By McKenzie Kupchik and Jerry Markon

AND SO WE ARRIVE at lucky 13—a baker’s dozen of years now that we’ve been lauding Lucy Hobbs Project honorees who are boosting the dental profession, and women’s role in it, with every workday completed, every experiment launched, every new product developed, every patient healed.

Benco Dental—the publisher of Incisal Edge—founded the Lucy Hobbs Project in 2012 to celebrate the contributions of women in dentistry at a time when the gender balance in dental schools nationwide was just beginning to tip in a distaff direction. All these years later, it’s clear that the future of our industry is increasingly female. We’d like to think we’ve played at least some role in that transformation.

It would all surely seem remarkable—but perhaps inevitable—to Lucy Hobbs herself, who became the first American woman to earn a dental degree when she did so in 1866. Her spirit and example are all over the pages that follow. Congratulations to this year’s honorees, who are doing their part (and then some) to propel dentistry into its brightest possible future.

INNOVATOR

TINA SAW

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT FURMAN: FURMANFOTO.COM

Age 37
City Carlsbad, California
Education DDS, Loma Linda University School of Dentistry; B.A. in biology, Case Western Reserve University
Affiliation Oral Genome

“I’M ASIAN AND PETITE—five feet, three inches—so I don’t look like the traditional man in the business world,” says Dr. Tina Saw. “As a woman, you get a lot of no’s, a lot of ‘this is stupid.’ I had so many people shoot me down and say, ‘No this won’t work, you don’t have the skills,’ whatever. But persistence is key. Women can do anything and everything. We just have to work hard.”

Work hard she does: It’s a “very flattering honor,” she says of the 2026 Lucy Hobbs Innovator Award, a testament to her groundbreaking work founding Oral Genome, a Carlsbad, California–based biotechnology outfit that she says will transform oral disease detection and prevention through saliva testing.

It’s still a nascent operation; Dr. Saw got it off the ground only in 2021, having raised some $3.5 million in funding to open the doors. Since she launched its point-of-care saliva test—which delivers results in 15 minutes with no traditional lab testing—this March, roughly 500 dental and medical offices nationwide have signed up to use it.

Dr. Saw counts some of the biggest names in dentistry among her backers. The American Dental Association is one of her investors—she won’t name the others—and in August Oral Genome launched a partnership with Henry Schein to bring the testing kits to more offices through Schein’s expansive network.

The Oral Genome test is administered chairside in dental offices via a proprietary collection device. Rather than the traditional method of mailing the saliva to a dental lab—which can take from a few days to several weeks to produce results—Oral Genome’s method entails simply taking a photo of the test card using a mobile app. A mathematical algorithm then reads the test for key biomarkers in the saliva using computer vision, a field of artificial intelligence that helps computers analyze visual images.

Given that saliva is a rich source of biomarkers, Dr. Saw says the results her test provides offer a comprehensive picture of the patient’s oral health that is more accurate—and far cheaper—than lab tests. Dentists can then use the results to make earlier diagnoses of gum disease and other oral ailments.

Biomarkers, likewise, are often a conduit to a variety of other diseases—so dentists who employ the Oral Genome test will subsequently refer their patients to physicians upon detecting early signs of everything from diabetes to cardiovascular disease. “It’s honestly saving lives,” Dr. Saw says.

A native of Olympia, Washington, Dr. Saw is not modest about her goals: She would like to see the testing kits in “every dental office.” The reason: In medicine, earlier is always better. “We have been such a reactive profession. We always see things when it’s too late,” she says. “Most diseases start in the mouth, and we haven’t been able to detect and measure them until it’s too late. But now, we’re changing the standard of care.” —J.M.

“Persistence is key. Women can do anything and everything. We just have to work hard.”

MENTOR

PHOTOGRAPHY BY LEAH OVERSTREET: LEAHOVERSTREET.COM

JARRETT L. MANNING

Age 47
City Atlanta, Georgia
Education DDS, University of Tennessee College of Dentistry; MPH, Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine; B.A., Xavier University of Louisiana
Name of Practices JLM Dental Studios

DR. JARRETT L. MANNING’S personal professional portfolio is so stuffed that it’s a wonder she has time to share her wisdom by mentoring others. She owns and runs JLM Dental Studios, general practices in Smyrna and East Point, Georgia; she’s founder and CEO of Honey Envy (a scientifically backed hair care line that caters to women of color); and she’s the visionary creator of Beyond Her Smile, a nonprofit that focuses on introducing girls and young women to the rewards of STEM-related careers.

Her efforts have drawn attention from media outlets as diverse as Cosmopolitan magazine, The Tom Joyner Morning Show (a formerly syndicated radio program that focused on urban affairs), blackdoctor.org (“Where Wellness and Culture Connect”) and many others. She also appeared on two seasons of Bravo’s Married to Medicine, on which she dispensed beauty and style advice.

Dr. Manning mentors current students and aspiring dentists at her practices, but her goal of exposing more middle-school girls to careers in medicine and the sciences motivated her to found Beyond Her Smile. “I’ve always known that mentorship would be a part of the vision for my practice,” she says. “It’s about more than giving advice—it’s about creating pathways, creating access and helping young girls see what is possible.”

The organization offers career panel discussions, community service projects, wellness-centered events and hands-on professional shadowing experiences, many of which take place during the summer when students aren’t in school. So far, it has worked with participants in the Atlanta area and is planning its first leadership summit sometime in 2026. “My goal is to help young women and girls tap into their potential, no matter what career path they choose. I’m intentional about helping women in all walks of life build confidence, discover purpose and develop leadership skills.”

The beauty of such projects, she observes, is that the benefits flow both ways. “Mentorship doesn’t just change individuals,” Dr. Manning says. “It shifts families, communities and individuals. When a young girl believes in herself, everything around her begins to elevate.” The fact that reaching these young women can be a challenge, she adds, is what keeps her fire lit: “You can’t pour someone’s potential into them. You can guide, encourage and open doors, but they still have to walk through them.”

It’s all in a day’s work for this multitalented, multifaceted mentor who daily seeks to spark inspiration in others. “Learning how to balance giving my all while allowing others to grow at their own pace,” she says, “has been a continual lesson in patience and grace.” —M.K.

“Mentorship shifts families, communities and individuals. When a young girl believes in herself, everything around her begins to elevate.”

INDUSTRY ICON

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM SCHMID: JIMSCHMID.COM

ANNE DUFFY

Age 72
City Charlotte, North Carolina
Education B.S. in dental hygiene, The Ohio State University
Affiliation Dental Entrepreneur Woman

MOST PEOPLE, having spent 46 years as a dental hygienist, would rightly call it a career. Anne Duffy viewed it as just step one. Her latest venture, Dental Entrepreneur Woman (DeW), has become a powerful megaphone advocating for female voices throughout the industry. “What began as a magazine celebrating extraordinary women in dentistry quickly became a movement and a vibrant community with a membership platform, podcasts and an annual retreat,” Duffy says. “DeW has grown not only in numbers but in spirit, nurturing women in dentistry to connect, collaborate and lead with confidence.”

Duffy constructed the platform on ten firm principles, which range from reminders about the benefits of good interpersonal relations (“Be kind. Don’t be a jerk”) to winking you-go-girl adages (“The answer is in the ladies’ room”). She kicked it off by founding DeW Life magazine in July 2016; it’s both a print and digital quarterly—we’re certainly fans of those—that reaches some 43,000 subscribers. Its corresponding weekly podcast, Just DeW It, gets enough downloads, she claims, to rank among the top 25 percent of podcasts worldwide. “Every guest brings a new story, a new spark and a new lesson,” she says. “I’ve learned so much from these conversations, and sharing them to inspire and empower others is pure joy.”

Then there’s that annual DeW Life Retreat, which hosts 250 attendees from around the country. This past year’s was a three-day affair in mid-November at the Ballantyne, a luxury resort in Charlotte, North Carolina, where women representing all facets of the dental profession convened to share ideas, network and participate in a silent auction featuring goodies such as CE courses and coaching sessions. (Yoga sessions, seminars and even a fashion show presented by Dentsply­Sirona were also on the bill of fare.)

The silent auction raised some $80,000 for the DeW Good Fund, a philanthropic initiative that works to promote women across a variety of industries and career interests. One way it does so is through its partnership with Dress for Success, the prominent organization that helps women obtain professional attire so they can put their best self forward at job interviews and—once they’ve landed the position they’re after—in the workplace.

Duffy’s days are packed—every bit as crowded as they were throughout her decades spent chairside. “I start with coffee and the Wall Street Journal,” she says, and then come meetings, Mass, yoga, strategy sessions, writing and plenty more. But her rewards are ample as well: Every evening, she meets her husband—with whom she recently celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary—on their back porch. “He always has a martini waiting,” she says with a chuckle. Lights out at 9:30. After all, morning comes quickly when you’re as busy as Duffy, helping entrepreneurial dental women reach their full potential in innumerable ways. —M.K.

“DeW has grown not only in numbers but in spirit, nurturing women in dentistry to connect, collaborate and lead with confidence.”

HUMANITARIAN

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KELLY DAVIDSON: KELLYDAVIDSONSTUDIO.COM

SHILPI JOSHI

Age 42
City Boston, Massachusetts
Education DMD, Boston University’s Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine
Affiliations NeighborHealth; Boston University School of Dental Medicine

YOU WOULD BE correct to surmise that compassionate care is something of an inborn trait for Dr. Shilpi Joshi. Her familial lineage of medical providers extends back to her paternal grandfather, a physician, who served those without access to care in rural India, often traveling long distances to see them. Dr. Joshi’s father, an ophthalmic surgeon, also worked in public health in India, providing care to all comers with equal commitment. “In many ways, my path has been an evolution of the values passed down through generations—a belief that healing transcends boundaries of geography, status and privilege,” Dr. Joshi says.

A graduate of Manipal College of Dental Sciences in Manipal, a bustling city on India’s southwest coast, Dr. Joshi then trained at Boston University, where she has served as an adjunct faculty member for the last 11 years. In that capacity and through her work at NeighborHealth (formerly the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center), she has taught hundreds of students, including first-year enrollees of BU’s APEX (Applied Professional Experience) program, which mimics a full dental environment from day one.

NeighborHealth caters to underserved and otherwise vulnerable populations in the greater Boston area, as well as Medicare, Medi­caid and private-insurance patients. Through it Dr. Joshi treats some 2,500 patients annually, regardless—in an echo of her grandfather’s service—of their ability to pay. “Care is tailored to what each patient can afford, rather than strict textbook ideals, which I believe is a key distinction between working in a private clinic versus a
community health center,” she says.

Every patient interaction, she adds, is an opportunity to combine clinical expertise with empathy. “When a patient sits in my chair, they place complete trust in me, believing I will provide the best possible care,” she says. “I see this as a profound responsibility—one that reminds me that being human must come first, even before being a dentist.”

That simple notion—of the nobility of being human—informs her work on a number of levels beyond dentistry as well. She’s involved in the National Dental Practice–Based Research organization and, closer to home, contributes both time and money to Educate Beyond (educatebeyond.net), a foster program run by a high school student in her town. She volunteers as well for Saheli, a Boston nonprofit group that offers “cultural- and language-specific services to South Asian and Arab domestic violence survivors and their children.” Her forebears are no doubt proud that their concern for others less fortunate lives on in Dr. Joshi today. —M.K.

“In many ways, my path has been an evolution of the values passed down through generations—a belief that healing transcends boundaries of geography, status and privilege.”

WOMAN TO WATCH

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CINDY APPLE: CINDY APPLE PHOTOGRAPHY;
CINDYAPPLE.COM; INSTAGRAM: @CAPPLEPHOTO

LAUREN YASUDA RAINEY

Age 40
City Bellevue, Washington
Education General practice residency, Tufts University School of Dental Medicine; DDS, University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry; B.A. in East Asian Studies, Wellesley College
Affiliation LAURENRAINEY.COM

IF YOU CARE to take our advice and spend some time keeping an eye on Dr. Lauren Yasuda Rainey, this year’s Woman to Watch, you might have your work cut out for you. Having operated as a clinical dentist in her Bay Area fee-for-service practice for the last decade, Dr. Rainey spent a great deal of time traveling for lectures and teaching direct composite restorative programs, soft tissue management and more, both in person and virtually.

She was recently on the move once more, leaving her longtime home base of Berkeley, California, for the damper northerly digs of Belle­vue, Washington, just east of Seattle. She credits the experience she gleaned during her undergraduate years at Wellesley College in Massachusetts for the trajectory of her subsequent career: “I didn’t know it at the time, but seeing women chair the meetings, run the laboratory, set the budget and disperse the funds gave me no reason to question what my peers or I were capable of.” That was a stark contrast from her experience at several of the other stops along her educational continuum, she says, where the majority of her instructors, course directors and department chairs were typically men.

Her schedule is a daily challenge. She tries to dedicate the start of each workweek to clinical practice, using the latter portion (and often weekends) to write for a variety of dental publications, consult and present CE courses. In 2025, she delivered more than 20 lectures—three of them as far afield as Croatia—led a pair of two-day hands-on programs, recorded multiple podcasts and helped facilitate a virtual mentoring program. She is on the board of Women in Digital Dentistry and the alumni association of the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, and she’s involved with the speaker’s bureau at Catapult Education, a leading dental CE organization based in Florida. Finally, she sits on a variety of clinical advisory boards. She is, truly, a woman to watch—assuming you can ever catch her when she’s not in motion, that is. —M.K.

“I didn’t know it at the time, but seeing women chair the meetings, run the laboratory, set the budget and disperse the funds gave me no reason to question what my peers or I were capable of.”

CLINICAL EXPERT

PHOTOGRAPHY BY RANDAL CROW: RANDALCROW.COM

JENNIFER HIRSCH DOOBROW

Age 44
City Cullman, Alabama
Education DUAL Certification in periodontics, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and The Veterans Administration Of Birmingham; DMD, Medical University of South Carolina; B.S. in psychology and biology, University
of Georgia
Name of Practices Periodontal & Implant Associates

LIFE CHANGED RADICALLY 18 years ago for Dr. Jennifer Hirsch Doobrow, DMD, FACD, FICD when her father, just 53, passed away suddenly in the summer between her first and second years of periodontal resi­dency. Heartbroken, she stood firm in his footsteps—literally and figuratively—taking over both of his perio practices (one in Cullman, Alabama, and one in Jasper, an hour from Birmingham) while completing her residency. One week after graduation, she
delivered her son, returning to the two practices after nine weeks to begin what has become an extraordinarily accomplished career.

“Losing [my father] while balancing the demands of residency and managing our two Periodontal & Implant Associates locations was the hardest challenge I have faced,” she says. “There were moments when I wasn’t sure I could continue. But my UAB periodontal fac­ulty, my incredible team—many of whom had worked with my dad—and countless mentors across dentistry lifted me up. Their faith in me gave me the strength to move forward.”

Dr. Doobrow, a former cheerleader at the University of Georgia and a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology, is a widely recognized perio expert, traveling domestically and overseas for numerous speaking engagements every year (capitalizing on the travel by bringing her husband and son with her whenever possible). Her research has been published in Compendium, Inside Dentistry, Dental Economics, Dentistry IQ, Surgical Restorative Resource and Perio-Implant Advisory; she has also appeared on Dr. Howard Farran’s Dentistry Uncensored podcast and on The Balancing Act, a Lifetime television talk show.

Her professional bona fides are inarguable: She’s an executive advisory board member of the Seattle Study Club and president of the Alabama Dental Association, as well as past president of both the Southern Academy of Periodontology and the Alabama Society of Periodontists. She’s on the board of trustees of the American Academy of Periodontology and a fellow of the Pierre Fauchard Academy, the International College of Dentists and several other professional organizations. She spends her daily 9-to-5 in charge of Periodontal & Implant Associates, her practice in Cullman.

Given the trauma she endured at the start of her career, it’s no surprise that Dr. Doobrow believes that in adversity lies opportunity. “[My father’s passing] taught me the true meaning of resilience, and it shaped my lifelong commitment to mentorship. I know firsthand how it feels to be supported during your darkest hour, and I’ve made it my mission to do the same for others,” she says. “Now we continue my father’s legacy every single day. What was once
his vision has become our shared purpose, and together, my team and I have built upon his foundation as we strive every day to ‘change lives, one mouth at a time’—our practice motto.” —M.K.

“We continue my father’s legacy every single day. What was once his vision has become our shared purpose, and together, my team and I have built upon his foundation as we strive every day to change lives, one mouth at a time.”

TRAILBLAZER

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIM WHITE: KIM@KIMWHITEPHOTOS.COM

WARDAH INAM

Age 38
City San Mateo, California
Education Master’s in electrical engineering and computer science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Affiliation Overjet

IT WAS NEARING the end of 2017, and a young artificial intelligence researcher needed to change dentists.

She would wind up changing dentistry.

That researcher—Wardah Inam, a postdoctoral fellow at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab—was moving to a different part of Boston. She found a dentist who was more conveniently located but who wanted to alter her treatment plan. “You would think it was a different patient,” recalls Inam, who was concerned that the dentist couldn’t explain the change and showed her X-rays that were hard to interpret.

An idea took shape: Maybe Inam could apply her AI knowledge to make dental diagnosis more objective and precise while also better preventing oral disease. After reading “obsessively” about dentistry, shadowing dentists and raising money, in August 2018 Inam cofounded Overjet, which became the first major player in the dental AI space—and whose platform is now used by more than 40,000 clinicians.

We’re proud to say we’ve given Inam copious ink in these pages over the years, and few have ever deserved the Lucy Hobbs Trailblazer Award more. She and her company are a significant reason why artificial intelligence adoption in dental practices is growing so rapidly.

A native of Pakistan, Inam came to the United States to study at MIT, where she earned her master’s and doctorate, both in electrical engineering and computer science. She also led product development at Q Bio, a biomedical imaging startup, before launching Overjet.

Now based in San Mateo, California, just south of San Francisco, Overjet is “growing very quickly,” Inam says—it’s valued at some $550 million and has introduced nine FDA-approved products, more than any other dental AI company. Its AI-powered radiograph analysis platform uses a process called segmentation to add color-coded indicators to traditionally black-and-white dental X-rays to help clinicians isolate concerns and communicate them to patients. The platform also analyzes patient records to identify treatment needs and quantifies bone level measurements to help diagnose gum disease and other oral health conditions.

Overjet is also a leader in AI-powered dental insurance, offering a platform that helps insurance companies reduce payer/provider friction by making faster and more accurate claims decisions and by more quickly credentialing providers into their networks.

Inam is especially proud of Overjet’s most recent innovation: an AI-powered oral health score for patients, which shows how much untreated disease or how many compromised teeth are present in their mouth at a given time. “Nobody measures oral health in a dental practice,” she says. “You go to a dentist, they take your X-rays and they do treatment.”

She’s not done pioneering by a long shot. In the works is voice-based technology to help dentists transcribe their notes, and an expansion of Overjet’s recently launched ReviewPASS, which gives patients instant calculations on their insurance coverage while still in the chair. It is, Inam says with typical enthusiasm, “a game changer.” A game changer herself, she would certainly know. —J.M.

An idea took shape: AI knowledge could make dental diagnosis more precise while also preventing oral disease.