Special Care Dentistry Milestone

Burgess Family Gives $250,000 to Texas Tech Health El Paso to Advance Special Needs Dentistry

Gift establishes fellowship at Hunt School of Dental Medicine to expand training, access to specialized dental care

A personal experience navigating dental care for a loved one with special needs inspired brothers Steve and Dave Burgess to make a $250,000 gift to Texas Tech Health El Paso that will help prepare dentists to provide that same care to more families across the Borderplex.

The gift will establish the Burgess Family Special Needs Dentistry Fellowship Endowment at the Hunt School of Dental Medicine, creating the school’s first postdoctoral fellowship dedicated to advanced training in special needs dentistry.

Beginning in fall 2027, the one-year fellowship will provide a dental school graduate with advanced clinical experience caring for patients with special needs and complex medical conditions. The fellowship will make the Hunt School of Dental Medicine the 10th dental school nationwide to offer a dedicated postdoctoral fellowship focused on special needs dentistry.

A Personal Connection to Care

For the Burgess family, the need is deeply personal.

Their sister, Karen, who is in her 50s and uses a wheelchair, suffered severe brain damage at birth and has required specialized care throughout her life. After her longtime dentist retired, Karen went more than a decade without dental care before her mother began driving her to San Antonio for treatment.

“That isn’t an option for most patients like her,” Steve Burgess said. “They simply can’t afford or arrange care 500 miles from home. We want to change that and build up special needs dental care right here in El Paso.”

More than two years ago, Dave Burgess visited the Hunt School of Dental Medicine and its Texas Tech Dental Oral Health Clinic, where the family met faculty and students providing care for patients with special needs.

Karen eventually began receiving regular care from Wilma Luquis-Aponte, D.M.D., associate professor and director of special needs dental education. Dr. Luquis-Aponte and her students tailored Karen’s visits to her individual needs, using approaches such as music, specialized lighting and gradual exposure to treatment.

“When you’re providing dental care for the special needs population, it requires modifications,” Dr. Luquis-Aponte said. “Every treatment that we provide and all the care we give is tailored to that specific individual.”

Training Dentists, Expanding Access

For Hunt School of Dental Medicine students, caring for patients with special needs provides lessons that extend beyond the classroom.

Ruby Adame, a third-year dental student, remembers working with a patient who could not brush his own teeth.

“I remember going to sleep that night and thinking, ‘I can clean this man’s teeth, but tonight before bed, he won’t be able to,’” Adame said. “That stuck with me and made it feel like I am in the right position in life. I’m very grateful that my school has a special needs clinic to open me to these types of opportunities.”

Adriana Tatum, a fourth-year dental student, said working directly with patients has taught her lessons that often don’t come from a textbook.

“With each person, you have to make different modifications and adapt to that person’s needs, and those can fluctuate day to day,” Tatum said. “Having that patience and flexibility is really something that you learn through the experience of interacting with patients.”

The new fellowship will allow a dental school graduate to build on that foundation through a year of advanced clinical experience. Dr. Luquis-Aponte hopes fellows will remain in El Paso or the surrounding region, increasing the number of dental professionals prepared to provide specialized care.

“There are very few people in the community who are trained to provide services for this population,” Dr. Luquis-Aponte said. “I want to expand. I want to make sure that our community is taken care of.”

The nine existing dedicated fellowship programs are located in New York, Minnesota and Massachusetts, leaving few advanced training opportunities of this kind near El Paso.

“This fellowship helps fill that gap,” Burgess said. “Fellows will build the skills these patients depend on, and our hope is that many will stay in El Paso — some, maybe, right here at Texas Tech Health El Paso.”

The Burgess family’s support will extend beyond the $250,000 endowment. Through the Burgess Family Special Needs Fund at the Paso del Norte Community Foundation, the family will help the first fellow with student loan costs and will consider renewing the funding annually.

“When someone feels called to this work, we don’t want loans standing in the way,” Burgess said.

The Burgess family previously supported Hunt School of Dental Medicine students involved in special needs dentistry and plans to continue supporting the school’s work.

“We especially want to thank Dr. Richard Black and Dr. Wilma Luquis-Aponte for their dedication to the clinic and to teaching every one of their students this kind of care,” Burgess said. “We’re grateful, too, for the students who’ve embraced it. And we can’t wait to see the fellowship train its first special needs dentist next year.”

About Texas Tech Health El Paso

Texas Tech Health El Paso serves West Texas and is dedicated to preparing the next generation of healthcare professionals. Established as an independent university in 2013, Texas Tech Health El Paso is a uniquely innovative destination for medical, nursing, biomedical sciences and dental education.

Focusing on excellence in healthcare education, research and clinical service, Texas Tech Health El Paso has graduated more than 2,600 professionals over the past decade. For more information, visit ttuhscepimpact.org.