Summary: Dr Korey Searle of the University of Michigan has been named the 2025 JCO Student of the Year by the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics, recognizing his clinical excellence in a competitive selection process.

Key Takeaways:

  • The JCO Student of the Year Award honors clinical excellence in orthodontics and is sponsored by American Orthodontics and Dolphin.
  • The competition involved a two-stage evaluation process, with finalists submitting case reports judged by the JCO editorial board.
  • The University of Michigan becomes the ninth school to have a recipient of this award, which has been presented annually since 2016.

The Journal of Clinical Orthodontics announced Dr Korey Searle from the University of Michigan as the winner of the 2025 Eugene L. Gottlieb JCO Student of the Year Award, presented by American Orthodontics. Searle was selected over 16 other students from schools around the United States and Canada in a two-stage, months-long competition judged for clinical excellence by members of the JCO editorial board. His prize reportedly includes more than $8,000 worth of products and services from American Orthodontics, JCO, and Dolphin.

Honored for Excellence in Clinical Orthodontics

“I am incredibly honored to receive the 2025 Eugene L. Gottlieb JCO Student of the Year Award. Knowing how many outstanding applicants were considered, I am truly grateful for this recognition,” said Searle. “I would like to thank JCO and American Orthodontics for organizing this competition, as well as the full-time and part-time faculty at the University of Michigan who have mentored me along the way. I’m also deeply thankful for my co-residents and, most importantly, my wife, Anna, and my family for their unwavering support. I wouldn’t be where I am today without them. This award is especially meaningful to me because of my late mother, who passed away from cancer in 2020. She was my biggest believer and supporter, and I know she would have been incredibly proud of this achievement.”

A Journey from Childhood Inspiration to Orthodontic Success

Searle grew up in Grand Haven, Mich., and has completed all 11 years of his higher education at the University of Michigan. His own childhood orthodontic treatment, along with shadowing his orthodontist while in seventh grade, motivated him to become an orthodontist. A complete profile of Searle will be published in a future issue of JCO and posted on JCO’s Facebook page.

University of Michigan Joins Prestigious List of Award-Winning Schools

Searle is the tenth Student of the Year award winner, joining Dr Grace Huang of Harvard University (2024), Dr Bianca Lau of the University of the Pacific (2023), Dr Shelby Steffenhagen of the University of Texas San Antonio (2022), Dr Amanda Gross of Texas A&M University (2021), Dr Saro Atam of Stony Brook University (2020), Dr Katya Skillestad of Texas A&M University (2019), Dr Samaneh Mojarrad of the University of Pennsylvania (2018), Dr Moataz Elmahdy of the University of Rochester (2017), and Dr Krystian Jarosz of Rutgers University (2016). The University of Michigan is the ninth different school to be recognized with the award.

READ MORE: JCO Names 2024 Eugene L. Gottlieb JCO Student of the Year

JCO Award Highlights Commitment to Clinical Orthodontics

According to JCO, the award program grew out of the journal’s central mission to specialize in the clinical side of orthodontics. “JCO is the clinician’s journal,” said JCO Editor Dr Neal Kravitz. “So it is fitting that since most of the other awards are for research, we award the clinician’s resident award.” JCO was founded in 1967 by Dr Eugene L. Gottlieb, after whom the Student of the Year Award is named. Dr Gottlieb died in 2018 at age 99.

“I always look forward to this competition,” said Kravitz, who has been a judge for all ten years. “Our wonderful residents always amaze me with the quality of their work. We will be honored to publish Searle’s case in JCO later this year.”

American Orthodontics and Dolphin Back the Future of the Profession

The award’s title sponsor is American Orthodontics (AO), an orthodontic products manufacturer based in Sheboygan, Wis. “AO is dedicated to supporting orthodontic education and the future of the profession, and we are very proud to sponsor the JCO Student of the Year Award recognizing the best and brightest in orthodontics,” said Director of North American Sales Todd Beaudoin.

The award is also sponsored by Dolphin, which provides 2D/3D imaging, diagnostic, treatment planning, case presentation, practice management, and patient education software for orthodontists.

A Rigorous Selection Process Sets This Award Apart

The competition was held in two stages. Every school in the United States and Canada was allowed to nominate one current student. Each nominee submitted two letters of recommendation and a personal essay. Nominees were then given the materials from an unpublished case and asked to write a complete treatment plan, including all possible alternatives, within a two-week time frame. Three JCO board members whittled the 17 nominees down to 12 finalists in December.

Each of the finalists then submitted a complete report for a case he or she had worked on. A wider panel of JCO board members voted for the winner.