WFO Executive Committee convened in Toronto during 101st AAO Annual Session

On May 6, the WFO Executive Committee held a meeting in conjunction with the 101st Annual Session of the American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Among its discussions, the committee covered the 6th International Orthodontic Congress, universal orthodontic education standards and guidelines, and WFO logo usage. It also approved the affiliation of an orthodontic organization.

Dr. Olivier Mauchamp of Grenoble, France, provided an update on the 6th International Orthodontic Congress that will be held September 11-15, 2005, in Paris, France. Dr. Mauchamp reported that the Comité d'Organisation du Congrés International d'Orthodontie (COCIO) has prepared the pre-congress budget. The COCIO is also developing its bylaws. Please see the related article on page 2 for more details on this meeting.

The Executive Committee also discussed the possibility of developing universal orthodontic education standards and guidelines. Such standards might cover the minimum courses required, as well as a requirement for length of training. WFO President Dr. Lee Graber of Kenilworth, Illinois, USA, noted that the development of universal standards would be a major undertaking, but it would fall within the scope of the WFO's mission. Dr. Francesca Miotti of Padova, Italy, presented recently completed survey results on dental education standards in Europe. This survey is the result of the DentEd Thematic Network Project, which is funded by the European Union Directorate for Education and Culture. The Executive Committee approved the formation of an Executive Committee subcommittee to review the European survey and to recommend possible actions the WFO could pursue. The subcommittee is comprised of Dr. Donald Poulton, chair, (San Francisco, California, USA), Dr. Julia Harfin (Buenos Aires, Argentina), Dr. Francesca Miotti and Dr. Hideo Mitani (Sendai, Japan). The subcommittee will report its findings at the next Executive Committee meeting.

Dr. Larson Keso of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA, and Dr. Robert Max of Auckland, New Zealand, will be developing a policy on usage of the WFO logo. Dr. Keso and Dr. Max will present a report at the next Executive Committee meeting.

The Executive Committee also approved the affiliation of the Greek Association of Orthodontic Study and Research. The WFO now has 88 affiliated organizations.

The WFO Executive Committee will next meet during the Japanese Orthodontic Society's 60th Annual Meeting, October 8-11, 2001, in Tokyo.