ADA Forsyth Institute Announces New Board of Directors to Drive Oral Health Innovation

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 14, 2024 — The ADA Forsyth Institute (AFI), a world-class organization for oral health research and innovation, today announced its new Board of Directors. The new board brings together leaders from industry, technology, and investment to help guide the strategic growth of this new organization.

The board announcement follows the debut of AFI in October 2023, when the Forsyth Institute joined with the American Dental Association’s Science & Research Institute to become one world-class research organization driving innovation to propel dentistry and oral health forward on a global scale.

“Some of the field’s greatest innovators and leaders reside on our new board of directors,” said Wenyuan Shi, Ph.D., AFI Chief Executive Officer. "Together with the unparalleled talent of our researchers, the AFI is now positioned to usher in a new era of research, development, and innovation in dentistry and oral health.”

ADA executive director Raymond Cohlmia, D.D.S., will chair the new board. Three members of the former Forsyth Institute board – Elyse Cherry, Michael Greeley, and Stephen E. Thorne IV – will be part of AFI’s board. James M. Boyle, D.D.S., Teresa Dolan, D.D.S, M.P.H. and J. Leslie Winston, D.D.S., Ph.D. are former ADASRI Board members who will join the ADA Forsyth Board.

Under the strategic guidance of the new board, AFI will continue to be the leader and incubator of firsts in this space, focusing on biological research, clinical service and public health outreach and technological innovation. Key areas of investigative research include immunology and inflammation, dental and craniofacial development and bioengineering, and microbiology and the oral microbiome.

About the American Dental Association
The not-for-profit ADA is the nation's largest dental association, representing 159,000 dentist members. The premier source of oral health information, the ADA has advocated for the public's health and promoted the art and science of dentistry since 1859. The ADA's state-of-the-art research facilities develop and test dental products and materials that have advanced the practice of dentistry and made the patient experience more positive. The ADA Seal of Acceptance has long been a valuable and respected guide to consumer dental care products. The Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA), published monthly, is the ADA's flagship publication and the best-read scientific journal in dentistry. For more information about the ADA, visit ADA.org. For more information on oral health, including prevention, care and treatment of dental disease, visit the ADA's consumer website MouthHealthy.org.

The ADA Forsyth Institute was founded in 1910 as the Forsyth Dental Infirmary for Children (later, the Forsyth Institute), to provide dental care to the disadvantaged children of Boston. While continuing to serve children in need, yet recognizing the ultimate goal is to prevent dental disease, the Institute in 1915 began to focus on scientific research and is today the world’s leader in oral health research. In October of 2023, the Institute joined with the American Dental Association to form the ADA Forsyth Institute, a 501(c)(3) entity dedicated to improving people’s oral and overall health and powering the profession of dentistry through cutting-edge basic research, creative translational science, innovative clinical technologies, and global public health outreach. Consistent with the Institute’s founding mission, the ADA ForsythKids mobile dental program continues to serve children in need.

About the ADA Forsyth Institute

The ADA Forsyth Institute was founded in 1910 as the Forsyth Dental Infirmary for Children (later, the Forsyth Institute), to provide dental care to the disadvantaged children of Boston. While continuing to serve children in need, yet recognizing the ultimate goal is to prevent dental disease, the Institute in 1915 began to focus on scientific research and is today the world’s leader in oral health research. In October of 2023, the Institute joined with the American Dental Association to form the ADA Forsyth Institute, a 501(c)(3) entity dedicated to improving people’s oral and overall health and powering the profession of dentistry through cutting-edge basic research, creative translational science, innovative clinical technologies, and global public health outreach. Consistent with the Institute’s founding mission, the ADA ForsythKids mobile dental program continues to serve children in need.