The California Dental Association (CDA) Foundation has announced Luis Rivera, DDS, as the 10th grant recipient of its Dental Student Loan Repayment Grant Program.
Dr. Rivera, who graduated from the University of California, San Francisco School of Dentistry in 2009, will receive a maximum of $105,000 to help offset significant student loan debt in exchange for a three-year commitment to work in an underserved community.
According to the CDA, to date, tens of thousands of individuals have received care as a result of the Student Loan Repayment Grant Program, totaling more than $13.5 million in treatment and services.
Dr. Rivera is currently fulfilling his three-year commitment at La Clinica de la Raza-Transit Village in Oakland.
He grew up as an only child in a single-parent immigrant household. Although he was born in the U.S., he was raised in Mexico prior to entering elementary school, beginning his education in Reseda, CA, with English as a second language. To help support his family, Rivera worked throughout his high school education and while earning his undergraduate and doctorate degrees.
"My long-term goal is to become an integral part of La Clinica de la Raza or an organization with similar goals for the community it serves, and this grant has helped me move toward that goal," Dr. Rivera said. "My background affords me great insight into delivering culturally sensitive and appropriate healthcare, yielding great comfort to my patients."
Copyright © 2010 DrBicuspid.com
