"Both organizations now share a mission of enhancing their members’ careers in Orthodontics, and a vision of being stronger together."

The SWSO Board of Directors met for its Ad Interim meeting on Saturday, March 11^th in Dallas. The SWSO/SAO joint strategic plan and merger preparations were major themes of the meeting, following the January strategic retreat. Both organizations now share a mission of enhancing their members’ careers in Orthodontics, and a vision of being stronger together. In addition, the new shared Committee on Annual Meeting Planning (CAMP) is comprised of leaders from both societies, and plans for both the 2023 Annual Session in Amelia Island and the 2024 Annual Session in Orlando are well underway.

Following separate meetings in the morning, the SWSO and SAO Boards came together for shared conversation in the afternoon. These discussions focused on the results of the name poll which had been circulated to both memberships prior to the meeting, as well as an update on plans to begin merging management and operations in 2023 and 2024. The afternoon ended with breakout discussions on topics of shared priority for the future, including:



• Board & Volunteer Development
• Leadership Development Program
• Component Relations
• Resident & Educator Outreach
• Member Engagement Strategies
• Expanding Member Offerings
• Meetings & Education Expansion
• Marketing & Communication

Most importantly, the weekend underscored the strengths that both SWSO and SAO bring to the table and the greatly improved capacity that the merged association will have to support education, the development of a robust leadership pipeline, improved relationships with and support for state components and residency programs, and increased overall value to individual members. 

Note: Event is open to doctors only.

J.P. Dinnell

J.P. spent nearly a decade in the Seals Teams with three combat deployments. Sent to the violent terrorist stronghold of AR Ramadi, Iraq in 2006 with Seal Team Three’s Task Unit Bruiser. J.P. served as point man, machine gunner, and lead sniper for Delta Platoon opposite the American sniper, Chris Kyle, who was in Charlie Platoon.