The Strength of the AAE Is Its People
Reflections from a President’s Year
Over the past year, I spent a good deal of time in airports and on airplanes—nearly 80 flights in total. Along the way, I began collecting Starbucks mugs from each city I visited. What started as a simple travel souvenir quickly became something more meaningful. Each mug represents a place, a conversation, and a connection with colleagues who share a common commitment to our profession.
Those experiences reinforced something both simple and profound: the true strength of the American Association of Endodontists is not measured by the size of our membership, the reach of our programs, or even the impact of our initiatives.
The strength of the AAE is its people.
With more than 8,000 members, the AAE is far more than a professional association—it is a community. It is a community of clinicians dedicated to preserving natural teeth, educators advancing scientific knowledge, volunteers who generously give their time and expertise, and a professional staff whose commitment allows the Association to operate at an exceptional level. Throughout the past year, every conversation and every encounter reaffirmed the shared mission that unites endodontists everywhere: saving teeth, relieving pain, and improving lives.
Engagement Across the Profession
Throughout the year, I had many opportunities to connect with students, colleagues and leaders across dentistry. These conversations consistently highlighted the growing recognition of the AAE’s leadership in advancing endodontics and promoting the value of saving natural teeth.
Education remains central to that mission. Programs such as APICES, the Educators Workshop and Corporate Conference—collectively known as Endopalooza—and Insight Track continue to provide meaningful opportunities for learning, mentorship, and collaboration.
Endopalooza brings together residents, educators, corporate partners, and organizational leaders in a uniquely collaborative environment. The open dialogue and professional connections created there strengthen the bridge between academic training and clinical practice while helping prepare the next generation of endodontists.
Insight Track likewise remains one of the AAE’s premier educational programs, offering an immersive focus on critical topics presented by world-class faculty. The enthusiasm surrounding these programs reflects the deep commitment of AAE members to lifelong learning and clinical excellence.
Strengthening Global Partnerships
International engagement also expanded significantly this year. Meetings with colleagues and organizations across Canada, Europe, South America, and Africa reinforced the global respect for the AAE’s leadership.
These interactions highlight the importance of collaboration in advancing research, education, and clinical practice in endodontics. Increasingly, the international endodontic community looks to the AAE for guidance in promoting the preservation of natural teeth and advancing the science of endodontics worldwide.
Expanding Public Awareness
Public awareness remains an essential part of the AAE’s mission. Over the past year, the Association expanded its media outreach to help educate the public about the value of endodontic care and the importance of preserving natural teeth.
Through satellite media tours, television appearances, radio interviews, and national publications, the AAE reached a broad audience and reinforced a message that sits at the very core of our profession: Nothing looks, functions, or feels like your natural teeth.
Public education initiatives such as Save Your Tooth Month continue to highlight the important role endodontists play in relieving pain, preserving natural dentition, and improving patients’ quality of life.
Advocacy and Protecting the Specialty
Advocacy remains one of the AAE’s most important responsibilities. Over the past year, the Association pursued a proactive agenda focused on protecting the specialty, preserving endodontists’ ability to practice, and safeguarding patient care.
At the state level, the AAE worked to oppose legislation that would have weakened specialty advertising standards and blurred the definition of endodontic care. These efforts helped protect both patients and the integrity of specialty recognition.
Nationally, the AAE continued its leadership in dental benefits reform, advocating for greater transparency, fair contracting practices, and reduced administrative burdens so endodontists can focus on patient care rather than navigating insurance obstacles.
Workforce sustainability also remained a key priority. The Association supported initiatives designed to address the financial barriers associated with advanced dental education, including protection of Graduate PLUS loan programs, loan forgiveness opportunities, and support for the REDI Act.
At the federal level, the AAE led the largest grassroots advocacy effort in its history to protect the financial stability of endodontic practices nationwide. Through coordinated engagement and strong member participation, the Association successfully defended tax provisions critical to dental practices.
The AAE also continued to champion science-based public health policy, including support for community water fluoridation and initiatives that promote oral health nationwide.
Strategic Direction for the Future
The AAE entered 2026 with a new Strategic Plan for 2026–2028. Developed through thoughtful deliberation by the Board of Directors and refined through collaboration with staff, the plan provides a clear framework to guide the Association’s priorities in the years ahead.
At its core is a simple but powerful objective: The public should prioritize saving their natural teeth and seek endodontists as their trusted choice for endodontic care.
Achieving this vision requires continued leadership from AAE members in advancing the science and practice of endodontics. The strategic plan emphasizes strengthening clinical resources, modernizing guidelines and position statements, and ensuring that clinical tools reflect the highest level of evidence-based care. Advocacy remains a central pillar of this strategy.
Advancing Science and Clinical Excellence
Several important initiatives advanced the scientific foundation of endodontics during the past year.
A major milestone was the publication in the Journal of Endodontics of five articles describing the development of a Core Outcomes Set for Endodontics. First authorized by the Board of Directors in 2017, this landmark initiative represents years of collaborative work and provides a roadmap for standardizing outcomes research and advancing patient-centered care.
Collaboration across the dental profession also expanded. A special issue produced jointly with the Academy of General Dentistry highlighted evidence-based endodontic practices and strengthened interdisciplinary understanding between general dentists and specialists.
The AAE also continued its collaboration with the European Society of Endodontology on the development of standardized diagnostic terminology.
Additional milestones included approval of updated clinical guidance documents, including the joint AAE/AAOMR CBCT Position Statement and the updated Trauma Guidelines.
Recognizing the rapid evolution of technology in healthcare, the AAE also convened its first Artificial Intelligence Think Tank, which will help guide the responsible and ethical integration of artificial intelligence into endodontic practice, education, and research.
Looking Ahead
Taken together, these efforts represent more than a year of activity—they represent meaningful momentum for the future of the specialty.
The AAE continues to grow as a leader in education, advocacy, scientific advancement, and public awareness. None of this progress would be possible without an engaged membership, dedicated volunteers, and professional staff committed to excellence.
This past year reinforced something I have long believed: the AAE does not belong to any one leader or any one Board. It belongs to all of us. Its future will be shaped by members who mentor the next generation, advocate for the specialty, contribute to research and education, and remain committed to the mission we share.
As we look ahead, I encourage each of you to stay involved. Mentor a resident. Volunteer your time. Teach. Support the Foundation. Advocate for our specialty. Continue advancing the science and practice of endodontics. The future of the AAE depends on the willingness of its members to step forward and lead.
In the end, the work of endodontists is both simple and profound. We save teeth. We relieve pain. We improve lives. And we do it together.
Serving as President of the American Association of Endodontists has been the most meaningful and rewarding year of my professional life. Representing this extraordinary community has been an honor I will carry with me for the rest of my career.
I leave this role deeply grateful—for the trust placed in me, for the friendships formed along the way, and for the opportunity to serve a profession that improves lives every day.
The future of endodontics is bright—and the best days for the AAE and our specialty are still ahead.
See you in Salt Lake City, April 15-18, 2026.