Posted on December 4, 2001 at 2:30 p.m.
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Matt Brewer, a fourth-year dental student at the UAB School of Dentistry, has been selected as Kodak’s Dental Student of the Month.
A 1988 graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology, Brewer has an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering. With a mind for math, an EE degree seemed natural. After graduation he worked as a technical sales support specialist for a large telecommunications company.
“That job lasted one year, and then I took a six month leave-of-absence to pursue a master's degree in electrical engineering. But I wasn't really sure what I wanted in a career. I did know that I wanted to work for myself, and working for a large company was about as far away from that goal as one could get.”
Brewer's pursuit of a master's degree never materialized. Instead, he and his brother began running a successful franchise restaurant business in Birmingham. “I enjoyed the challenge of running our four stores,” Brewer said, “but I told myself that I was only going to give it five years. Ironically, in year six I had a rude awakening.”
That rude awakening was an automobile accident that resulted in extensive head trauma from the maxillae upward and a fractured skull. “The accident led me to dentistry,” Brewer recalls. “The physicians who treated my head injuries didn't notice anything wrong with my teeth. Then, a couple of months after the accident, they started hurting. I went to my dentist thinking I had a broken tooth, and learned that I had several. My dentist did a wonderful job of repairing them. My teeth actually look better now than before the accident.”
The accident and a six-month convalescence period gave Brewer time to consider his options, and he found dentistry appealing. Not only could he be his own boss, he could touch people and make their lives better.
Kodak selects its Dental Student of the Month based on criteria that includes community service, academic excellence and commitment to extracurricular enrichment. Kodak's dental business is a leading participant in infoimaging, a $225 billion industry created by the convergence of image-and-information technology. Visit Brewer’s tribute Web page on the Kodak Web site at www.kodak.com and select “dental products” in the site guide, then select “focus on the dental student.”