13 July 2026

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Bits and Bites – July 2026

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Here’s a roundup of some recent news about faculty, students and alums of Texas A&M College of Dentistry in Dallas.

Community impact

Maureen Brown, clinical assistant professor and interim executive director of the dental hygiene program, was elected to serve on the 2026-27 American Dental Hygienists’ Association Board of Directors. Her two-year term begins today.

Brown is a 2003 graduate of A&M Dentistry, then known as Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry.

Academy of General Dentistry named the dental college its 2026 Student Chapter of the Year, recognizing the chapter’s commitment to member engagement, continuing education and professional development.

Why it matters

The chapter recruited 63 new student members this academic year and delivered five hours of continuing education programming across sessions covering private practice business planning, public health and ergonomics, removable prosthodontics and Texas State Board of Dental Examiners standards of care. The chapter also organized an off-site visit to a private practice in Midlothian for hands-on exposure to 3-D printing and smile design technology and arranged meet-and-greets with Dr. Marc Worob, Class of 1979, then-Baylor College of Dentistry, and AGD president; and Dr. Jon M. Dossett, Texas AGD’s president.

The chapter supported continuing education events for its students throughout the year, including a hands-on denture workshop. A spring networking event with the Fort Worth and Dallas AGD components also happened.

Rising fourth-year dental student Mackenzie “Kenzie” Bankes also received the Dr. Chethan and Avani Chetty Scholarship.

A&M Dentistry’s orthodontics department is all smiles after two 2025 graduates garnered national awards May 1 at the annual session of the American Association of Orthodontists in Orlando, Florida. Drs. Emilee Dudley and Elizabeth “Beth” Celani won for research projects they conducted as students.

Academic context

Dudley received the Harry Sicher Research Award for her studies of vitamin D and postnatal mandibular condyle growth. The mandibular condyle is the knuckle-like structure at the base of the lower jaw, and her research found that vitamin D, as part of our everyday diet during pregnancy, can affect how the developing child’s temporomandibular joint may develop after birth.

She was mentored by Dr. Yan Jing, assistant professor in orthodontics. Dudley is in practice at East Texas Orthodontics and presented a lecture at the conference.

The award was established by AAO in 1976 and is open to any graduate student affiliated with an American Dental Association or Canadian Dental Association-accredited orthodontic program.

Celani was one of three recipients of the Thomas M. Graber Award of Special Merit. She won for her research on the use of synthetic prosthetics in the temporomandibular joints in children and teens whose bones and facial structures are still growing. Celani, who also presented at the session, examined total joint replacement of the temporomandibular joint for children with diseased joints and found that the procedure was stable and predictable for children still growing.

Dr. Matthew Kesterke, assistant professor and director of research in orthodontics, was her mentor. Celani practices at Kemp & Rice Orthodontics in the Nashville, Tennessee, area.

Like the Sicher award, Graber honors graduate students’ research. It was established in 2002.

The wins came a day after Dr. Larry P. Tadlock , head of orthodontics, was presented with the James E. Brophy Award, given annually to an orthodontist who renders distinguished service to orthodontics and AAO.

Dr. Kathy Svoboda, recently retired Regents Professor in biomedical sciences, was granted emerita status in May. Svoboda joined A&M Dentistry in 1998 after conducting research and teaching during a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School and Boston University School of Medicine.

She has a doctorate in anatomy and a master’s in human genetics from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and a bachelor’s from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Dr. Hoda Abdellatif, clinical associate professor and director of the Office of Community Outreach in public health sciences, received the 2026 Dental Health Arlington Award on June 13 in recognition of her leadership and dedication to advancing dental education and community care. She was instrumental in the dental college’s partnership with DHA, a nonprofit, low-cost dental home serving uninsured and underserved patients.

Through Abdellatif’s leadership, third- and fourth-year dental students did clinical rotations at DHA, extending their education beyond the classroom. Her commitment to access to care ensures students are engaged in providing service, experiences that have lasting impacts and foster dedication to community care, DHA stated. Abdellatif also created opportunities for students to provide patient care under the mentorship of experienced dentists.

Source: https://insights.dentistry.tamu.edu/bits-and-bites-july-2026