DENTAL CHAMPIONS
DENTAL CHAMPIONS
Class II: 2006-2007
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Lisa Benlon currently works as the Legislative/Government Relations Director for the American Cancer Society. She has been in that position for a year and a half. Prior to her position in the non-profit organization, she served 12 years in the Kansas House of Representatives and 2 terms on the Shawnee City Council.

Before Lisa's elected service, she spent 17 years working in the field of accounting. She spent her last year in the field managing an accounting office for a major retail store.

Lisa has been active in her community in many capacities, some include: Boy Scouts of America, Shawnee Drug Prevention/Rehabilitation Board, Johnson County Community College Foundation Board, and Parent Teacher Association.
Lisa has been married to her best friend, Randy for 34 years. They have two grown sons.

Dr. Denice CurtisDr. Denice Curtis is originally from Quito, Ecuador where she earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Central University in 1981. In 1994, she was awarded a Fulbright scholarship and obtained a masters’ degree in Public Health with honors at the University of Kansas, School of Medicine. In 2010 she obtained a Doctor in Health Sciences degree from NOVA Southeastern University with an emphasis on Global Health.

Dr. Curtis is an online professor for the University of Kansas, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, NOVA Southeastern University, Department of Health Sciences, and A.T. Still University School of Health Management. She teaches Epidemiology and Research Methods.

Previously she worked for seven years as the Chief Quality Officer for the Kansas Association for the Medically Underserved (KAMU) and for six years as an epidemiologist both for chronic and infectious diseases for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

While in Ecuador, Dr. Curtis worked 10 years for UNICEF-Ecuador as a Program Officer, where she conducted community health assessments in rural communities and organized a lay health volunteer network for a bi-national project between Ecuador and Peru.

In her spare time she is learning to play the piano.

Junetta Everett, RDHJunetta Everett received her Associate of Science, Dental Hygiene, and Bachelor of Health Science degrees from in 1979 and then practiced for nine years as a registered dental hygienist. In 1987, she accepted a position at Delta Dental of Kansas and was promoted to Vice-President of Professional Relations in 1995. She is responsible for for network development, dental insurance training, implementing and communicating program initiatives, policies and proceedures on a local and national basis. Junetta maintains her dental hygiene license and is proud to be the first African-American to graduate from the WSU Dental Hygiene program.

Junetta is active in the community and serves on several boards including: United Methodist Health Ministries Fund, Communities United Credit Union, Kansas Children Service League, and Eden's Promise. She also served on various advisory committees including the Steering Committee of Oral Health Kansas, WSU Dental Hygiene Advisory Board, KMOM planning committee and the Governor's Conference for Child Abuse and Prevention planning committee. Junetta is the initiator and coordinator for the PANDA program (Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect through Dental Awareness) for the state of Kansas. In October 2003 she recieved the Governor's Exemplary Service to Children and Families Award presented by KCSL.

Junetta and her husband, Victor, enjoy fishing and hanging out with their five sons, Terrin, Taurean, Tevan, Tevas, Tyrell, daugter-in-law Amanda and grandson Torin.

Carla Gibson Carla is a Program Officer at the REACH Healthcare Foundation, joining them in June of 2006. In her current position, she is responsible for grants administration and program development. Prior her employment at REACH, Carla worked at the Kansas City Free Health Clinic, where she oversaw all community health related programming. During her tenure there, she was instrumental in building comprehensive community health programs and solid community partnerships. She also assisted with securing funding, as well as overseeing the implementation of federal, state, and city grants.

Carla is committed to improving the overall health of the poor and underserved and has worked in the field of community health since 1991, beginning her career at the Charles Drew Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska. Since then, she has gained vast experience in the Kansas City area by working at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Swope Parkway Health Center and the Kansas City Free Health Clinic.

Carla was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, where she graduated from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. She has made Missouri her home for the last 8 years. Carla and her husband, Robert, reside in Grandview, Missouri.

No Bio Available.

Gregory D. Hill, JD Greg Hill joined the Kansas Dental Association in 1999. After working for two years on a statewide effort to improve oral health in Kansas through a community water fluoridation initiative, Greg began the task of creating the Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation, where he now serves as Executive Director as well as Associate Director of the Kansas Dental Association.

Greg recieved his Juris Doctor from Washburn University School of Law in 1999 and received a Bachelors of Science Degree in Economics from Kansas State University in 1994. He was raised in Independence, KS.

Greg and his wife Gwen reside in Topeka and are the parents of a two-year-old daughter. In his spare time he enjoys gardening, sports, reading and writing.

Lisa House, RDH Lisa House graduated from the Dental Hygiene Program at Colby Community College, Colby, KS in 2005, with an Associates of Science Degree. She is currently pursuing her Bachelors of Science in Dental Hygiene through Wichita State University, as well as certification as a Orofacial Myologist. Lisa was born and raised in Northwest Kansas. She has worked with her husband on their third generation farm for the past 13 years. Lisa and her husband have four boys. She currently works as a Dental Hygienist three days a week for a general family practice and does dental assisting two days a week in another general practice. She enjoys fishing with her sons, reading, sewing, and working in her garden.

Denise Maseman is the Department Chairperson of Dental Hygiene at Wichita State University. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Master of Science in Dental Hygiene Education from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She practiced clinical dental hygiene prior to becoming a dental hygiene educator. She has served as President of the Kansas Dental Hygienists' Association, a member of the Kansas Dental Board and Vice-President of the Central Regional Dental Testing Service. As a dental hygiene educator, she has been a faculty member at University of Minnesota and Wichita State University. She has been recognized by WSU for outstanding teaching and the Kansas Dental Hygienists' Association for community service.

Payne is Executive Director of Health Ministries Clinic (HMC), a charitable care clinic located in Newton, Kansas. She holds a B.S. in Health Care Administration from WSU and completed the Certification in Public Health program offered by KU Public Management Center. In July 2002 she accepted a position at the Harvey County Health Department, and quickly became aware of the access to care issues faced by the community's underserved. 

In April 2005, the County Commission appointed her Coordinator of the Harvey County Community Health Initiative.  As Coordinator, she worked closely with the HMC Board, staff and community partners designing a plan for expansion into a Federally Qualified Health Center.  She was also responsbile for building and maintaining community support.  She became Executive Director of HMC in January 2006. 

Currently she is working to develop a collaborative dental program with PrairieStar Health Center Hutchinson Reno and Harvey County Health Departments.  Primarily funded by a Federal Rural Health Outreach Grant, the program features integration of medical and dental health care and enabling services such as case management.

Tina and her husband Jason live in Newton with their two young children Kylie and Jerod.  They enjoy spending time with extended family in the area.

Krista Postai Krista Postai an original "founder" and former member of the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas, now serves as its Chief Executive Officer. Prior to joining CHC/SEK, a federally qualified health center, she was Vice-President of Planning and Development at Mt. Carmel Regional Medical Center. During her 23 years with the medical center, she was instrumental in the development of several mission-directed services including: non-emergency transportation, congregational health ministry and a volunteer dental clinic. She hleped facilitate KMOM-Pittsburg. As part of her current responsibilities, she oversees a "safety net" dental clinic which will have an estimated 9,500 patient visits in its first full year of operations.

A native of Pittsburg, she is a graduate of the University of Kansas with a BSJ. She is a board member for KAMU and the Kansas Family Partnership. She is a founder and vice-chairman of the board of Cornerstone Village, a non-profit long-term care facility. In 2001, she was named "Friend of the Family" by the Kansas Assoc. of Family and Consumer Sciences, and in 2006 was honored with the "Friend of Pittsburg Community Schools" award.

Teresa R. Schwab, LMSWTeresa received a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Kansas in May 2000. Since then, she has dedicated her career to advocacy and public policy in the not-for-profit sector, starting out in the child welfare arena.

In October 2003, Teresa came to Oral Health Kansas as the first Executive Director of the organization.

She and her husband, Brad, served in the United States Peace Corps from 1995-1997 in the South Pacific country of the Solomon Islands. They have two sons, Louden and Logan.

Chris SimmsNo Bio available.

Katherine Weno is thrilled to be returning to dentistry in her new role as Director of the Office of Oral Health for the State of Kansas. A native Iowan, in 1991 she received her DDS at the University of Iowa's College of Dentistry. After graduation, Kathy practiced dentistry for six years in Iowa and Wisconsin. Her experiences in working with underserved populations while in private practice sparked an interest in health care policy. This interest grew into a career change, and in 1999, she received her JD from the University of Iowa's College of Law.

After practicing Health and Administrative Law in Des Moines, Kathy moved to Kansas City, MO in 2000 to become Project Director and Attorney for the MC+ Advocacy Project at Legal Aid of Western Missouri. In her five years at Legal Aid, Kathy advocated for the rights of parents, pregnant

In addition to legal advocacy work, the MC+ project had a large outreach component that helped to enroll hundreds of children and parents in MC+ health coverage. In addition, Kathy was the chair of the Local Investment Commission's MC+ Consumer Taks Force, and avtice in the Kansas City Maternal Child Health Coaltion.

Kathy is thrilled to be joining the Office of Oral Health at this exciting time!




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