Dr. Lonnie H. Norris appointed first Black dean of Tufts University Dental School in Boston

Jet, March 11, 1996

Dr. Lonnie H. Norris, an oral and maxillofacial surgeon, was recently appointed to head the dental school at Tufts University in Boston. He is the first Black dean of Tufts' dental school and one of only a few Black deans at the 54 U.S. dental schools.

Norris had been serving as the school's interim dean since July 1995.

"I think it's a very challenging position," Norris said. "But I was very honored that the university, that the faculty of the school and alumni had confidence enough in me to give me an opportunity to do this. So I'm very happy, very proud to be in this position."

Norris, a native of Houston and resident of Wellesley, MA, received his doctor of dental medicine and master of public health degrees from Harvard University (Cambridge, MA) before completing a postgraduate residency in oral and maxillofacial surgery at Tufts. He received his under-graduate degree from Fisk University (Nashville, TN).

Norris said he plans to work closely with faculty and students in his new position.

"I don't want to be a dean who's isolated," he said. "I plan to maintain an open-door policy, working with faculty and students to enhance the educational and research mission of the school while improving the efficiency and quality of patient care."

Norris is married to Dr. Donna M. Norris, a child psychiatrist. They have two children, a daughter who is a first-year student at Tufts School of Medicine and a son who is a junior in high school.