School of Dentistry Award Recipients
Young Alumnus of the Year Award
Ryan T. Braden, D.D.S., Dent '05
Lake Geneva, Wis.
Ryan says he’ll never stop learning.
As the youngest president in the history of the Wisconsin Dental Association, he is charged with representing the state’s more than 3,000 dentists, which he says is “a great honor.”
In addition to helping advance the interests of WDA members and the profession, Ryan and his wife, Jaymie Braden, Dent ’05, and father, Mark Braden, Dent ’80, partner to run the Braden Dental Center in Lake Geneva, Wis.
“Being able to help people realize their dreams for dental health is very rewarding,” he says. “My role is to help our patients realize what can be done and help them find a way to reach their goals.”
As a student in the School of Dentistry, Ryan represented his peers on the WDA Board of Trustees from 2003–04, then became vice president of the Burlington (Wis.). Dental Society. After that, he returned to the WDA board as southeast region trustee from 2006–13. He has served on several WDA committees and as vice chair of the WDA Insurance and Services Corp. advisory board.
He credits adjunct associate professor Dr. John Moser with helping him grow as a leader and seek new challenges and responsibilities.
“Success is being able to end each day realizing you did the very best you could and learning from each day how to be better tomorrow,” says Ryan, who is a fellow of the Pierre Fauchard Academy and American College of Dentists. “Marquette created a foundation to grow and evolve as a professional.”
