Young Alumna of the Year Award

Shaheda G.M. Govani, D.D.S, Dent ’10
Oshkosh, Wis.

Shaheda Govani, D.D.S., feels fortunate to have a career she loves, in which “each day flies by” and she gets daily opportunities to help patients and her broader community. “The ability to change a person’s day or year using my hands and heart makes me so proud,” says Shaheda, who established Govani Dental in 2010.

A Wisconsin native, Shaheda liked the idea of remaining in-state for her dental education. She also appreciated Marquette’s strong reputation for teaching hand skills, and that the Marquette pillars of excellence, faith, leadership, and service matched her own core values. “After touring and interviewing elsewhere,” she recalls, “I knew MU was my dream option.”

One of her professional goals is to “continue to strive for good work-life balance for myself and my team,” she explains.

She has also created a culture of generosity at her practice. She established Govani Gives, a three-part giving program. It includes a matching gift that her practice donates quarterly to a local charity, an annual scholarship awarded to a student in a technical school or college program, and an initiative in which Shaheda pays staff members their wage on days that they choose to work at local nonprofits such as food pantries.

She enjoys mentoring dental students and serves as a preceptor at her local technical college. She is also vice chair of the Wisconsin Dentistry Examining Board.

Shaheda says she is extremely honored by this award: “It is a privilege to receive this honor alongside all those who came before me and are doing such amazing things.”

Fun Facts:

Name a Marquette faculty or staff member who had an impact on you, and how.
Dr. Albert Albena. Some of my favorite rotations were with him at the North Clinic. He treated everyone with respect and integrity while also having a humorous and fun approach. He showed me how to provide ethical care and run a team with those same values.

What do you do in your free time?
I am active in fitness and compete at the amateur level in bikini body building. I also enjoy restoring my old-character home with my husband, Neil.

Leave a congratulatory message for Dr. Govani!