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Honors College Distinguished Alumni Award

Celebrating outstanding alumni

This award recognizes Honors College alumni for their professional achievements, contributions to society and exceptional service to the College of Charleston.

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2023 Honors College Distinguished Alumni Award

Mildred Embree ’02, M.S., DMD, Ph.D.

Mildred Embree ’02, M.S., DMD, Ph.D., is the Dr. Edwin S Robinson Assistant Professor of Dental Medicine in orthodontics and director of the TMJ Biology and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory at Columbia University.

Dr. Embree is an orthodontist and cell biologist with more than 15 years of experience in the field of osteoarthritis and TMJ. She is a co-inventor of StemGEL and a co-founder and scientific advisory board chair of Wnt Scientific.

After graduating from CofC as part of the Honors College with a B.S. in biochemistry and chemistry, Dr. Embree completed her DMD and Ph.D. in cell biology at MUSC. During this time, she took advantage of the National Institute of Health Graduate Partnerships Program and worked with Dr. Marian Young, senior investigator, Molecular Biology of Bones & Teeth Section of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, to complete her graduate thesis examining the role of extracellular matrix proteoglycans in TMJ osteoarthritis.

To optimize the clinical application of her research, Dr. Embree completed an orthodontic residency at Columbia University School of Dentistry and was recruited to her current faculty position. Dr. Embree and her team focus on TMJ biology and disease, stem cells and stem cell-based cartilage and bone regeneration. Her laboratory uses a combination of stem cell/molecular biology methods and clinical questions to shape the direction of each scientific project. Overall, Dr. Embree’s research aims to improve current treatment modalities for patients with TMJ and musculoskeletal diseases.

Honors College Distinguished Alumni Award Past Recipients

2023 – Sara DeWolf, J.D. ’02
2022 – Colleen Condon ’92
2021 – Kenyatta L. Gardner ’08
2020 – Stephanie B. Wheeler ’03
2019 – Susan West Story ’93
2018 – Michael S. Shemtov ’00
2017 – Arlinda Locklear, J.D. ’76
2016 – Lisa Broome, Ph.D ’92
2015 – Melissa Siegel, Ph.D ’03
2014 – James G. Hodge Jr., J.D., LLM ’89
2013 – Howard L. Hall, Ph.D ’85
2012 – Wills Geils, MD ’88
2011 – Beth Middleton Burke, J.D. ’94
2010 – Steve Swanson ’89