ECU School of Dental Medicine awards first endowed professorship

Dr. Michael Webb was named the inaugural recipient of the East Carolina University School of Dental Medicine’s Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Professorship in Pediatric Dentistry during a July 21 ceremony at the East Carolina Heart Institute.

Webb is a clinical associate professor and chair of the school’s Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics.

The professorship is the school’s first endowed professorship and is supported by gifts through the ECU Medical & Health Sciences Foundation, Inc. The award was named in honor of Jasper Lewis, Jr., a longtime Greenville pediatric dentist, national trailblazer and advocate in the dental profession.

Dr. Michael Webb, left, who was named the inaugural Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Scholar, stands with Dr. Jasper Lewis, a longtime Greenville pediatric dentist for which the Distinguished Professorship in Pediatric Dentistry was named. (Photos by Rhett Butler)

The Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Professorship positions the dental school to place a more specialized emphasis on evolving topics, treatments and research in the realm of pediatric dentistry and to enhance educational experiences in classrooms and clinics.

The school received $667,000 in gifts toward the establishment of the distinguished professorship, which was supplemented by the state with an additional $333,000, bringing the endowed distinguished professorship to $1 million. The state has also approved its status as a distinguished professorship. More than $300,000 in additional pledges and commitments will provide an endowment for the Lewis Collaborative, a year-long program through the professorship that will offer rigorous classroom and clinical experiences to general dentists working to become highly trained in caring for pediatric dental patients.

“Today’s event is the culmination of several years of planning, fundraising, teamwork on the part of many,” said ECU School of Dental Medicine Dean Dr. Greg Chadwick, adding that the school has paused to celebrate its milestones and first for now more than a decade.

“This is one of the most exciting firsts,” Chadwick said. “As every milestone we have approached in the life of the School of Dental Medicine, all of our firsts have been made possible through community who believe in us and believe in our mission.”

Chadwick said the professorship honors Lewis’s dedication to pediatric dentistry and the profession, as well as his support of the school from its earliest days.

“Jasper epitomizes everything we would want in our first distinguished professor,” he said.

ECU Chancellor Philip Rogers said those gathered understood and supported the magnitude of the school’s first distinguished professorship.

“What a great day it is to be a Pirate, of course especially a Pirate here at the School of Dental Medicine,” Rogers said, finding Lewis in the crowd, “and what a great day it is to celebrate another historic moment in the life of our university and our institution, and to recognize the leadership and celebrate the great man who is our dear friend.”

Before he and Chadwick presented the Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Professorship medallion to Webb, Rogers explained the significance of the award, which Webb will wear along with his regalia at commencement and other major school events.

“Dr. Webb personifies the very spirit of the Lewis Professorship for his commitment to the highest quality of care, especially for our younger patients,” Rogers said. “With his energy, enthusiasm, expertise and spirit of service in the dental profession and community, Dr. Webb and his career symbolize the Lewis Professorship program and what it will mean for our school, for students and for patients in the years to come.”

After the medallion was placed around his neck, Webb addressed the nearly 100 people at the ceremony, including national dentistry leaders.

ECU School of Dental Medicine Dean Dr. Greg Chadwick presents Lewis with a commemorative medal during the ceremony honoring Lewis and the inaugural distinguished professor, ECU dental school faculty member Dr. Michael Webb.

“It is a great honor to be named the inaugural Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Distinguished Scholar,” he said. “As this professorship and collaborative developed, it has become so much more than I think any of us imagined it would. We are honoring the legacy of Dr. Jasper Lewis, Jr., but we are doing it in a way that perpetuates his deep commitment to provide dental care for all children.”

Webb previously served as graduate program director at Baylor College of Dentistry and the chief of dental services at Children’s Medical Center of Dallas. He became graduate program director in pediatric dentistry at Virginia Commonwealth University before opening a private practice that focused on office sedation and general anesthesia. Webb returned to academics in 2014 to become the director of the Pediatric Dentistry Residency program at the ECU School of Dental Medicine; he was named chair of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics at ECU in 2018.

Webb is an active member of the North Carolina Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, the East Central Dental Society, the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry.  He is also a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics and represents the Section on Oral Health on national committees related to opioid use and rural health care.

Lewis was on hand to see the inaugural Lewis Professorship awarded and also received his own medallion to mark the occasion.

“It is truly humbling,” Lewis said of the professorship holding his name. “So many people in this room deserve this and more.”

Lewis outlined the details of the effort to get a dental school at ECU and everyone who has stood by the school since the idea came about in the early 2000s.

“So when I tell you how humbling it is to be in this room, I’m not exaggerating,” Lewis said. “Look around the room. You’re the people who made all this possible.”

Lewis grew up in eastern North Carolina, where he returned after pursuing his education and later serving as a dental officer in the U.S. Air Force. He received a bachelor’s in biology from Wake Forest University, earned his dental degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and completed a postdoctoral degree in pediatric dentistry from UNC in 1973 — the same year he opened his Greenville practice.

He has held leadership positions in dental organizations, including a term as president of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry and another as vice president of the North Carolina Dental Society. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry, and he has lectured across the country and around world on topics including pediatric dentistry and practice management. He has been a driving force in East Central Dental Society’s annual “Give Kids a Smile” Day since the program began nationally in 2003. He was instrumental in garnering support for the ECU School of Dental Medicine and continues to champion its mission.

For information on making a gift to the Jasper L. Lewis, Jr. Pediatric Dentistry Collaborative Endowment, contact Jon Jones, senior director of development at the ECU School of Dental Medicine, at 252-744-2239 or learn more online.

ECU is in the public phase of the Pursue Gold campaign to raise half a billion dollars. This ambitious effort will create new paths to success for Pirates on campus, across the country and around the world. Donor gifts during the campaign will keep us constantly leading and ready to advance what’s possible. Learn more at pursuegold.ecu.edu.