School Notes

Jacques Nör, the Donald A. Kerr Collegiate Professor of Dentistry, has been reappointed as chair of the Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences and Endodontics, effective Sept. 1, 2020, through June 30, 2025. He has led the department since 2015.

In making the announcement, Dean Laurie McCauley noted that faculty and students in the CRSE department continue to thrive under Dr. Nör’s leadership, both in the launch of new academic programs and recognitions as well as research awards. “Advances in Restorative Sciences and Endodontics, including new degree and non-degree programs, as well as the expansion of caries risk assessment and digital dentistry, continue to place the department at the forefront of new practices that benefit preclinical instruction and patient care,” she said.

Nör is also professor of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering and professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the Medical School, where he served as the Co-Director of the Specialized Program of Research Excellence, or SPORE, a grant from the National Cancer Institute. His research interests are in salivary gland malignancies, cancer stemness, and in dental pulp stem cell biology. More recently, his laboratory also started studies aimed at the understanding of mechanisms regulating stem cell differentiation in the context of dental tissue engineering.

Nör is president-elect of the American Association for Dental Research and immediate past chair of the Section on Dentistry and Oral Health Sciences of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences. He has served as a chair of the Oral, Dental and Craniofacial Sciences study section of the National Institutes of Health, and has been the principal investigator for several NIH grants. He is Associate Editor of the Journal of Dental Research and a member of the editorial board of several journals. He is an AADR Fellow and an AAAS Fellow. Over the course of his career, he received the Distinguished Scientist Award, the William J. Gies Award, and the Hatton Award, all from the IADR.

Jacques Nör

Alexandre DaSilva, Associate Professor in the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences & Prosthodontics, has been named Director of the School’s Learning Health Systems (LHS) Initiative.

LHS will monitor, analyze and interpret disparate datasets, including from each patient treated and student or resident trained, with rigorous outcome measurements and alternative research methodologies. It will apply novel ways to support decision-making and optimize research, patient treatment and education activity at the school.

“Whether in the clinic, classroom or bench, from mobile phones and wearables, these systems will integrate knowledge and insights into ways to promptly improve and innovate our existing processes, creating a culture of feedback loops for best academic practices,” said Dean Laurie McCauley in announcing DaSilva’s appointment. “Dr. DaSilva is a visionary in health technology and neuroimaging, with extensive work in clinical translational research, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality and mobile application development.”

DaSilva will lead an LHS committee that will continue work that was initiated by Dr. Romesh Nalliah, Associate Dean for Patient Services, more than two years ago when LHS was adopted by the school as a concept and proved out through initial pilot projects.

DaSilva completed a clinical residency in Orofacial Pain Management and a Doctor of Medical Sciences degree in Oral Biology at Harvard University. His interdisciplinary interests in pain led him to advanced training and work at Harvard and affiliated institutions such as the Massachusetts General Hospital and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is currently the Director of the H.O.P.E. (Headache & Orofacial Pain Effort) Clinic, which is a multidisciplinary collaborative effort to investigate the brain as a research and therapeutic target for chronic trigeminal pain disorders.

Alexandre DaSilva

Dental school faculty member and Associate Dean Mark Fitzgerald is one of nine University of Michigan faculty members who have been named Mentor Fellows for the inaugural cohort of Public Engagement Faculty Fellows at the U-M Center for Academic Innovation. The program is designed to foster critical connections between public communities and the work of the university.

In April, the center named nine faculty members as inaugural recipients of the Public Engagement fellowships, along with the nine mentor fellows, including Fitzgerald. The Mentor Fellows will work closely with Fellows, providing guidance, connections and mentorship based on the mentors’ extensive experience and networks in public engagement.

Fitzgerald is Associate Dean for Community-Based Collaborative Care and Education and an associate professor in the Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences and Endodontics.

In collaboration with units across campus, the fellows will complete an intensive Studio Experience in which they will meet as a group and with experts across campus to build skills, develop relationships, and share experiences to engage the public. The fellow and mentor fellows represent departments across U-M, including nearly a dozen schools and colleges.

“Public research universities have enormous potential to improve our world. U-M’s Public Engagement Faculty Fellowships foster skills that help our faculty use their expertise to serve the public good. I applaud the inaugural class of fellows and the Center for Academic Innovation for their commitment to impactful engagement that advances U-M’s public mission,” said U-M President Mark Schlissel.

More information is available on the Center for Academic Innovation website.

Mark Fitzgerald

Dr. Stephen Stefanac has been appointed Interim Director of Predoctoral Clinical Education after the coronavirus pandemic halted faculty searches on campus early this year. Dean Laurie McCauley announced the appointment and said Stefanac will focus on implementation of a Faculty Coach Model that was designed and refined through pilot programs during the last two years.

Dr. Stefanac is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine and author of the widely distributed textbook, “Diagnosis and Treatment Planning in Dentistry.” He served as Senior Associate Dean and Dean of Patient Services for many years before returning to his faculty position last year. He was a key member of the Faculty Coach pilot program and other evaluations in 2018-19.

The goal of the Faculty Coach model is to provide mentorship and assessment to improve student progress and success in the clinical curriculum and the patient care environment. Faculty Coaches will monitor patient diagnoses and treatment plans to improve accuracy, appropriateness to patient care and ability to meet student learning needs.

McCauley noted that the necessity for the Faculty Coaches to be led by a highly effective Director for Predoctoral Clinical Education is even more important because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. “Dr. Stefanac has an incredible track record of success in various administrative roles. We are deeply grateful for his willingness to serve in this role until the end of 2020,” McCauley said.

Stephen Stefanac

Gary Sweier met and worked with thousands of people – students, faculty, staff, patients, vendors, state and national health officials – in his 39 years in various jobs at the School of Dentistry.

Among the countless stories he shares fondly about his long-term tenure, one is clearly the most significant – what he calls “the best thing that happened to me at the dental school.” And that is meeting the student who eventually became his wife Domenica, now a faculty member. At Sweier’s retirement reception at the school in early March, the couple talked about how they met, eventually married and continued to see each other in the hallways most days over the many years of their marriage and joint tenure at the school.

Sweier said his good fortune at meeting Nikki, as she is more commonly known, set the stage for what was a rewarding and enjoyable career at the dental school. He most values the hundreds of friendships he formed over the years with faculty, students, staff and vendors, as well as working with Patient Services administrators Dennis Turner and Steve Stefanac over 16 years and 15 years, respectively.

At retirement, Sweier was officially a “clinical specialist/administrative manager,” which covers a broad scope of duties dating back to and relating to when he started in 1981 as a “dispensing associate.” He initially cross-trained in areas such Dispensing, Central Records, Dental Stores, Information Desk, Patient Business and Insurance Office, Central Sterilization, Dental Lab and Office of Clinical Affairs. He later became a Clinic Department Associate, moving into administrative roles in many of those same areas.

His long list of responsibilities and initiatives includes serving as the school’s infection control officer for 23 years; risk and injury manager and incident reporting liaison; creating and editing numerous operations manuals such as dispensing and sterilization; vetting options when new equipment was needed in various clinics; working with state and national dental examination officials when the dental school was used as a testing site; and assisting with four national accreditation site visits from 1995-2016.

Gary Sweier and his wife Nikki share a laugh during his retirement reception at the school in early March. At right is Dr. Steve Stefanac, who presided over the reception and presentation of several retirement gifts.