1. Home
  2. Faculty Profiles

Kecia S. Leary, DDS, MS

Associate Dean of Clinics and Clinical Professor of Pediatric Dentistry

Introduction

Dr. Kecia Leary is a graduate of the College of Dentistry for her DDS (2004) and an MS in Dental Public Health and a Certificate in Pediatric Dentistry (2007). From 2007-2015 she was the Pediatric Dental Director of an FQHC in Missouri and she then returned to the College of Dentistry in 2015. From 2015-2023 she served the Department of Pediatric Dentistry in several different roles including the Graduate Program Director. In 2023 she was appointed the Associate Dean for Clinics for the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. Dr. Leary is a Diplomate for the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry and the American Board of Dental Public Health. She is currently a member of the NNOHA Board of Directors and the Chair of the Commission of Continuing Education for the American Dental Association. Dr. Leary is also the Public Policy Advocate for the state of Iowa to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Dr. Leary maintains a clinical practice in pediatric dentistry and focuses her research on quality assurance and quality improvement initiatives in patient care.

Current Positions

  • Clinical Professor of Clinic Administration
  • Clinical Professor of Pediatric Dentistry
  • Clinical Professor of Dentistry Administration

Education

  • DDS in College of Dentistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
  • BA in Political Science, Truman State University, Kirksville, Missouri

Center, Program and Institute Affiliations

Licenses & Certifications

  • American Board of Pediatric Dentistry, American Board of Pediatric Dentistry
  • American Board of Dental Public Health, American Board of Dental Public Health
  • Iowa Moderate Sedation License, State of Iowa, Iowa
  • Iowa Dental License, Iowa
  • Pediatric Advanced Life Support, American Heart Association
  • Basic Life Support, American Heart Association
  • Iowa Dental Residency License, Iowa

Selected Awards & Honors

  • ADEA Leadership Institute, ADEA and ADEA/AADOCR/Colgate-Palmolive Co. Dr. Dominick P. DePaola Scholar in the ADEA Leadership Institute, Washington, District of Columbia
  • Fellowship, American College of Dentists, Gaithersburg, Maryland
  • Fellow, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, Chicago, Illinois
  • LEAP (Leadership in Education and Administration Program) and CAAMP (Chairs and Academic Administrators Management Program) Scholarship, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry Foundation
  • Collegiate Teaching Award, University of Iowa College of Dentistry, Iowa City, Iowa
  • Dr. John Montgomery/Dr. James McLeran Pierre Fauchard Academy Award, Pierre Fauchard Academy, Iowa City, Iowa
  • Mentor of the Year 2018-2019, Student Research Group, Iowa City
  • Health Care Champion Award, Springfield Business Journal
  • University of Iowa College of Dentistry, Educator of the Year
  • International College of Dentists, Rockville, Maryland

Professional Memberships

  • American College of Dentists (ACD)
  • American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
  • Iowa Dental Association (IDA)
  • National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA)
  • Pierre Fauchard Academy (PFA)
  • American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD)
  • American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD)
  • American Dental Association (ADA)
  • Psi Omega

Selected Publications

  • Leary, KS. (2025). Chapter ??, Adolescent Oral Health. In: Pediatric Dentistry: Infancy Through Adolescence. 7th Edition
  • Reynolds J, Hartshorn J, Plagman P, Johnson T, Glassman P, Leary K, Steinkamp HS, Weirather B, Nwachukwu P, Heeren T, et al. Teledentistry in Iowa: Implementation Toolkit
  • Leary, K., Hollinger, N., Qian, F., Kanellis, M. & Weber-Gasparoni, K. (In Press). Comparisons of referred and non-referred patients to a University Paediatric dental clinic. International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry.
  • Iribarren, S., Leary, K., Lesch, A., Warren, J., Peter, T., McLaren, S. & Reynolds, J. (2024). Synchronous Teledentistry in a University Pediatric Dentistry Clinic: Impact on Treatment Completion and Visit Attendance.
  • (2022). Chapter Three: Financials for the National Network for Oral Health Access (Version 2.0). Denver, CO.
  • K. H., Avenetti, D., Dhar, V., Patel, M., Karp, J., Matusak, A., Leary, K., McDaniel, J. & Peng, J. (2022). The Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Applicants to Advanced Education in Pediatric Dentistry Programs and Recommendations for Virtual Interviews. Journal of Dentistry for Children (2022) 89 (2) 117-125.
  • Craig, T., Comnick, C., Leary, K., Hartshorn, J. & Marchini, L. A tool for incorporating interprofessional perspectives into dental students decision-making: A 2-year follow-up on this learning outcome. Clinical and Experimental Dental Research (2022) 8 (5) 1295-1301.
  • Leary, K., Iribarren, S., Reynolds, J. & Johnsen, D. (In Press). Teaching Tool for Teledentistry: Modeled With Pediatric Dentistry Residents. Journal of Dentistry for Children (2022) 89 (3) 162-167.
  • (2021). Chapter Four: Risk Management for the National Network for Oral Health Access (Version 2.0). Denver, CO.
  • Leary, K. S., Marchini, L., Hartshorn, J. & Johnsen, D. (2019). An emulation model in critical thinking used to develop learning outcomes in interprofessional practice. Clinical and Experimental Dental Research (2019) 5 (4) 406-412. DOI: 10.1002/cre2.195.

Selected Grants & Contracts

  • HRSA-Iowa LEND Project (Core Faculty); HRSA; Leary, Kecia (Supporting)
  • Postdoctoral Training in General, Pediatric and Public Health Dentistry and Dental Hygiene; HRSA; Cowan, Howard, Hartshorn, Jennifer, Reynolds, Julie, Levy, Steven, Leary, Kecia (Co-Director), Warren, John (Principal Investigator)
  • Outreach Equipment Mini-Grant; Delta Dental Foundation of Iowa; Leary, Kecia (Co-Principal)
  • Dental Student Groups; Delta Dental Foundation of Iowa; Vidal, Cris (Co-Principal), Leary, Kecia (Co-Principal)
  • Muscatine Pediatric Dental Clinic; Community Foundation of Muscatine; Leary, Kecia (Principal Investigator)
  • Caries Collaborative at an FQHC; Dentaquest Institute; Leary, Kecia S. (Principal Investigator)
  • Training safety net providers to see special needs patients; Not for profit support of a state initiative in training providers to see special needs patients.; Leary, Kecia (Co-Principal)
  • School Nurses and Their Ability to Help Children Access Dental Care; Delta Dental; Leary, Kecia S. (Principal Investigator)