Ida Rose, DDS, gives to Howard because Howard gave to her

By Kelvin Childs

For Ida Rose, DDS (’02, Certificate in Pediatric Dentistry), the inspiration to create an endowed scholarship for pediatric dentistry students at Howard University came through prayer and fasting during a troubled time.
Rose, owner of The Children’s Dental Group in suburban Atlanta, earned her certificate in pediatric dentistry at Howard. She graduated from Xavier University with a bachelor of science in biology and earned her doctor of dental surgery degree at the University of Iowa.

She does an annual personal fast but in January 2022 chose to join a group fast with the Alfred Street Baptist Church in Alexandria, Virginia. She found it life-changing.

At the time, her practice was struggling financially. “I had been praying a lot about, ‘Well, you know, God, what am I going to do? I have to pay this staff. I have to pay this mortgage,” Rose said. The answer? “God spoke to me and said, ‘I want you to take 10% of everything that you collect and give it away,’” she said.

“So, I was like, ‘OK, rewind. I don’t think you heard me, I said. I don’t have the money. I’m trying to figure out where I’m going to get the money from.’ He said, ‘I heard you and this is what I want you to do. Take 10% and give it away.’ I said OK,” Rose recalled.

Rose saved 10% from the month’s collections and prayed on what to do with the money. The word she got was, “Give it to your schools.” A friend at Howard’s pediatric dentistry department told Rose of its needs for materials, so she donated. She did so for her other schools.

Then she learned of endowed scholarships from a development officer at the University of Iowa. After that conversation, “I said, ‘You know what? I bet you we have the same thing at our Black schools,’” Rose said. She contacted Howard’s development officer for the College of Dentistry and established the Ida Rose Endowed Scholarship Fund. Awards are to go a student in good academic standing within the pediatric dentistry program.

It's important to Rose to give back to Howard because Alma Mater came through for her. “My first year of applying for pediatric dental residency, I did not match. And so, I did what was called a scramble and did a one-year general practice residency in New York at a hospital in the Bronx. After which, I reapplied. Howard was the only one who gave me a chance the second time around to interview and thankfully, I matched. Howard chose me when nobody else did and I will always be grateful for that,” she said.

Rose’s mother went to Southern University and her father to Xavier as she did, but her time at Howard gave her a full appreciation of the HBCU experience.

“Following Xavier, I went to a PWI [predominantly white institution], University of Iowa, for dental school and it was then that I could see the stark difference. HBCUs give you a strong sense of community and a family atmosphere. They empower you as students so that you know you are just as good or better than anyone else,” she said.

Howard also taught Rose to be adaptable. At University of Iowa, “We had everything. I mean any instrument, any supply, you need it, they had it. If they didn’t have it, they were going to get it.”

She continued, “At Howard, you have to learn how to be a little bit more creative because you may not have everything. … So there have been many occasions in life where I’ve thought to myself, you know, as I’ve gone through certain situations, I’ve been able to figure this out and work around this situation because of my time at Howard.”

Rose loves mentorship and wants to encourage as many African-Americans as possible to pursue a career in dentistry, particularly women. As a member of Delta Sigma Theta, she intends for her scholarships to reach Black females. Accordingly, the Ida Rose Endowed Scholarship Fund recommends preference go to an active Delta and then to a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha, Zeta Phi Beta or Sigma Gamma Rho sororities.

“I did the endowed scholarship because I love the idea of it going into perpetuity and leaving a legacy. And because it’s a passion now, and I have the goal of one day being able to provide a full scholarship to students,” Rose said. 
She gives because “Howard gave to me, and so it’s time for me to give back to Howard,” she said.

To explore how your giving can have an impact on students in the Health Sciences, contact James Jordan, Director of Development for Health Sciences, at james.jordan@howard.edu.