael C. Alfano2004Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Michael Alfano2020Shils Meskin Award
Alpha Omega International Dental Fraternity2017Shils Innovator Award
American Dental Association/GlaxoSmithKline Oral Longevity Program2009Shils Innovator Award
Diane Amos2010Founder Award
Dr. Musa Bajali2008Founder Award
Stanley M. Bergman 2012Champion of the Decade Award
Ms. Meg Booth2019Excellence in a Nonprofit Organization Award
Stephen Boss2011Founder Award
Dr. Joseph Brofsky 2019Excellence in a Community Service Award
Dr.Marsha E. Butler2004Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Lawrence Caplin2009Shils Innovator Award
Thomas Chappell2006Shils Innovator Award
Children’s Oral Health Network2015Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Larry M. Coffee2006Shils Innovator Award
Dr. D. Walter Cohen 2008Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Lois K. Cohen 2012Shils Meskin Award
Congressman Elijah E. Cummings2009Special Recognition Award
Eve Cuny, RDA, OSAP2020Excellence in a Nonprofit Organization Award
Delta Dental Plan of Wisconsin2004Shils Innovator Award
DENTSPLY International2008Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Dominick DePaola2013Special Recognition Award
Dr. Terry Dickinson2007Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Jack Dillenberg2012Special Recognition Award
Dr. Jack Dillenberg2018Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Teresa A. Dolan 2019Excellence in Industry Award
Dr. Bruce Donoff 2014Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Art Dugoni2007Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Burton Edelstein2011Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Robert Edwab2016Special Recognition Award
Dr. Michael Bergermann, Dr. Ruben Cohen, and Ilona Eichenberger2010Special Recognition Award
Kathy Eklund, RDH, OSAP2020Excellence in a Nonprofit Organization Award
Dr. Caswell Evans2007Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Cecile Feldman2015Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Daniel H. Fine2019Cohen Volpe 
Dr. Allen Finkelstein2011Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Allen Finkelstein2018Cohen Volpe Award
Mr, Jost Fisher2012Special Recognition Award
Fit for School Inc.2010Shils Innovator Award
Ralph Fuccillo2010Shils Innovator Award
Ms. Fran Gallager2018Shils Innovator Award
Robert Ganley 2020Excellence in Industry Award
Ms. Tracy Garland2014Special Recognition Award
Malcolm Gladwell2006Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Michael Glick2010Shils Innovator Award
Goldie’s Place2009Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Matilde Hernandez Gonzalez2018Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Jay S. Grossman2009Special Recognition Award
Dr. Horst-Wolfgang Haase2014Special Recognition Award
Henry Schein Cares2017Shils Innovator Award
Dr, Eric J. Hovland2006Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Amid Ismail  2015Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Kathryn Kell2017Shils Innovator Award
John D. Kemp2018Special Recognition Award
Steven W. Kess2007Special Recognition Award
Steven W. Kess2017Cohen Volpe Award
Dr. Robert Klaus2008Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Dushanka Kleinman2007Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Stephen LeBeau 2019Excellence in Research Award
Dr. Karen Fields – Lever2019Special Recognition Award
Dr. Laurie McCauley2016Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Joseph McManus.2015Special Recognition Award
Dr. Jessica Meeske2010Special Recognition Award
Robert Mehalso2018Shils Innovator Award
Miracle Corners of the World2005Shils Innovator Award
Miracle Corners of the World Tanzanian Dental School Renovation Project2009Special Recognition Award
Dr. Wendy Mouradian2013Shils Innovator Award
National Museum of Dentistry (NMD)2008Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Linda Niessen2014Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Kathleen O’Loughlin2015Shils Innovator Award
Jeffrey Parker2014Special Recognition Award
Jeffrey Perelman2011Special Recognition Award
Dan Perkins 2020Cohen Volpe 
Dr. Steven Perlman2010Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Mery Pettiette2018Special Recognition Award
Philadelphia FIGHT Health Care Centers2020Special Recognition Award
Dr. Mitchell Pines2007Founder Award
Gary Price2011Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Carolyn Primus2016Shils Innovator Award
RADM Timothy L. Ricks2020Special Recognition Award
Robert T. Freeman Dental Society Foundation2009Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Alejandro Roisentul2017Special Recognition Award
Dr. Marc Rothman2014Special Recognition Award
Donald Rubin2012Special Recognition Award
Dr. David Satcher2013Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Robert Schattner2013Shils Innovator Award
Senior Mobile Dental2011Special Recognition Award
Dr. Cherilyn G. Sheets2008Shils Innovator Award
Steven and Sandra Sheller, 11th Street Family Health Services2016Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Othman Shibly2016Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Irvin Silverstein2014Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Jeanne Sinkford 2013Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Harold Slavkin 2011Shils Meskin Award
Nancy Spector, Program for Women (ELAM) 2004Shils Innovator Award
Dr. George Blue Spruce Jr.2013Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Adam Stabholz2008Founder Award
Dr. Lawrence A. Tabak2016Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Martin Tansy2008Founder Award
Town & Country Dental Studios2017Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Lori Trost2007Shils Innovator Award
University of Washington Pediatric Clinic2011Shils Innovator Award
Urban Genesis and the I-LEAD Sister Program2005Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Richard Valachovic2020Excellence in Academia Award
Dr. Kris Volcheck2018Shils Innovator Award
Dr. Anthony Volpe 2009Shils Meskin Award
Dr. Blake M. Warner2020Excellence in Research Award
Norman Weinstock2013Special Recognition Award
Dr. Sidney Whitman2016Special Recognition Award
Sam Zarbiv2012Special Recognition Award

View Award Winners by Year