American Dental Education Association

Nancy Goorey became the first female president of ADEA in 1977. In 2006, ADEA instituted open membership, which increased the number of ADEA member institutions.

ADEA has 38 sections: academic affairs, anatomical sciences, behavioral science, biochemistry, nutrition, and microbiology, business and financial administration, cariology, clinic administration, community and preventative dentistry, comprehensive care and general dentistry, continuing education, dental anatomy and occlusion, dental assisting education, dental hygiene education, dental informatics, dental school admissions officers, development, alumni affairs, and public relations, educational research/development and curriculum, endodontics, gay-straight alliance, gerontology and geriatrics education, graduate and postgraduate education, minority affairs, operative dentistry and biomaterials, oral biology, oral diagnosis/oral medicine, oral and maxillofacial radiology, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics, physiology, pharmacology, and therapeutics, postdoctoral general dentistry, practice management, prosthodontics, student affairs and financial aid, and substance abuse, addiction and tobacco dependence education ADEA has ten special interest groups: career development for the new educator, dental hygiene clinic coordinators, foreign-educated dental professionals, graduate dental hygiene education programs, implant dentistry, lasers in dentistry, professional, ethical, and legal issues in dentistry, scholarship of teaching and learning, and teaching and learning with emerging technologies.

For dental educators, the ADEA Leadership Institute and the ADEA Allied Dental Faculty Leadership Development Program cultivate leadership skills. Webinars, fellowship programs and numerous meetings (including the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition) offer educational programming and networking. ADEA determines best practices for dental education and encourages advancements in dental education programs and institutions. The ADEA Commission on Change and Innovation in Dental Education (ADEA CCI) has engaged representatives from each U.S. dental school specifically to examine dental school curricula. ADEA provides financial support for dental education, research, and leadership through the Gies Foundation, named after Dr. William J. Gies. The Gies Awards for vision, innovation and achievement in oral health and dental education are distributed annually at the ADEA Annual Session & Exhibition.