Indiana University School of Dentistry has ended the first comprehensive fundraising campaign in its history on a high note, by meeting - and exceeding - its $10 million goal.

Thanks in large part to the generous support of dentists throughout the Hoosier state, the school completed its seven-year campaign with gifts totaling $10,424,075.

The campaign gained momentum in the final two years, when membership in the Dean's Society - composed of donors who give a minimum of $1,000 or more to the school annually - nearly doubled, from 155 to 302 members.

"Clearly our success in this campaign is a tribute to the generosity of our alumni and friends," said Dr. Lawrence I. Goldblatt, IU's dean of dentistry. "However, it is also a strong indication that we have the support it takes to build our development program - and elevate our school - to levels we never before envisioned."

"The successful completion of our campaign reflects the commitment to and belief in the school's mission by Indiana's dentists," said Mr. John E. Hoffman, who was appointed in 2002 as the school's major gifts officer and director of campaigns. "It also shows our campus leadership that our alumni take tremendous pride in their school. Most importantly, it illustrates that our donors are willing to go above and beyond to recognize and meet challenges facing dental education now and in the future."

The dental school launched its campaign on July 1, 1997, as one of the 22 schools and units participating in the $700 million Campaign for Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) - the largest fundraising campaign for a single campus in IU's history and the largest fundraising campaign for educational purposes in the history of central Indiana. IUPUI raised more than one billion dollars, exceeding its goal by nearly 50 percent.

An estate gift from Indianapolis oral and maxillofacial surgeon and former Indiana Dental Association president Dr. R. Dale Lentz and his wife, Phyllis "Phyd" S. Lentz, pushed the dental school over the top of its goal at the close of the IUPUI campaign in June, making 2004 a record year in private philanthropy at IUSD.

The dental school will use the Lentzes' $1.2 million estate gift - the largest individual gift in the history of the IU dental school - to endow the Lentz Family Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Chair in the Department of Oral Surgery and Hospital Dentistry. The chair can be established in 2004 because gifts of this size, including planned gifts, qualify for additional funds through the university's President's Match Program.

Dr. Lentz completed IU's DDS program in 1967 and residency in oral and maxillofacial surgery in 1970. He practices with Indiana Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Associates, and serves as a volunteer clinical assistant professor at IU. He presided over the IDA in 1997-98, and he co-chaired the school's steering committee during the IUPUI campaign.

Phyd Lentz received her bachelor's degree in medical technology from IU in 1963. She has served as a volunteer in many capacities within the community, and has joined Dr. Lentz in providing volunteer dental care in both Haiti and Ukraine.

The Lentzes live in Fishers, Ind. They have three children, including a son enrolled in his second year of dental school at IU.

"Our School of Dentistry and the entire oral and maxillofacial surgery community owe a huge debt of gratitude to Dale and Phyd Lentz," said Dr. Goldblatt. "Their leadership is a shining example of selflessness, generosity, and commitment to our school and the profession of oral and maxillofacial surgery. I am also confident that this remarkable act will stimulate others to consider gifts at a similar level."

Serving with Dr. Lentz as co-chairs of the dental school's campaign steering committee were Dr. Lehman D. Adams Jr., Indianapolis, and Dr. Robert N. Modlin, Lafayette. IUSD Dean Emeritus Dr. Ralph E. McDonald, of Bloomington and Sanibel, Fla., served as honorary chair of the school's campaign.

"The steering committee has done a superb job working with both our professional development officers and our many volunteers in ensuring the success of this campaign," Dr. Goldblatt said. "We are deeply grateful for their exemplary commitment and tireless efforts to make the campaign not only a terrific success but a wonderful springboard for even greater things to come."

"From all of us at the IU dental school, we offer our sincerest appreciation and gratitude for the generosity and loyalty of each person who helped us achieve our goal," said Mr. Hoffman. "The completion of this campaign is not the end, but rather the beginning, of where the school needs to head with its fundraising program in the next several years. I challenge every dentist to work with the school in further expanding the Dean's Society membership, and to consider other ways to help IUSD through major philanthropic efforts."