Hello, my name is Leena Balicat and I am a current graduate student at Old Dominion University. I received my Associates in Dental Hygiene in 2019 from Westmoreland County Community College and have been working clinically as a Registered Dental Hygienist since. After graduating from WCCC, I received my Bachelor’s degree in Dental Hygiene from Old Dominion University through the degree completion program. While in the program, I took graduate level classes that would count for my Masters. I graduated in 2021 with my Bachelor’s degree and am currently in the Master’s of Dental Hygiene program.

My short-term professional goals are to gain experience in clinical and didactic teaching, feel more confident in my teaching abilities, collaborate and gain insight from seasoned professors, and improve on receiving instructive criticism and learn how to apply it to my work. Focusing on these short-term goals will help me reach my long-term goals. My long-term professional goals are to become a tenured professor, act as a mentor for students and new faculty, partake in groundbreaking research projects, and be an avid lifelong learner. I believe that research is crucial in the healthcare field, especially dental. My research interests include dental stem cell application, fluoride, and the impact ultrasonic instruments have on our hearing.