AOS MEMBERSHIP NEWS The State of the AOS Under the capable leadership of our executive direc-tor Barbara Zuniga, the AOS is heading in a positive direction. I don’t need to belabor the point to any of you that the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on many organizations including the AOS. Thankfully with natural immunity, the Covid vaccines and other therapeutics, parts of the country are trending towards herd immunity. In February 2020, the AOS Board of Directors conducted a study to identify strategies to improve the organization. A business plan was developed focusing in on immediate and long-term priorities relative to our educational offerings, marketing, streamlining costs, fiscal responsibility, and others. There is no doubt that live in-person learning, particularly with a didactic component, is the gold standard of orthodontic educa-tion. However, to better service students who for what-ever reason(s) cannot attend live sessions, the AOS began to offer live-streaming of its courses. Dr. Brad Williams’ introductory course in Orlando, FL was professionally live-streamed by Jameson Management, and several students chose this option. I am pleased to announce that the various doctor’s lectures at our upcoming Annual Meeting in Clearwa-ter Beach, FL will also be live streamed. Please consider this option if you are not attending the Annual Meet-ing in person. The AOS is now offering online webinars and podcasts with Drs. McFarlane, Gonzalez, Echeverri, Rotberg and others presenting. These offerings will expand in the future as other doctors contribute. The aligner courses in partnership with Henry Schein should resume in 2022. We realize that there are presently gaps in our advanced educational opportunities due to the retire-ment of some of our senior instructors. Our executive director has placed ads with the American Dental Asso-ciation and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry soliciting the services of an orthodontist who might be interested in teaching for the AOS. Under the capable leadership of Dr. Greg Cannizzo, the editor of our journal, the JAOS continues to be the visible face of our organization. The articles are very informative and educational. We welcome new contrib-utors. As Dr. Cannizzo says, “just start writing and share”. Due to membership preference, the JAOS will continue to be published in traditional magazine form, not digitally. The journal’s ad sales continue to improve due to the excellent work of Emily Tarr. Regarding marketing, a key Newby, DDS question to ask is what are the best Randy AOS President ways to reach out to younger dentists who might be interested in learning orthodon-tics? Nate Porter and Jameson Management (a practice management company) have been helping the AOS on many fronts. The AOS website is much improved; Jame-son tracks hits, time on topics, content, key words, and the needs of people who are searching for the website. Digital marketing has almost replaced paper marketing completely. E-blasts that are sent out not only reach the AOS database members, but also Jameson’s vast practice management database members. Changing the traditional “hotel” model for in-person teaching of orthodontics is being discussed. Perhaps a centrally located facility would be better for students and more cost effective. Regarding finances, we have no outstanding receiv-ables. Our debts to the AOS Foundation and Academy of Diplomates are being paid down. Early in the Covid crisis, we accepted an SBA loan for $150,000. This loan covered expenses during the Covid disruption. The note is a 30-year loan, at 3%, which will be paid off starting in June 2022. The monthly payment will be approximately $600 per month. The SBA recently offered an additional $350,000 in funding. The AOS Executive Committee turned the offer down, as it was decided that at this point we need to be able to stand on our own two feet. In the past year, our great AOS patriarch Dr. Bill Wyatt made a sizable donation to the AOS to ensure our future success. It is his dream that the AOS continues to prosper. There may be storm clouds ahead to navigate, but if we all follow Dr. Wyatt’s lead in supporting the AOS, it will not only survive but also prosper. In closing, two quotes from the great Muhammad Ali come to mind: “Don’t count the days, make the days count” and “The service you do for others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth”. It has been a pleasure serving as your AOS President this past year. The reigns will now be turned over to Dr. Brian Vierthaler --the AOS will be in good hands! Your President, www.orthodontics.com Fall 2021 49
Journal of the American Orthodontic Society Fall 2021: Page 49
