The American Academy of Periodontology installed David Okano, DDS, MS, as its president during its 108th Annual Meeting in Phoenix, held Oct. 27-30.
Other newly appointed officers include President-Elect Stephen Meraw, DDS, MS; Vice President Mia Geisinger, DDS; and Secretary/Treasurer Ana Becil Giglio, DDS.
David Okano, DDS, MS
In 2015, after 30 years of private practice in Rock Springs, Wyoming, Dr. Okano accepted a full-time academic appointment at the University of Utah School of Dentistry, where he is currently Associate Professor and Section Head of Periodontics. He has served on numerous AAP committees since 2001, and in 2019 became chair of the Task Force to Evaluate Predoctoral Periodontal Education. Dr. Okano has served as a member of the AAP Board of Trustees since 2012, serving as secretary/treasurer during the 2019-2020 term.
Dr. Okano received his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and Master of Science degree from the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistry.
ABOUT OTHER INSTALLED OFFICERS
Stephen Meraw, DDS, MS, President-Elect: Dr. Meraw received his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Detroit Mercy, where he received the Thurbor Alumni Award for Clinical Excellence. He then completed his Internship in Hospital Dentistry and Residency in Periodontics at the Johns Hopkins Hospital and the Mayo Clinic, respectively. Dr. Meraw is a recipient of the AAP Foundation’s Kramer Scholar Award. He also earned a master’s degree in Biomedical Sciences from the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine, and later a second master’s degree in Health Care Management from Harvard University. Dr. Meraw works in private practice in Michigan and has served on the faculty of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry since 1999.
Stephen Meraw, DDS, MS, President-Elect
Mia Geisinger, DDS, Vice President: Dr. Geisinger is a professor and director of advanced education in periodontology in the Department of Periodontology in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Dentistry. She is a diplomate in the American Board of Periodontology, and currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Dental Association Science and Research Institute, in addition to her duties on the American Academy of Periodontology’s Board of Trustees. She has authored more than 75 peer-reviewed publications, and her research interests include periodontal and systemic disease interaction, implant dentistry in the periodontally compromised dentition, and novel treatment strategies for oral soft- and hard-tissue growth.
Mia Geisinger, DDS, Vice President
Ana Becil Giglio, DDS, Secretary/Treasurer: As a board-certified periodontist, Dr. Giglio has served on the boards and committees of multiple dental organizations, both locally and nationally. In addition to her role with the American Academy of Periodontology, Dr Giglio is past president of the Northeastern Society of Periodontists. Dr. Giglio conducts a full-time, private periodontal and implant dentistry practice in New York City. Since 1992, she has maintained a faculty position at New York University College of Dentistry as an Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor in the Advanced Education Program in Periodontics and Implant Dentistry. Dr. Giglio graduated from New York University, where she earned a B.A. degree in Chemistry. She then received her D.D.S. from New York University College of Dentistry in 1990 and was awarded certificates of recognition by the American Academy of Periodontology and the American Dental Society of Anesthesiology. In 1992, she was granted her postgraduate certificate in periodontics from New York University.
Ana Becil Giglio, DDS, Secretary/Treasurer
Christopher Richardson, DMD, MS, Immediate Past President: Dr. Richardson is in private practice in Richmond, Virginia as well as a clinical professor at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry Department of Graduate Periodontics. He is a past president of the Richmond Dental Society and the Southern Academy of Periodontology, and he currently serves on the editorial board of the International Journal of Periodontics and Restorative Dentistry. A board-certified periodontist, he earned his Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and his Master of Science degree and certificate in periodontology from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio.
Christopher Richardson, DMD, MS, Immediate Past President
About the American Academy of Periodontology
The American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) represents nearly 7,500 periodontists—specialists in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of inflammatory diseases affecting the gums and supporting structures of the teeth, and in the placement of dental implants. Periodontics is one of 12 dental specialties recognized by the American Dental Association.
