UM Today UM Today University of Manitoba UM Today UM Today UM Today
News from
Rady Faculty of Health Sciences
UM Today Network

Kelekis-Cholakis to lead U of M dental college

March 29, 2019 — 

A prominent Winnipeg periodontist, U of M dentistry alumna and faculty member has been appointed dean of the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry.

Dr. Anastasia Kelekis-Cholakis will assume the leadership of the dental college on July 1. 

“With her distinguished record of leadership, innovation, fiscal responsibility and service to the college, Dr. Kelekis-Cholakis is eminently qualified and will be an outstanding dean of dentistry,” said Dr. Brian Postl, dean of the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

“She has shown exemplary commitment to enhancing the student experience, internal and external partnerships, research, teaching, patient care and community engagement.”

Kelekis-Cholakis earned a bachelor of arts from the University of Winnipeg in 1988, followed by her doctor of dental medicine degree in 1992 and her diploma in periodontics in 1998, both from the U of M.

She currently serves as director of the graduate periodontal program at the college and as an associate professor of dental diagnostic and surgical sciences. She is a fellow of the Royal College of Dentists of Canada and a member of the Canadian and American Academies of Periodontology. 

Following her specialty training in 1998, Kelekis-Cholakis founded the Southwest Specialty Group, one of the first practices in Canada to house a variety of dental specialists in one practice.

Her part-time teaching career at the U of M started 26 years ago. Since becoming a full-time academic and program director, she has emphasized innovative technologies and teaching methods, such as the acquisition of a dental microscope and training in microsurgery. She was closely involved in the recent $750,000 upgrade of the graduate periodontology clinic and has improved its financial performance.

Kelekis-Cholakis lectures nationally and internationally. She is an accomplished researcher with peer-reviewed publications, abstracts and book chapters to her credit, and has collaborated on international clinical trials.

Her research interests include periodontal soft tissue microsurgery, peri-implant maintenance and biological implant complications. In 2018, she sat on the international Peri Implant Disease Project special committee, an invited panel of experts from 10 countries.

Her outreach work has included dental mission trips to Zimbabwe and Uganda. She has served on the boards of organizations such as the Manitoba Dental Association and has founded several organizations, including the Canadian Dental Institute (a continuing education provider) and the Women’s Dental Network.

Kelekis-Cholakis’s honours include the American Academy of Periodontology Dental Educator Award for outstanding teaching and mentoring in periodontics (2012), a Certificate of Appreciation from the Canadian Academy of Periodontology (2014), and election by her peers to the Pierre Fauchard Academy (2017).

Along with this new appointment, Postl sincerely thanked Dr. Anthony Iacopino for his exceptional leadership as dean of the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry for the past 12 years.

Iacopino’s many accomplishments include technological innovations, facility upgrades, enhancing the learning and teaching environment, creating a general practice clinic structure, establishing a mentorship program with the Manitoba Dental Association for all dental students, and strengthening relationships with alumni.

, , ,

© University of Manitoba • Winnipeg, Manitoba • Canada • R3T 2N2

Emergency: 204-474-9341