Lora Graves, DDS, retired in May following an 18-year-long career at the West Virginia University School of Dentistry.
“Lora has been an integral member of our School of Dentistry family for nearly 20 years,” Stephen Pachuta, DDS, dean of the WVU School of Dentistry, said. “Her commitment to student success and support of community healthcare at the Susan Dew Hoff and Wheeling Health Right clinics showcase her career of service at West Virginia University. Lora’s impressive service to our Nation as a member of the U.S. Air Force Dental Corp followed her to our School as she championed our annual veterans’ healthcare clinics.
“Her commitment to clinical excellence and high-quality patient care has a been a central focus of her professional practice. Lora’s service to our military members, our School of Dentistry, and our West Virginia families made a significant positive difference across our profession. We wish her and Bryan much happiness as they begin their well-earned and very well-deserved next chapter.”
Dr. Graves joined the School of Dentistry in 2008 as an assistant professor in the Department of Restorative Dentistry and was promoted to associate professor in 2014. Prior to joining the faculty at WVU, she served in the United States Air Force as a general dental officer for 10 years and as a contractor for nine years.
A Charleston, West Virginia, native, Dr. Graves earned a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from WVU in 1984, where she also completed a general practice residency the following year. She earned a Fellowship in the Academy of General Dentistry, an honor held by only about 6% of general dentists in the United States and Canada, and the International College of Dentists.
Dr. Graves has served on several national committees throughout her career, including the Consortium of Operative Dental Educators and American Dental Education Association Council of Faculties. She has served in several positions in the Supreme Chapter of Delta Sigma Delta and as Deputy Supreme Grand Master to the Chi Chi Chapter.
At the University, she served on various committees including the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Committee, the Commencement Committee, and as a University Marshal for several years. Service within the School of Dentistry included the Academic and Professional Standards Committee, Promotion and Tenure Committee, Admissions Committee, Dental Corporation Board of Directors, and various search committees, many of which she chaired.
In addition to clinical duties, Dr. Graves provided leadership as the coordinator of Clinical Board Examinations for more than a decade and as a board examiner for ADEX exams at other dental schools.
As a team leader for more than 15 years, Dr. Graves helped guide students through patient management and hands-on patient care experiences to prepare them for graduation and clinical practice. She started a Limited Care Clinic to reduce wait time before treatment for patients with minimal needs and to help students achieve benchmarks. For many years, she was the clinical course director for operative dentistry and the pre-clinical course director for fixed prosthodontics.
Dr. Graves has further showcased her commitment to student excellence by helping to implement rural rotations for students at Susan Dew Hoff Memorial Clinic in West Milford, West Virginia and Wheeling Health Right. She has also served on the board for the Susan Dew Hoff Clinic since 2023.
To support patients with financial needs, Dr. Graves began a philanthropy project for the Chi Chi Chapter of Delta Sigma Delta that is now endowed and will continue to provide care for patients in the future. She, along with her husband, Bryan Dye, DDS, also helped establish a scholarship to honor Elliot Schulman, DDS, former chair of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, who passed away from cancer. They were all stationed together at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The scholarship benefits students who are either interested in pediatric dentistry or serving in the Air Force.
Dr. Graves was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal (First Oak Leaf Cluster), the highest honor awarded for non-combat achievement or service, by the United States Air Force. In addition, she was named as a member of the Omicron Kappa Upsilon Honor Dental Society and a Fellow in the Pierre Fauchard Academy.
“I am extremely proud to have served my country, but I am most proud of my time at the School of Dentistry,” she said. “I am fortunate to have had two very fulfilling careers. I will deeply miss the students, faculty, and staff. The last 18 years have flown by, and I wish I had 18 more to give. I feel I have received more than I have given. It has been an immense pleasure.”
Dr. Graves officially retired from her position at the School of Dentistry on May 29.
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