At the All-College Meeting on August 15, Kyungsup Shin, associate professor of orthodontics, graduate program director of the Department of Orthodontics, and clinical research director of the College, was presented with the James H. and Hermine E. McLeran Faculty Award.

When announcing the award, Dean Stanford said, “Dr. McLeran was my dean when I was a student and his leadership emphasized faculty excellence, care and a student focused education, and Dr. Shin exemplifies each of those characteristics.”

As you can see below, Shin’s colleagues share Dean Stanford’s opinion. They take great pleasure in describing his academic and clinical education, teaching and mentoring, work ethic, research, and clinical expertise.

Mike Callan, assistant professor of orthodontics and clinical director of orthodontics, is effusive in his praise of Shin.

"We are not limited to words of praise in describing Dr. Shin’s leadership and mentorship abilities—his residents have the awards to prove it! Kyungsup is the perfect graduate program director! Of course, because of his unassuming and down-to-earth nature, Kyungsup would be quick to attribute these successes to others—whether it’s his department chair, Dr. Lina Moreno, other clinical faculty, or other faculty working on particular research projects with him.”

Shin's department chair, Lina Moreno, is also one of his strongest advocates. She nominated Shin for the McLeran award, and she said:

“Dr. Kyungsup Shin has a beautiful mind and demonstrates intellectual gifts and clinical skills overshadowed only by his warmth and caring toward others. He a natural genius in communicating and working with faculty and staff of all ranks to accomplish our goals as educators and clinicians."

Residents and students gravitate toward Shin as a leader and mentor. Since joining the Department of Orthodontics seven years ago, Shin has chaired 7 master’s theses, 2 PhD dissertations, 6 dental student research projects, and has been a committee member or co-mentor on 14 other research projects. These mentees have won numerous awards for this research, including the Charley Schultz Resident Scholar Award granted by the American Association for Orthodontists (AAO), 2 other conference awards, 12 Iowa Section of the AADOCR awards, and 7 university awards. His passion for mentoring is further reflected in his appointment as the college’s clinical research director—where Shin’s focus is on helping junior to mid-career faculty pursue their own research interests.

"“I am honored to serve our patients, students, the college, and the State of Iowa. We are here to serve, not to be served, but to serve," Shin said.

And serve he does. His clinical opinions and consultations are highly valued by his colleagues precisely because of his patient-centered care philosophy and his evidence-based clinical decision making.

“I strive to provide superlative care to every patient—to treat that one patient I am seeing at that one moment as the most important patient of my career,” Shin explained.

Moreno summed up why Shin is the perfect person for the McLeran award, saying with her characteristic smile: 

“Maybe once in a lifetime will each of us encounter an individual of Dr. Shin’s caliber.”

Thus, it is our great honor to award Kyungsup Shin the 2022 James H. and Hermine E. McLeran Faculty Award.