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This is a time of year to be both grateful and reflective.

I am grateful for the opportunity to work with an outstanding faculty and student body who are focused on delivering exceptional clinical care and state-of-the-art clinical training. 

Your School of Dentistry treats more than 100,000 patients annually and provides a critical dental home to maintain oral health. Simply put, you cannot be truly healthy without a healthy mouth. With the ÌìÃÀ´«Ã½ Center for Oral Health Care and Research and the Medical Arts & Research Center buildings adjacent to one another, and utilizing a shared electronic medical record (Epic®), we are unique in South Texas by providing an integrated dental and medical home to our patients. This not only fosters coordinated care but also accelerates patient referrals to each practice, thereby maximizing patient health. At the same time, we are integrating the interprofessional education of our students and residents. I am also grateful for the many initiatives advanced by our faculty, including strengthening the role of digital dentistry across all four years of dental education and patient care. 

This is also a time of the year to be reflective. We have accomplished many initiatives this year, including the creation of the new Department of Predoctoral Dental Education, which has a laser-like focus on coordinating all four years of dental school education. The amazing leads it, and we are stronger with her leadership. is our new Chair of Developmental Dentistry and has already introduced several vital advances in the programs. Dr. Hai Zhang is our new Chair of Comprehensive Dentistry and is leading the way for expansion of our prosthodontic and other training programs. In terms of research, your School is and is in the top tier nationwide for research funding and scientific impact (source: ShanghaiRanking.com). 

To directly contribute to training the next generation of dental leaders and to fuel our progress for improving oral health, the San Antonio way – with our combination of compassion, motivation and outstanding clinical care. Please join us in creating a new tomorrow and fueling our journey to excellence. It is simple to join – scan the QR code and contribute to our endowments for excellence in student scholarships, the expansion of digital dentistry, enhanced patient care, research and other areas of advancement. 

To be honest, being a dentist has changed my life. It has changed my family’s life. And that gift is now changing my granddaughter’s life. Please join me and many other colleagues in giving back to create an enduring legacy for the future.

Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season and a healthy, peaceful and fulfilling New Year.
 

Dean, School of Dentistry at The University of Texas at San Antonio