Meet Our Newest Faculty

Dr. Saria Abdullah joined the college on February 28, 2022, as an assistant-professor-clinical in the Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry. Dr. Abdullah received his DDS degree from Odessa State Medical University in Odessa, Ukraine. He completed his advanced education program in prosthodontics at the New York University College of Dentistry. He previously served as a clinical lecturer in the Department of Biologic and Materials Sciences and Prosthodontics at the University of Michigan. He has also served as a general dentist in private practice. As a member of the college faculty, Dr. Abdullah supports didactic and clinical courses in the predoctoral restorative dentistry curricula.

Dr. Diana Leyva del Rio joined the college on February 7, 2022, as an assistant professor in the Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry. Dr. Leyva del Rio received her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree at the Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí in Mexico. She completed her Master of Science degree in craniofacial biology from the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of the University of Southern California, and she earned her PhD in oral biology at The Ohio State University College of Dentistry. She previously served as an assistant professor in the graduate prosthodontics program at the Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí. She has also served as a general dentist in private practice. As a faculty member of the college, Dr. Leyva del Rio directs and supports didactic and clinical courses in the predoctoral restorative dentistry curricula.

Dr. Leonardo Nassani joined the college on January 10, 2022, as an assistant professor-clinical in the Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry. Dr. Nassani received his Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry degree from McGill University Faculty of Dentistry in Montreal, QC in Canada. He completed his Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) program at the Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine in Cleveland. He previously served as a faculty lecturer-clinical at the McGill University Faculty of Dentistry in Montreal, and he was the General Residency Program supervisor in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Dentistry at Montreal General Hospital. As a faculty member of the college, Dr. Nassani directs and supports didactic and clinical courses in the predoctoral restorative dentistry curricula.

Dr. Kinjal Vora joined the college on May 9, 2022, as an assistant professor-clinical in the Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry. She received her BDS degree from the Government Dental College and Hospital in Gujarat, India. Continuing her professional education, she earned a certificate in prosthodontics from New York University’s College of Dentistry. Dr. Vora has served as a teaching assistant in the simulation laboratories and pre-doctoral clinics at New York University’s College of Dentistry, and she has been a dental practitioner at Cross Creek Dental care in Marion, Ohio. As a faculty member in the college, Dr. Vora has assumed didactic, preclinical, and clinical teaching responsibilities.