About
The Department of Primary Dental Care plays a significant role in creating the next generation of oral health care professionals for our state and region. We focus on the development of dental, dental therapy and dental hygiene students as they gain technical skills, apply knowledge gained from their classroom experiences and embody the values and critical thinking skills demonstrated by our world-class faculty.
Mission
The Department of Primary Dental Care is central to realizing the School of Dentistry’s mission to advance health through scientific discovery, innovative education, and the highest-quality care for all communities. We advance health by:
- creating new knowledge through community engagement, educational research and clinical trials.
- contributing to the curriculum. We provide over 200 credits of instruction toward five degree programs, delivering educational content in the classroom, online, in the clinic and in the community. Our faculty employ evidence-based teaching methods, often based on the results of their research initiatives.
- by delivering preventive, diagnostic, and primary care in rural and urban settings.
Tamanna Tiwari
Chair, Department of Primary Dental Care
[email protected]
Divisions
The Department of Primary Dental Care is home to six divisions.
Comprehensive Care
The Division of Comprehensive Care is responsible for educating learners in the clinical setting. Six leaders each provide instruction for a group comprised of approximately 20 third-year DDS students, 20 fourth-year DDSstudents, one Dental Therapy learner, and three dental hygiene students. Additional full- and part-time faculty provide instruction in the clinics. We oversee the students’ development in regards to their technical and critical thinking skills for oral diagnosis, treatment planning, urgent care and restorative treatment. In addition, we work closely with all specialty departments ensuring a comprehensive plan for each patient.
Faculty
Amy Browning, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Marcia Campos, DDS, MS, PhD
Associate Professor
Wendy Engstrom, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Gregory Gella, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Brian Hatch, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Richard Nadeau, DDS, MPH
Clinical Professor
Carol Meyer, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Lee Prohofsky, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Natalie Peterson, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Carmen Real, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Bruce Wittenberg, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Kacie Woodis
Clinical Associate Professor
Dental Hygiene
The Division of Dental Hygiene seeks to educate individuals who are prepared intellectually, technically and ethically to meet the oral health care needs and challenges of the future. Our purpose is to create a learning environment that fosters collaboration, lifelong learning, informed citizens and leaders, and oral health care professionals who provide quality care to diverse populations in a variety of settings. We are committed to excellence in dental hygiene education, practice, public health, management and research.
Faculty
Michelle Arnett, RDH, MS, BS
Associate Professor
Ligia Castillo-Perez, MSDH, RF
Clinical Assistant Professor
Keta Desai, DDS, MHA
Clinical Associate Professor
Keeley Flavin, MS
Clinical Associate Professor
Jenna Gonyea
Clinical Assistant Professor
Jill Hormann, RDH, BSDH, MSDH
Clinical Associate Professor
Patty Hughes, MHSc, BSDH, LDH
Clinical Assistant Professor
Gabrielle Larson
Clinical Assistant Professor
Danna Paulson, DHSc, MSDH, RDH, CCRP
Assistant Professor
Jenny Miller, MSHA, BSDH, RDH, RF
Clinical Assistant Professor
Yvette Reibel, EdD, LDH
Assistant Professor
Kelly Rogers, MSDH, RDH, RF
Clinical Assistant Professor
Cyndee Stull, DHSc, MDH, RDH
Associate Professor
Rachel Thelen, DHSc, MSDH, LDH, RF
Clinical Associate Professor
Mercedes VanDeWiele, MSDH, LDH
Clinical Associate Professor
Dental Public Health
The Division of Dental Public Health educates, prevents and controls disease on a community basis. Rather than focusing on an individual, Dental Public Health serves the greater population.
Faculty
Boyen Huang, DDS, MHA, PhD
Associate Professor
Susan McKernan, DMD, MS, PhD
Associate Professor
Karin Quick, DDS, PhD
Associate Professor
Sheila Riggs, DDS, MS, DMSc
Associate Professor
Jeffrey Stefani, DDS
Clinical Associate Professor
Dental Therapy
The Division of Dental Therapy works to address issues with oral health care access to underserved communities within Minnesota by advancing the profession of dental therapy through a well-rounded dental education.
Faculty
Phonsuda Chanthavisouk, DHSc, CADT, RDH
Clinical Assistant Professor
Drew Christianson, MDT
Clinical Associate Professor
Michael Henderson, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Danae Kotula, MDT
Clinical Associate Professor
Karl Self, DDS, MBA
Associate Professor
Community Outreach and Engagement
The School of Dentistry has a strong commitment to community outreach. Students in the last year of their DDS, Dental Therapy and Dental Hygiene programs participate in community Outreach rotations through the Division of Community Outreach and Engagement. Outreach experiences provide an opportunity for our students to develop a broad understanding of the community and social responsibilities they will have as dental professionals, enhance their clinical skills and participate in career promotion and interprofessional learning experiences. All dental services provided by students in Outreach are overseen by faculty of the School of Dentistry.
Faculty
Angela Hastings, DMD
Clinical Associate Professor
Jigna Mahapatra, DMD
Clinical Assistant Professor
Iqbal Petker, DMD
Clinical Assistant Professor
John Zupancic, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Oral Medicine and Oral and Maxillofacial Imaging
The Division of Oral Medicine and Oral and Maxillofacial Imaging is dedicated to teaching, research and service in those disciplines. Our faculty and staff serve and support all school clinic diagnostic functions. We collaborate with other academic health disciplines including the medical school, public health and cancer center. We teach eleven courses to pre DDS, dental hygiene, dental therapy and graduate resident programs. We have several funded research projects. Our faculty engage in university and community service as well as many national and international dental organizations.
Faculty
Mansur Ahmad, PhD
Associate Professor
Keta Desai, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Laurence Gaalaas, DDS
Clinical Assistant Professor
Mike John, PhD, DMD, MPH
Associate Professor
Nelson Rhodus, DMD, MPH
Professor