Writing this month's Editor's Corner is a bittersweet endeavor for me. I am taking the opportunity to report a number of changes in the JCO editorial board, with the retirement of several longtime friends and editors accompanied by the introduction of newfound friends and board members.
On my return home to Southern California after this year's AAO annual session in New Orleans, I had the good fortune to spend the better part of an hour with Dr. R.G. (Wick) Alexander and his wife, Janna, waiting for a connecting flight in the airport. As is always the case when speaking with Wick, we had a wonderful conversation. It ended on an unhappy note, though, when he told me that the time had come for him to retire from the JCO board, on which he has served as a Contributing Editor since 1992. Wick followed his older brother Moody to the University of Texas Orthodontic Department in Houston, then to private practice in the Dallas area, where he served for many years on the faculty of the Baylor College of Dentistry. His Vari-Simplex Discipline, originally published in JCO in 1983, became one of the cornerstones of our specialty. His practice accumulated one of the world's most extensive collections of long-term records--which he calls the "Room of Truth--making it an invaluable resource for the study of stability. Wick has been one of my role models since my days as an orthodontic graduate student, and I cannot thank him enough for everything he has done for me, for JCO, and for the entire profession.
Similar articles from the archive:
There are two more retiring board members I'd like to honor this month. Dr. Warren Hamula has been one of the longest-serving and most prolific editors in JCO's history. Since joining our board in 1977, he has authored or co-authored more than 60 articles, with a particular emphasis on orthodontic office design. Warren was an All-America basketball player at Baldwin Wallace University and was drafted as a baseball player by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1950, but decided instead to enter dental school at Western Reserve University (now Case Western Reserve). He then earned his orthodontic degree at Indiana University and practiced for decades in Colorado Springs before retiring to Carmel, Calif. As the longtime President of Modern Orthodontic Design, he revolutionized the way orthodontists practice, from chairside delivery systems to landscaping. No author has done more to establish JCO as the primary journal of day-today orthodontics, and I'd like to extend my fond personal thanks for his contributions to our journal and our specialty.
For the first time in JCO's half-century of publication, a Contributing Editor is being replaced on our board by his son. Dr. Jose (Pepe) Carriere one of the most respected orthodontists in Europe, has served as an editor since 1995. Holding degrees in both medicine and orthodontics, he has brought a unique perspective on dentofacial orthopedics to his highly successful practice in Barcelona, Spain. His son Luis has followed in his footsteps, receiving a master's degree in orthodontics from the University of Barcelona in 1994 and a doctorate in odontology from the same university in 2006. Luis Carriere not only practices along with his father, but has gained a reputation as an orthodontic inventor with his Carriere Distalizer and self-ligating bracket. In recent years, he has lectured at conferences and universities all over the world. Although Pepe's departure leaves a big void for JCO, we believe Luis will bring a strong sense of continuity.
Dr. Gayle Glenn is actually returning to our editorial board after a 10-year hiatus, during which she represented the Southwestern Society of Orthodontists on the AAO Board of Trustees and then served as the first female president of the AAO. Before finishing her term at the annual session in New Orleans, she was recognized for her professional contributions by Texas Rep. Pete Sessions on the floor of Congress. A 1984 graduate of the Baylor College of Dentistry, she shares her Dallas practice with another orthodontist and two pediatric dentists, focusing on the treatment of children and adolescents. Throughout her career, Gayle has been a strong advocate for the position of women in our specialty, and we know her resumed presence on our editorial board will only serve to extend that leadership.
Dr. Seong-Hun (Sunny) Kim is JCO's first Contributing Editor from Korea. He is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Orthodontics at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, as well as a visiting professor of orthodontics at the University of California-San Francisco, St. Louis University, and the National Hospital of Odonto-Stomatology in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. I first met Sunny in 2003, when we were both guest speakers at the orthodontic specialty program of the University of Ferrara, Italy. I was impressed with both his dynamic personality and his remarkable grasp of the technical issues in contemporary orthodontics. Having lectured and published on skeletal anchorage and other topics around the world, he is currently an Associate Editor for the Korean Journal of Orthodontics and a reviewer for many international journals. Besides his strong background and personality, he brings a unique understanding of the Asian orthodontic community to our board.
While we at JCO are sad to say goodbye to Wick Alexander, Warren Hamula, and Pepe Carriere, we are delighted to say hello to Luis Carriere, Gayle Glenn, and Sunny Kim. Welcome aboard, and I look forward to working with you.
RGK