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Remembering Dr. J.M.
Chadha
Jagdish
M. Chadha,
past chair and professor
emeritus of
orthodontics, passed
away on July 31, at the
age of 86. Respected and
loved by his students,
he served as a faculty
member at LSUSD for
nearly 40 years, from
1970-2008.
After obtaining his
dental degree in 1956 from
Punjab Dental College and
Hospital, he relocated to
Boston for a postgraduate
internship in pediatric
dentistry and was selected
for a two-year clinical
fellowship program in
orthodontics. Dr. Chadha
completed both programs at
Forsyth-Harvard in 1958
and 1960 respectively. In
1962 he received a master
of science and in 1964, a
DDS, both from the
University of Iowa, where
he taught until 1970, when
he accepted an offer from
LSUSD to establish the
orthodontics department.
In 1970 he was named
coordinator of advanced
education and in 1976 he
was appointed assistant
dean of advanced
education, serving in the
position until 2005. Dr.
Chadha also served as
orthodontic consultant to
the LSUSD Department of
General Dentistry, Charity
Hospital of Louisiana, and
the U.S. Public Health
Service Hospital in New
Orleans.
Dr. Chadha
was a fellow in the
International College of
Dentists. He served as
president of the local
chapter of Omicron Kappa
Upsilon and as a member of
the American Association
of Orthodontics (AAO)
International Relations
Committee during its
annual meeting in New
Orleans in 1980. In
addition, he served as
president and member of
the board of trustees of
the India Association of
New Orleans.
Dr. Chadha received many
awards during his career,
the first of which was the
University of Iowa College
of Dentistry Instructor of
the Year. One of his most
notable awards was the
American Association of
Orthodontics Louise Ada
Jarabak Memorial
International Teachers and
Research Award. When he
received the award in
2005, nearly 100% of his
alumni traveled to the AAO
Annual Meeting in San
Francisco to honor his
academic career. In 2008
he also received the LSU
Health Sciences Center
Distinguished Service
Award in recognition of
outstanding contributions
to the advanced education
programs at LSUSD.
When he was awarded the
LSU School of Dentistry
Lifetime Service Award in
2016, Dr. Chadha said how
proud he was of his
orthodontic alumni. "I
believe that the way I
treated them, by
stimulating their thought
processes instead of using
'drawstring' techniques,
left a lasting
impression." Because of
Dr. Chadha's legacy,
alumni have funded
endowments valued at over
$2 million to benefit the
LSUSD Department of
Orthodontics.
Star
Students
Dr.
Mary Elizabeth Bush,
second-year periodontics
resident, won first
place in the Billy M.
Pennel Graduate Student
Research Competition,
sponsored by the
Southern Academy of
Periodontology. Although
LSUSD residents have
entered this competition
every year, she is the
first one to win first
place. The meeting was
held in June on Amelia
Island, Florida.
The subject of Dr. Bush's
research is comparing
wound healing properties
of amnion chorion membrane
to collagen membrane with
and without platelets rich
in growth factors. She
will investigate
differences in cell
attachment, cell
proliferation and cell
migration on the different
membranes.
Celeste Edwards,
second-year dental
student, won a scholarship
from the National Dental
Association (NDA) in July
in Orlando. The "NDA
Health NOW Step Up to
Stem Award" reflects the
view of both the NDA and
the Student National
Dental Association (SNDA)
that access to care is a
matter of social justice.
The award was presented to
two dental students who
created a 20-minute STEM
activity with an oral
health focus for students
in grades K-12. As a
winner of the scholarship,
Celeste conducted the stem
activity that she designed
for disadvantaged youths
at the NDA Health NOW
Outreach Day at a Boys and
Girls Club in Orlando.
Celeste holds the
position of SNDA
representative to the NDA
Board of Trustees, serving
as a bridge between the
national and student
organizations. In this
position she brings
students’ concerns to the
NDA Board of Trustees,
working to increase
mentorship opportunities
as well as the number of
young dentists in the NDA.
Congratulations to Dr.
Bush and Celeste Edwards!
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