Class of ’21
DR. AMANDA SHEEHAN
WATERFORD, MICHIGAN
Since her appearance in last year’s 40 Under 40, Dr. Sheehan earned a nice laurel, achieving her Diplomate of the American Board of Oral Implantology and Implant Dentistry, making her the first female dentist in Michigan to become board-certified in implantology. She continues to run Oakland Family Dental, her thriving practice, and to maintain her charitable work both locally and overseas; she is also an active faculty member of the Misch Resnik Implant Institute, where she mentors colleagues in implant dentistry.
Class of ’20
DRS. BROOKE BERSON AND CHAD REBHUN
VOORHEES, NEW JERSEY
These partners in work (at their Optimum Oral Surgery Group) and life welcomed their new daughter, Reese Everly Rebhun, last October.
DR. ROBERTO LOAR
AUSTIN, TEXAS
“I used some of my pandemic time to take more CE courses and challenge the Academy of General Dentistry Fellowship Exam. I’m happy to say I am now one of the few pediatric dentists with a fellowship in the AGD. I’m also the newly elected president of the Texas Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. I am excited to represent the voices and smiles of some of our youngest Texans.”
DR. SIMON OH
AMBLER, PENNSYLVANIA
“Currently I’m getting ready to launch a national dental organization. Our DSO is the largest in our region—79 offices across Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. We’re also launching an implant vertical within the DSO. Additionally, my partners and I have started a liquor business
on the side. Our rum, KLYR, has been taking off. It’s distilled 12 times and filtered 18 times. It clocks in cleaner than the entire market on gas chromatography studies. It’s clean, smooth and American-made.”
DR. NOEL RODRIGUEZ
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
Organized dentistry and humanitarian efforts are all in a day’s work for Dr. Rodriguez. This May, he was elected president of the Jacksonville Dental Association, a role in which (among much else) he selects speakers for dental CE courses and spearheads networking events to unite the regional dental community. In February, when he was still vice president of the JDA, he led its 2022 Give Kids a Smile efforts, enlisting volunteer doctors as well as sponsors. In 2021, he served as assistant chair of the Mission of Mercy event in Jacksonville, for which he organized volunteers and sponsors.
DR. NIDHI TANEJA
STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA
Of late, Dr. Taneja has been focusing her professional life on house-call dentistry, working to bring a broader sense of mindfulness to the profession and serving as a guest speaker on that topic. She recently launched a new website, nurturesmiles.com, and can be spotted on Instagram @dr.nidhitaneja.
Class of ’19
DR. SARAH BLAIR
WEST ALLIS, WISCONSIN
“I’ve been focusing my time and energy on practice-management coaching through Indie Practices. Helping practice owners
increase revenue while decreasing stress and workload has been so rewarding—I think I get more excited about seeing their numbers
go up than they do. Putting great systems, leadership skills and well-prepared team members in place to help practices succeed has been one of the most rewarding parts of my career. I’ve been a huge believer in the benefits of coaching ever since I was a practice owner myself.”
DR. NASEM DUNLOP
FOOTHILL RANCH, CALIFORNIA
“Our office added an orthodontic division; we’re now Treehouse Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics. The ortho division is thriving, and we’ve also added a frenectomy division that has become one of the lead locations in South Orange County for tethered oral tissue releases. I work with a team of speech and language pathologists, lactation consultants, bodyworkers/chiropractors and occupational therapists to help diagnose and surgically release tethered lips and tongues with our CO2 laser. It’s fun to see my pediatric practice branch out and help treat the community we serve more comprehensively. We’re excited about the growth of our office and hoping to take it
to the next level in the upcoming year—stay tuned!”
DR. KAJUANA FARREY SUTTON
ALBANY, GEORGIA
Dr. Farrey Sutton—who was also honored with the Clinical Expertise Award from the Lucy Hobbs Project in 2021—was recently named an Outstanding Young Alumna of the Dental College of Georgia. The school noted in particular her early embrace of DCG’s “Impressions Program,” which works to introduce young people to the profession of dentistry in an effort to refresh the professional ranks with the clinicians and specialists of tomorrow. Dr. Farrey Sutton continues to practice at Farrey Family Dentistry in the town of Moultrie, in southwest Georgia.
DRS. SAKO KARAKOZIAN AND TALINE KOTCHOUNIAN
STUDIO CITY, CALIFORNIA
“We still have our office in Studio City; it’s very busy and we’re thankful for it,” Dr. Karakozian says. “We didn’t have room to expand in our current location, so we were casually looking for another space. Sometime during the pandemic, a dentist we were acquainted with decided he wanted to shift his career path and sold us his office in Downtown Los Angeles. So now we’re working on giving our new office the Studio City makeover and seeing if we can bring some of our fun vibes to Downtown.”
DR. KATIE MCCANN LEE
AURORA, COLORADO
“Like most people, I found the pandemic very challenging. My team at Aurora Modern Dentistry had to adapt our business to the pandemic environment, and I’m pleased to say we thrived. We used our specialty services as well as our technology to provide same-day dentistry to minimize patient contact. I had to adapt to leading my out-of-state offices from afar. Now that the pandemic has calmed down, I’ve enjoyed sharing my experiences and speaking at industry events. My husband and I are back to traveling the world. I am feeling grateful for making it through this challenging time and am looking forward to the future!”
Class of ’18
DR. GREGORY FELDMAN
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA
The month after Dr. Feldman’s trip to Manhattan for the 40 Under 40 photo shoot in 2018, he was in New Orleans to receive his Fellowship in the Academy of General Dentistry. A month after that, he became a father when his daughter, Hannah, was born. In 2019, Dr. Feldman received his Mastership from the AGD and is currently working toward a Lifelong Learning and Service Recognition (LLSR). During the pandemic, he, his wife, Jessica, and Hannah moved from Ocala, Florida, to Gainesville, where he and Jessica had met in college. In 2021, he was named as one of the Top 40 Gator graduates under 40 by the University of Florida Alumni Association. He’s extremely excited and proud, he says, to announce that he’ll open his own practice, Gainesville Dentistry Co., this August. (As of press time, the office was undergoing renovations.) For more information, check out gainesvilledentistryco.com, where you’ll also find links to Dr. Feldman’s Instagram and Facebook accounts.
Class of ’17
DR. ANDY JANIGA
NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE
At the time of his 40 Under 40 appearance in 2017, Dr. Janiga was in North Chesterfield, Virginia, practicing in the U.S. Army’s Mosier Troop Dental Clinic. “I finished practicing with the Army in June 2020, and have since joined the Center for Dental Excellence in Nashua,” he says. “It’s been great returning to New England, and I’m excited to be part of an awesome office!”