“We are beginning a new century at the ADHA, with an upgraded mission: to unite and empower all dental hygienists,” said President Smith. “The ADHA represents the interests of 226,000 dental hygienists nationwide, and as ADHA members and leaders let’s unite and be the role models for all dental hygienists, so that together, we can achieve great things! Tenemos que unirnos para lograr grandes cosas. We will see ADHA stride confidently forward into the next century. Rebote hacia adelante.”
Smith, a Miami, Florida native who is fully bilingual in English and Spanish as a proud Cuban-American, has long-served the ADHA in various capacities on the national, state and local levels. After graduating from Miami Dade College’s Dental Hygiene Program, Smith worked as a public health dental hygienist on a Native American Indian reservation for 10 years before moving to private practice. She earned a Bachelor of Health Services Administration from Florida International University, a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Miami, and a Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration from the University of Florida. Smith succeeds Dawn Ann Dean, RDH, MSDH, CTTS, FADHA, as president. Dean will remain on the Board of Directors, serving as both the ADHA immediate past president and as the 2023-24 Chair of the ADHA Institute for Oral Health Foundation.
Additional ADHA officers newly installed at ADHA’s House of Delegates meeting include:
Erin Haley-Hitz, RDH, BSDH, MS, FADHA, MAADH, of Lincoln, Nebraska, as president-elect;
Lancette VanGuilder, BS, RDH, PHEDH, CEAS, of Reno, Nevada, as vice president; and
Chante Miller, CRDH, CLLSGB, MBA, of Tampa, Florida, as Treasurer.
Valoree Althoff, MHA, BSDH, CPP-T PRP, of Farmington, New Mexico, is returning to complete the second year of her two-year term as the the 2022-2024 Speaker of the House of Delegates. The newly installed district directors for 2023-24 are:
Carmen Negron-Dupee, BSFCS, RDH, of Shelburne, Vermont, District I (Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont)
Jerelyn Smith, RDH, FADHA, of Midland, Michigan, District V (Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio)
Joanna Allaire, RDH, BSDH, MDH, of The Woodlands, Texas, District IX (Oklahoma, New Mexico, Texas)
District directors returning in 2023-24, include:
Carolynn Wahl, RDH, BSDH, PHDHP, FADHA, of Moosic, Pennsylvania, District II (Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania)
Sheri Moore, RDH, BSHS, FADHA, of Palmyra, Virginia, District III (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia)
Renee Spencer, RDH, FADHA, of Fort Myers, Florida, District IV (Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina)
Claire Vann, RDH, BSDH, MS, FADHA, of Benton, Arkansas, District VI (Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee)
Carissa Renae Regnerus, RDH, MA, FADHA, of Vermillion, South Dakota, District VII (Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin)
Christina Emmert, RDH, PRP, FADHA, of Rockford, IL, District VIII (Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska)
Cara Reck, RDH, BS, LAP, FADHA, of Clancy, Montana, District X (Colorado, Montana, Utah, Wyoming)
Pamela Larrabee, RDH, BAS, MA, of Phoenix, Arizona, District XI (Arizona)
Jennifer Frame, RDH, MS, FADHA, Bremerton, Washington, District XII (Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Washington)
Learn more about ADHA leadership at www.adha.org/about-adha/board-of-directors.
About the American Dental Hygienists’ Association
The American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) is the only organization representing the professional interests of the more than 226,000 dental hygienists in the United States. Dental hygienists are preventive oral health professionals, licensed in dental hygiene, who provide educational, clinical and therapeutic services that support total health through the promotion of optimal oral health. The Journal of Dental Hygiene (JDH), published bi-monthly, is ADHA’s scientific journal and flagship publication. To learn more about the ADHA, dental hygiene or the link between oral health and general health, visit adha.org.
