Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2018 - 8

Trustee Report

Trustee Report, Spring 2018
Dr. Norman Nagel
PCSO Trustee

One year ago, as the PCSO delegation was getting ready for the Ad Interim and 2017 AAO
House of Delegates (HOD), the board was excited
to bring one of our critical issues to the AAO:
financial literacy. This critical issue was enthusiastically received by all of the PCSO residents
who participated in an AAO pilot program. The
program was not sponsored by any financial
institution and was non-confrontational for
residents and the directors who presented it.

speak to the topic areas with greater authority
and stay abreast of industry best practices and
changing laws."

PCSO submitted resolution 23-17 to the 2017 AAO
House of Delegates. This resolution was finally
amended and approved as Resolution 23-17 PCSO
(S2-PCSO) (S2-GLAO) Substitute for Financial
Literacy Program for Residents:

When this came up at the meeting as a consent
issue, GLAO Trustee Dr. Roberts and I voiced our
opinion about this change in the direction of the
PCSO-recommended program. With input from
us and other trustees, a motion was passed to
discontinue negotiations with Wells Fargo, so it's
back to the drawing board. Since this is still a very
worthwhile program, I am encouraged that the
AAO version of the financial literacy program will
move forward under the leadership of the new
AAO Executive Director, Ms. Lynne Thomas Gordon.

RESOLVED, that the American Association of
Orthodontists' House of Delegates adopt a financial literacy program to be made available for
presentation to all orthodontic residency programs in North America over one academic year,
and be it further
RESOLVED, that the American Association of
Orthodontists adopt the program that has been
drafted, formatted, and presented to the Pacific
Coast Society of Orthodontists (PCSO) to the residents in the PCSO during this past year, and be it
further
RESOLVED, that upon completion of one cycle
of presentations, a report back to the Board of
Trustees and the American Association of Orthodontists' House of Delegates be provided no later
than February 15, 2018.
So, what happened? Something got lost in the
transition. We know it has been a busy year for
Dr. McCamish, immediate past president of the
AAO and the interim executive director of the
AAO, following the departure of Mr. Chris Vranas.
It seems that AAO staff began to "explore" the
possibility of engaging a national service firm for
the purposes of sponsoring the program. They
apparently felt that "financial experts. . . could

Whom did they look to as a potential sponsor?
Wells Fargo. Let that sink in: Wells Fargo is the
most prominent example of a bank that has
been taken to task by the federal government
this past year for, shall we say, ethical lapses in
how it was doing business.

Why is this issue so important? The AAO sent a
student loan survey to 3,773 active and student
members with a graduation date in or after
2008. The survey was completed by 540 new
and younger members. The results of the survey
show that:

 The average student debt of respondents is
$418,883.
 36.5% of respondents are paying an average
Federal Loan Interest Rate (FLIR) of 4% to 5.9%
on undergraduate loans.
 67.6% of respondents are paying an average
FLIR of 6% to 7.9% on dental school loans.
 80% of respondents are paying an average
FLIR of 6% to 7.9% on their orthodontic residency loans.
 80% of respondents did not receive financial
assistance from their families to pay down
their student loan debt.
 Almost 47% of respondents plan to pay off
their student loans in 6 to 15 years.

PCSO Bulletin  Spring 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Spring 2018