09 January 2025

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Pediatric dentistry giants retire

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Drs. Jeffrey A. Dean and James E. Jones are retiring at the end of the semester. Together, they amassed over 80 years as pediatric dentists, teachers, and scholars.

Dr. Dean earned his DDS from IUSD in 1983, followed by a master’s degree in dental biomaterials and a certificate in pediatric dentistry in 1985. Eleven years later he also earned a certificate in orthodontics.

In 1985, Dr. Dean began a private pediatric dental practice and joined the IUSD pediatric dentistry teaching faculty. By 2004, he rose to the rank of professor of both pediatric dentistry and orthodontics with tenure. In 2008, he was honored as the Ralph E. McDonald Professor of Pediatric Dentistry, named for IUSD’s dean emeritus and Dr. Dean’s beloved late father-in-law.

In 2024, Indiana University Indianapolis honored Dr. Dean with the Maynard K. Hine Award, one of the highest honors for alumni. The Hine Award, given annually since 1974, is named for the IUSD dean who led the dental school from 1945 to 1968 and was IUPUI’s first chancellor.

In addition to teaching, Dr. Dean has served IUSD and Indiana University in numerous leadership roles. He was Pediatric Dentistry residency program director and department chair; executive associate dean; and chief of staff and senior advisor to then IUPUI Chancellor Charles Bantz.

Dr. Dean has been a strong supporter of Indiana University as an active member of the board of directors of the IUSD Alumni Association, as well as the Orthodontic and the Pediatric Dentistry Alumni Associations. His commitment to Indiana University goes beyond dentistry, as some of his favorite past contributions to the Indianapolis campus, students, and alums include his time as an advisory board member of the campus Music Academy, faculty advisor to the undergraduate student Rotary Club (“Rotaract”), participation on the Athletic Department’s “J Club,” and longtime contributor and volunteer on the campus United Way Campaign.

Dr. Dean and his wife Barbara (DH’77) have been generous donors to Indiana University.

Dr. Dean shared a few of his highlights over his 40-year IUSD career:

When Dr. Chuck Tomich was so kind to me when I returned from my grandmother‘s funeral as a dental student. I couldn’t believe he even knew who I was, let alone that he knew I’d lost a family member.

• David Avery waiting to greet me in the parking lot and bring me into the building on my first day as a full-time faculty member.
• Hala Henderson, from whom I learned a lot about teaching techniques and how to educate pre-doctoral students; she was always such a joy to work with. And Ms. Elizabeth Hatcher and I did a lot of good work, both in the predoctoral clinic and with dental school staff opportunities.
• I thoroughly enjoyed and was honored to get to work with Drs. Ralph McDonald and David Avery, and all the other co-authors, on six of the 11 editions of the textbook, McDonald and Avery’s Dentistry for the Child and Adolescent. I just received notice that the most recent edition is being translated into Simplified Chinese, and we heard about six months ago that Elsevier would like to publish the 12th edition. What a legacy Drs. McDonald and Avery have left!
• Receiving a HRSA grant that, with Dean Larry Goldblatt‘s help in twisting some arms, allowed us to double the size of the pediatric dentistry residency slots at Riley Hospital for Children.
• My favorite and most gratifying work has been with patients with craniofacial anomalies. Helping these children get back their beautiful facial features and smiles has been the honor of a lifetime. I cannot thank them enough for trusting me to help take care of their oral health needs.

“I encourage any students or early career practitioners to consider academics as a career, either part-time or full-time,” Dr. Dean said. “It is a fantastic experience, full of an incredible array of rewards, and I would not have missed it for the world. Even though I am ‘graduating from work,’ I will continue to participate with the university in various capacities as a volunteer.”

Dr. Jones retires as a tenured professor and chair emeritus of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry and adjunct professor of clinical pediatrics at the IU School of Medicine.

Dr. Jones attended the University of Kentucky, graduating with a bachelor’s and Master of Science degree in zoology. He earned his DMD from University of Louisville School of Dentistry in 1978 and completed his residency in pediatric dentistry at IUSD in 1980. He was in private practice in Jeffersonville, Indiana. He became a full-time teaching faculty member at IUSD in 1983.

In the late 1980s, Dr. Jones completed a Robert Wood Johnson Dental Health Services Research Fellowship at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine, then became professor and chair of Pediatric Dentistry at the University of Tennessee College of Dentistry. In 1993, he received a Doctor of Education degree (EdD) from the Indiana University Graduate School of Education, with a specialization in higher education administration and educational leadership.

From 1993-2005, Dr. Jones was dean of the School of Health Sciences, Indiana-Purdue University, Fort Wayne. He was a Congressional Fellow of the 107th U.S. Congress with Indiana Senator Richard Lugar in 2001 and earned a PhD in biological sciences in 2003 from Empresarial University.

Dr. Jones chaired IUSD’s Department of Pediatric Dentistry from 2005-2017. In 2017, IUSD honored him with the Paul E. Starkey Research Professorship. This year he the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry honored him with the Dr. Lewis A. Kay Excellence in Education Award. Dr. Jones is a Life Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, Life Fellow of the American College of Dentists and Life Fellow of the International College of Dentists. He also is a professor of Pediatric Dentistry and adjunct professor of clinical pediatrics at IU School of Medicine.

Dr. Jones has published over 135 articles and book chapters in the dental, medical and education literature. He has garnered over $5.6 million in educational, service, training and research grants and has presented over 150 continuing education courses in the United States, Caribbean, Europe, South America, Asia and the Middle East.

Dr. Jones has been married 49 years to his wife Sherry. They have two daughters, Lauren Elizabeth Granger, MD, (Pediatrics) and Katherine Blair Bumgardner, DMD, MSD (Pediatric Dentistry). Both daughters practice their respective specialties in the Indianapolis area. He also is the very proud “Papa” to four beautiful granddaughters, Evan, Lyra, Kora, and Mia.

A few of his most treasured career memories:

• Receiving a phone call from Dr. David Avery offering me a position in the IU residency program at Riley Children’s Hospital in 1983. It was 7:00 am on a Saturday morning. I still have the acceptance letter AND a letter requesting a payment for $200 to secure the position. I had to go to Dr. Kenneth Snawder (I was a student for three years working in his private practice, and he was a Riley graduate) for a loan for the $200 as my wife Sherry did not get her teaching salary pay for another week.
• Once arriving on campus, I looked at our classes and the faculty teaching in each course for the first year of the residency. They included, among others: (1) Advanced Pedodontics (Drs. David Avery, David Hennon, Paul Starkey and others), (2) Oral Pathology (Drs.William Shafer, Charles Tomich and Larry Goldblatt), (3) Dental Materials (Dr. Ralph Phillips), (4) Endodontics (Dr. Sam Patterson), (5) Periodontics (Dr. Timothy O’Leary) and (6) Oral Facial Genetics (Dr. David Bixler). They literally “authored the books” that I studied in dental school. I was scared to death!
• In 1982, Dr. David Avery and Dean Ralph McDonald asked me to coauthor, with Dr. Jim Weddell, two new chapters for the 4th edition of their textbook “Dentistry for the Child and Adolescent.” The chapters were: (1) Sedation and analgesia in pedodontics and (2) Hospital dental services for children and the use of general anesthesia. I am most fortunate to have continued in providing new material for editions five through 11. For editions 9, 10 and 11, Dr. Jeff Dean has provided outstanding leadership as editor.
• The simple fact that I have had the opportunity to work with IUSD faculty and staff and participate in the education of over 150 pediatric dentistry residents, who are some of the most talented individuals I have ever known. The memories are many, and I cherish them all.

Dr. Jones and his wife Sherry also have been generous donors to IUSD.

Author: Leslie Flowers

Source: https://dentistry.iu.edu/