The UCLA School of Dentistry was hit by separate scandals Tuesday involving allegations of favoritism toward relatives of deep-pocket donors and student cheating on licensing examinations, university authorities acknowledged.
The American Dental Assn. is investigating allegations of cheating by at least a dozen UCLA students as well as students from USC, Loma Linda University and New York University, UCLA officials said. The students were alleged to have improperly obtained questions to a test that is a step toward fulfilling qualifications for a license to practice dentistry.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Saturday, November 17, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 3 inches; 121 words Type of Material: Correction
Dental schools: A story in Wednesday's California section about an investigation into possible cheating by dentistry students at UCLA, USC and Loma Linda University incorrectly reported that the American Dental Assn. also was investigating students from New York University. The ADA says the Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations does not have a pending investigation of students at the NYU School of Dentistry. Also, in a follow-up article on Thursday, New York University Executive Vice Dean Richard Vogel said that the initial Times article, reporting that the ADA was investigating NYU according to UCLA officials, was not accurate. His comments were erroneously left out of a shortened version in the Orange County Edition but appeared in other editions of The Times.
"The ADA is looking into alleged improprieties by UCLA students associated with testing," said Lawrence Lokman, UCLA's assistant vice chancellor of communications. "We would certainly hope any ADA investigation provides adequate due process to the students, and whatever matter they are looking at would be resolved quickly and fairly."
A detailed account of alleged preferential treatment given large financial donors to the dental school's highly competitive orthodontics residency program appeared in Tuesday's edition of the Daily Bruin, the campus newspaper. There are about only six positions offered each year in the residency program, and the positions are highly sought because careers as orthodontic specialists can be lucrative.
It was not the first time the university has been accused of favoring major donors and other influential people with VIP admission treatment. In 1996, The Times published a five-part series that underlined how seeking generous donors had become a "team sport," in the words of one UCLA fundraiser.
In the aftermath of The Times series, UCLA officially prohibited influencing admissions with donations.
The Daily Bruin's months-long investigation, coupled with an independent audit conducted this year, has prompted changes in the School of Dentistry's admissions policies and procedures, university authorities said. For example, admission to coveted program positions must now be reviewed by a special admissions panel to resolve potential conflicts of interest.
However, No-Hee Park, dean of the School of Dentistry, said in a prepared statement that the program was fair and merit-based.
"While an independent investigation requested by Acting Chancellor Norman Abrams found no credible and convincing evidence to support allegations of a legacy program in the orthodontics admissions process," Park said, "it did provide us with an opportunity to review our admissions policies and procedures and make improvements in the areas of oversight and transparency."
