At the national level, Dr. Tata serves on the ADA New Dentist panel, which helped co-create the ADA Member App and Dental Sound Bites Podcast, for which she has also been a featured guest. Currently she serves as the Chair on Communications for the ADA Sixth District. At the state level, Dr. Tata has been a delegate to the MDA House and has been elected a Missouri Action Team Leader to the ADA Lobby Day since 2020.


Dr. Tata’s roles within the GSLDS are too numerous to fully list, but recent activities and accolades include her appointment as 2028 Chair of the GSLDS Council on Scientifi c Sessions, re- sponsible for planning and executing the Mid-Continent Dental Congress. Serving as Chair is a multi-year commitment, and one of the Society’s most prestigious volunteer roles outside of serv- ing as President, which she will become in 2029. Prior to these appointments, Dr. Tata has been extensively involved in many new dentist activities and was the recipient of the 2022 GSLDS Distinguished Service Award for her outstanding leadership, dedi- cation and commitment to the success of not only GSLDS, but the Tripartite as a whole. Through dedicated and selfl ess service, Dr. Tata actively contributes to the work of numerous boards, councils and committees to help ensure their success.


In 2025, Dr. Tata completed the Chicago Marathon with Smile Train, the world’s largest cleft-focused organization, that over the last 25+ years, has supported 2 million+ free cleft surgeries. Her participation required minimum fundraising eff orts, which helped provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive care to children in need. In 2024, Dr. Tata was inducted as a Fellow in the Pierre Fauchard Academy.


You’ve been very active in organized dentistry as a new dentist at all three membership levels. How does this exposure inform your view of how tripartite membership works? What do you wish other new dentists could understand about tripartite membership that would enhance their membership experience and their appreciation for the role of organized dentistry?


I’ve always said that if you want to see change you have to make an eff ort to be a part of the entities that make change happen. I’ve learned a lot over the years about how the tripartite works at each level. There are so many moving parts, and I feel like I am still learning about all the aspects that go in to what members see. I feel like it’s easy for people, myself included, to say “why don’t we just do this or why don’t we just do that.” Seeing the inner workings on all three levels, I fi nd myself surrounded by people who want the same outcome and are constantly striving for that outcome; change takes time and seeing people at all levels of membership passionate about making that change happen is inspiring.


I hope new members can see that the tripartite is a wealth of in- formation and resources; truly the ADA website is a gold mine. It takes a little navigating but there are so many valuable resources included with membership and if you can’t fi nd it right away, there is someone to help you fi nd it. When in doubt, send an email and ask for help; whether at the local, state or national level,


someone will help you fi nd what you need. Vicki Wilbers with the MDA and, for me, locally, Meg Stagina amaze me with the speed with which they answer their emails.


You helped start and participated in the ADA Dental Soundbites podcast. What was that experience like? Have you ever thought about starting your own podcast? What are your top podcasts you’d recommend to dentist colleagues?


The podcast was a really cool experience. My episode happened to be the idea I pitched about chairside stories. I thought it would be a great episode to remind us that we defi nitely ALL have those days. I think, for the time being, one episode is enough; I think people hear me talk enough!


Is there a particular volunteer experience that really pushed you to stretch yourself or something you have enjoyed more than any other role—something formative?


GKAS is something I fi nd myself volunteering with consistently and at the end of every event, I am always amazed by how much my colleagues give back to the community and how much they accomplish. It’s truly rewarding. Last year, I had the wonderful opportunity to run the Chicago Marathon in partnership with Smile Train. After hearing the amazing work they do, I would defi nitely like to have another opportunity to run a race in part- nership with them.


You’ve been an associate in a few diff erent settings. In your opinion, what makes a good associate? How can it propel you toward other career goals? Many new graduates will be associates. What advice would you give them?


Being an associate can be tricky sometimes. My big piece of advice is to fi gure out what kind of environment works well for you and fi nd a balance. Sometimes things work out and sometimes they don’t. The hardest thing for me was feeling like a failure if an op- portunity didn’t work out, but sometimes, it just doesn’t and that is ok. Don’t compare your journey to other people, which is much easier said than done. Everyone’s career looks a little diff erent. It took me a few tries to fi nd somewhere that was the perfect fi t, but now that I found it, I cannot imagine myself anywhere else. Shout out to my amazing work besties, Dr. Erin Mariscal and Dr. Sarah Gordon; I could not imagine the long days without you two.


What career goals still await you?


I feel like I have a lot to accomplish still. Practice ownership is defi nitely something I want to strive for one day. As far as other things … I am completely blank right at this moment (the millen- nial in me fought really hard not to end that statement with an LOL). I’ve accomplished a lot in the fi rst 10 years of practice; some days that feels like forever, others it’s a drop in the bucket. Follow up with me in fi ve years, and I’ll have a better answer for you?


Your local involvement has you in line to be the Greater St Louis Dental Society President in 2029. What do you enjoy about leadership roles and what challenges do you think you will face as president?


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