Dr. Waletha Wasson, BS, DDS, MPA, MS, MAGD (AGD Emeritus), holds the position of tenured and full professor within the Department of General Dentistry and serves as the Program Director for the 21st Century Initiative: Oral-Systemic and Population-Based Health for All at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry in Memphis, Tennessee. She has also fulfilled the role of course director for multiple pre-clinical and clinical courses. Dr. Waletha Wasson, an alumna of Tennessee Technological University (1976) with a B.S. in Biology; the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) College of Dentistry (1979) with a D.D.S.; the University of Memphis (1988) with an M.P.A.; and the University of Michigan (2001) with an M.S. in Restorative Dentistry. She has over 41 years of experience in healthcare. She worked for nine years as a staff dentist at Memphis Health Center, Inc. (MHC) and spent more than 30 years at the UTHSC College of Dentistry (1988). Dr. Wasson aims to inspire faculty, staff, students, and learners about the social determinants of health and the significance of healthcare activism. She emphasizes oral-systemic and medical-dental integrative care, as well as interprofessional education and collaborative clinical patient/care. She is the founder and member of Tennessee Smiles: U.T. Grassroots Oral Health Outreach Initiative (2003). She was a 2023 fellow at the Delta Regional Authority – Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy from January to September 2023. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Academy of General Dentistry Foundation, the Community Advisory Council for the Assisi Foundation of Memphis, Inc., and the American Academy for Oral Systemic Health Advisory Council. She is the Program Director of A 21st Century Initiative – Oral-Systemic and Population-Based Health for All (2018). Dr. Wasson has received numerous awards and honors in service, education, and scholarly activities.