USC honored undergraduates, graduate students and teaching assistants — including four from the health sciences — for their volunteer work at the annual USC Community Service Awards Dinner, held April 16 at Town and Gown on the University Park Campus.
Health sciences honorees included Conan Teng of Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC; Jane Desmond and Kendra King Treichler of USC Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy; and Amanda Wong of the USC School of Pharmacy.
At the event, USC Provost Elizabeth Garrett said the awards acknowledge students who have demonstrated extraordinary service to Los Angeles.
“USC and Los Angeles are inextricably tied, having grown up together — we have worked side-by-side in leveraging our resources, celebrating diversity and spurring innovation that shapes society,” Garrett said. “Both Los Angeles and USC rely on the efforts of those who see problems and take action to solve them, helping to sustain this symbiotic relationship.”
Teng, a 2013 DDS graduate, received the Multiple Engagements Award, honoring a student or the community partner who has been an outstanding leader and role model by engaging in multiple service partnerships.
Teng was involved in many service programs through the Ostrow School of Dentistry, serving schoolchildren in the Mobile Dental Clinic, homeless individuals at the school’s clinics on Skid Row, former military members during Veterans Stand Down events, and more. He has also been a part of the Dental Humanitarian Outreach Program, an Ostrow student group that travels overseas annually to provide dental care in impoverished areas.
Desmond and Treichler, Master of Arts students who graduated in May, received Extraordinary Engagement Awards for their involvement with the community program, Comunidad en Movimiento. They created Mujeres Fuertes, a program that helps women make healthy choices to better manage chronic illness.
Wong, a third-year pharmacy student, received an Extraordinary Engagement Award for her innovative program to help blind and visually impaired people safely manage their medications.
Working with the Braille Institute-Los Angeles, Wong coordinated a team of fellow students as they conducted medication reviews and made presentations on topics such as asthma, hypertension and over-the-counter drug safety at the institute. They also helped with customized plans for safely taking medications.