I am a 1981 BSDH graduate of the University of Michigan (U-M) Dental Hygiene Program. In 2006 I earned a Masters of Public Administration from U-M Flint. Since 2010, I am the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services Oral Health Program Director. As Oral Health Director, I am responsible for an array of statewide oral health care and public health education programs. I have been with the State agency since 1988, starting with the Medicaid Program and then joining Public Health. I have been an adjunct faculty member at U-M since 2010 combining my public health background with education. Active in local, state, and national levels of dental hygiene, I was president of the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association, founding member and national chair of the Medicaid/CHIP State Dental Association, and previous Council of Public Health Chair for the American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA). In addition, I currently am the President for the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD).