- Dr. Carla Nunez
Dr. Randy Kluender serves as Chairman of the Georgia School of Orthodontics Board of Trustees. Dr. Kluender attended the University of Nebraska, Lincoln where he received his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and Masters of Science degree in Pediatric Dentistry.
Dr. Kluender’s professional career has been that of a clinician, educator and administrator. Dr. Kluender previously was the Associate Dean for Admissions, Student Affairs and Advanced Dental Education along with being the Director for Continuing Dental Education and Information Technology at the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine. His career in dentistry did not start in dental education but in a solo pediatric dental practice in 1979. He started his dental education career as a part-time clinical instructor in 1985 while maintaining his private practice.
During his tenure as a faculty member and administrator at the University of Colorado, he secured over $2.5 million in grant funding with the majority of those funds starting new programs to help people in need. For three years he was the Regional Consultant for the American Academy of Pediatric Dentist’s Dental Home Initiative that linked Headstart children with dental homes.
Dr. Kluender participated in the American Dental Education Association’s Leadership Institute and was selected for ADEA’s Harry Bruce Legislative Fellowship in Washington, D.C He actively worked on legislative issues impacting oral heath, informing legislators about the relationship of oral heath and general health, diversity in the healthcare workforce, student indebtedness and financial aid, and funding for dental schools in the United States. These issues also included advocating for additional funding for oral heath care for the underserved, continuation of Graduate Medical Education (GME) funding for dental schools, loan repayment strategies for students, dentists and new dental faculty. Additionally, he advocated for increasing the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) funding that provides significant financial support for research grants to health science centers and dental schools in the U.S.
He holds or has held many leadership roles in organized dentistry including the American College of Dentists and Omicron Kappa Upsilon. Dr. Kluender initiated the White Coat Ceremony for dental students at Colorado that emphasizes ethics and professionalism in dentistry.
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Dr. Asercion attended the University of New Orleans and received a Bachelor of Science (’73) and a Masters of Science (’77) in Biology. Completing his Doctorate in Dental Surgery (’79) from LSU School of Dentistry, he chose to enter LSU’s residency program and was awarded a certificate in orthodontics in 1981. During his professional career, Dr. Asercion practiced the specialty of orthodontics in Louisiana, Arizona, and Colorado for more than 30 years. He retired from private practice in January 2016 to participate in the development of the GSO orthodontic program. Dr. Asercion was a member of the LSUSD Curriculum Committee and was the Director of Clinical Operations at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Department of Orthodontics.
Notable academic awards include: Beta Beta Beta Biology Honor society, C Edmund Kells Dental Honor Society, Mosby Scholarship Award and the American Association of Orthodontics Oral Facial Development Scholarship Award. He has presented different research papers to the International Association of Dental Research, the American Association of Pediatric Dentistry, the American Dental Association, and the American Association of Orthodontics. He was Director of Clinical Advancement for Orthodontic Centers of America.
Dr. Asercion was a member of the New Orleans and Louisiana Dental Associations, the Metropolitan Denver and Colorado Dental Associations, the Rocky Mountain Association. He was awarded Life Active Membership of the American Association of Orthodontists.
His orthodontic philosophy is founded upon evidence based outcomes and result-directed clinical efficiency.
Dr. José Luis Garcia joins the Georgia School of Orthodontics with 41 years of clinical experience. He received his orthodontic certificate from the University of Illinois School Of Dentistry and entered private practice in his hometown of Mexicali, Baja California. Dr. Garcia taught in the undergraduate program at the University of Baja California Dental School for six years while working part-time in his son’s private orthodontic practice in Temecula, CA. He is a member of the American Association of Orthodontists and the Mexican Association of Orthodontists.
Dr. M. Noam Green was born in Toronto, Ontario. He earned his DMD from the University of Pennsylvania with an Honors in Clinical Dentistry and induction into the OKU Dental Honor Society. He completed his orthodontics residency at the University of Detroit Mercy. There he earned his Masters of Science by developing a mid-sagittal plane definition for 3D cephalometric analyses and was inducted into the Alpha Sigma Nu Honor Society. Dr. Green now lives in Atlanta and provides orthodontic care for patients in Decatur, Georgia.
Dr. Michael Hebert is a Louisiana native and received his Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree from Loyola University New Orleans. After graduation, he served for two years in the United States Air Force as a Captain in the Dental Corps, treating Vietnam-era troops at Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado. Upon finishing active duty, he resumed his education at St. Louis University School of Orthodontics, graduating with a Master’s Degree in Orthodontics.
Dr. Hebert has more than forty years’ experience in the private practice of orthodontics in Colorado and Louisiana. He was affiliated with Orthodontic Centers of America from 1988 until 2000.
Dr. Hebert now runs an orthodontic consulting company, and looks forward to bringing his clinical experience to GSO. He is a member of the American Association of Orthodontists, Colorado Orthodontic Association and Rocky Mountain Society of Orthodontists.
Dr. Gabriela Herrera joins GSO with an extensive international background in orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics. Dr. Herrera began her dental education in Venezuela, where she graduated Universidad Santa Maria (USM) in 2004. She then completed her fellowship in endodontics through USM in 2005 and became a specialist in dentofacial functional orthopedics through the Venezuelan Society of Functional Orthopedics in 2006.
In 2008, Dr. Herrera continued her specialist education in orthodontics in the United States, where she attended New York University to become a specialist in orthodontics. She completed cleft lip and palate advanced training at New York University Medical Center in 2008.
After obtaining her masters in orthodontics with a three year post-graduate program at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, she went on to open a private practice in orthodontics and craniofacial orthopedics in Caracas, Venezuela in 2011. Dr. Herrera also served as a faculty member at USM from 2011-2014 for their pre-doctoral pediatric/orthodontic dentistry program.
Dr. Herrera is a member of the American Association of Orthodontics (AAO) and the Sociedad Colombiana de Ortodoncia (SCO).
Dr. Lazzara is a Florida native and received his Doctor of Dental Surgery from Emory University in 1966. He received his Certificate in Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans in 1969.
Dr. Lazzara joins GSO with more than 40 years of experience in the field of orthodontics. His experience includes maintaining private orthodontic practices for 25 years, and serving as Founder/CEO/Director/Chairman of the world’s largest orthodontic management company, Orthodontic Centers of America (OCA) from 1985-2001. Additionally, Dr. Lazzara has lectured on a variety of orthodontic and business-related topics at numerous professional conferences.
Dr. Lazzara retired as a Diplomat of the American Board of Orthodontics and a member of both the American Association of Orthodontists and the Southern Society of Orthodontists.
When out of the office, he enjoys traveling, golfing, fishing, and spending time with his family and friends.
Doctor Robert Pickron is a Board Certified Orthodontist who earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery from Emory University and his Certificate in Orthodontics from the University of Alabama. He became board certified from the American Board of Orthodontics in 1972.
Dr. Pickron has over forty-five years of orthodontic clinical experience in the private practice sector, and has served as an adjunct professor at NOVA Southeastern School of Dental Medicine since 2012. His publications have been featured in Orthodontic Products, and he has presented at the World Congress on Facial Sculpting in Cosmetic Surgery, Jacksonville University, University of Southern Nevada, University of Tennessee, and Nova Southeastern, to name a few.
He is a member of the American Association of Orthodontists, the American Dental Association, the Georgia Association of Orthodontists, and the World Federation of Orthodontists.
Dr. Potter graduated from Northwestern University School of Dentistry in 1979. After private practice in general dentistry in Colorado for 10 years, he returned to The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio where he earned a Certificate and an M.S. in Dental Diagnostic Sciences. In 1991, he joined the faculty of the Medical College of Georgia School of Dentistry. There,
Dr. Potter served in many roles including Interim Dean of the School of Dentistry from 2001 to 2003, and Vice Dean from 2003 to 2005. Dr. Potter returned to Colorado and served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the University of Colorado Denver School of Dental Medicine for 10 years.
His current appointment is as Professor and Director of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology in the Department of Diagnostic and Biological Sciences. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, and a fellow of the American College of Dentists, International College of Dentists, and the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology.
