My name is Janice Darko. I am originally from Ghana and a mother of two children. I have a Bachelor's degree in Biochemistry from University of Ghana, two Masters' degrees from Brigham Young University in Nutritional Science and Analytical Chemistry. I have been serving in the U.S. Navy Reserve for over 11 years. I am currently a third-year dental student at the University of Utah School of Dentistry, where I serve as the secretary for the Utah American Student Dental Association (ASDA) club, vice president of Personal Development of Oral Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) club, writer for ASDA Contour Magazine, and founder and president of the Black and Art Dental Students Association (BDSA) club.
I'm a very sociable person and I love to help and serve all persons, especially poor and underserved people in the community. My values of resilience, grit, compassion, volunteerism, stamina, hope, and hard work have been demonstrated and challenged throughout my three years at the dental school as the first black female dental student at this school. What has made me successful is that I have constantly fallen back on the reason why I wanted to be a dentist in the first place: to pave the way for young people with my background to aim higher, prove others wrong that they can achieve anything they want if they believe in their dream and put in the work and effort. They have to believe that no matter how life gets, they will make it. They will achieve their dreams by staying focused on their goals, like I have done. They must also never let anybody's opinion of them block their vision.
It is in this light that I started the BDSA club in March 2021, to develop sustainable art forms pivoted at the Black African culture and creative arts as a key to projecting Black consciousness or personality into the University of Utah campus. We host art gallery exhibitions twice a year to entertain, inform, and inspire people around the globe and the dental community through the power of unparalleled art, reflecting iconic creative minds and innovative technologies.
The BDSA brings inspiration and innovation to every dental student, faculty, and staff who has a talent for art in the hope of raising enough funds to provide humanitarian assistance to the underserved and low-income communities in Utah, and hopefully expand to serve across the United States. My message is that, Black people and people of color from diverse backgrounds, should always remember they should be proud of who they are, where they come from, what they represent because that is what will reinforce their sense of belonging wherever they find themselves. My favorite quote by Shirley Chisholm is, "If they don't give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair." This quote has always reinforced my decisions in life in that, I always make opportunities for myself and work harder when others don't want to support me, and I soon realized that I had so much potential that I never even recognized I had before.
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