North Texas Dentistry Volume 7 Issue 5 NTD 2017 ISSUE 5 DE | Page 5

Texas A&M College of Dentistry
Regents Professor Award for Jones
by LaDawn Brock
O
ne of the hallmarks of the dental
public health specialty is its con-
sistent attention to dental issues
in populations and communities as a
whole. Since assuming top post of Texas
A&M College of Dentistry’s public health
sciences department 17 years ago, identi-
fying and creating dental solutions for
Dallas-Fort Worth residents is something
Dr. Daniel Jones has pursued with system-
atic, steady focus.
The department as a whole has received
more than $36 million in grant revenue
since 2000, when Jones became depart-
ment head. Each time a grant is received,
public health sciences faculty and staff,
under Jones’ guidance, have found ways to
turn that funding into much-needed den-
tal care, and of course, educational expe-
riences for the College of Dentistry’s
students. This translates to more than
803,000 patient encounters during that
same time frame, spread among the de-
partment’s school-based sealant program,
senior preceptorships, care provided at
community clinics, the Dallas County ju-
venile detention center dent al clinic and
community health fairs.
While increased access to care for under-
served populations and a broad range of
patient encounters for students has always
been the ultimate goal, it recently
prompted an unexpected recognition:
Regents Professor status for Jones, a 1989
alumnus. This Texas A&M University Sys-
tem Board of Regents award honors fac-
ulty members who have made significant
contributions to the university, and in so
doing, for Texans as a whole.
“Dan Jones’ contributions to our school
have been invaluable,” says Dr. Lawrence
Wolinsky, dental school dean. “The same
is true of the surrounding community. He
has an eye for identifying funding sources,
and he and his team do what it takes to se-
cure grants and foster partnerships that
ultimately benefit our students and pa-
tients in need.”
Jones’ track to dental public health was
not a traditional one. After receiving his
doctorate in psychology from Baylor Uni-
versity in 1978, he became a postdoctoral
student at the dental school before accept-
ing a basic science faculty position in 1981
and later, earning a dental degree.
The mission continues, most recently, with
a focus on interprofessional care for dental
students, something they experience first-
hand during rotations to North Dallas
Shared Ministries, the Baxter-Crowley
Agape Clinic and Irving Community
Clinic. All centers provide a wide array of
dental and medical care, and some even
address social, behavioral and mental
health concerns.
“This exposes our students to the medical
management of patients with multiple dis-
eases and informs their dental treatment
of these patients,” Jones says. “It also
fosters a sense of working as part of a team
with other health care providers rather
than in isolation, which is the norm for
dentistry.”
Texas A&M College of Dentistry (formerly Baylor
College of Dentistry) in Dallas is a part of Texas
A&M University and Texas A&M Health Science
Center. Founded in 1905, the College of Dentistry
is a nationally recognized center for oral health sci-
ences education, research, specialized patient care
and continuing dental education. Learn more at den-
tistryinsider.tamhsc.edu or follow @TAMUdental.
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