Alumni Profile Q&A: Dr. Brent Frey, DDS 200812 min read
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This profile is one in an ongoing series highlighting School of Dentistry alumni and students.
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Brent Frey can pinpoint his interest in dentistry to the day when, as a boy, he tagged along to his brother’s orthodontics appointment. He was fascinated by the orthodontist’s demonstration of “bending wire” that day, and he eventually learned even more when he, too, was fitted with braces. Today, three decades later, Frey owns his own orthodontics practice, Champion Smiles, with four offices in the Maryland suburbs outside Washington, D.C. Even though Frey is a highly self-motivated person, he knows his path to career success was assisted significantly by many key individuals who took an interest in him as teachers, mentors and family members. It’s why today he enthusiastically mentors pre-dental students and young dentists while also making sure he honors his own foundational years by pursuing excellence through continued education and advances in patient care. He keeps close ties with the dental schools at the University of Michigan, where he earned his DDS in 2008, and at Howard University, where he completed his orthodontics certification in 2010. During a recent interview, Dr. Frey talked about his educational journey that has included not just dentistry and orthodontics, but also a year on the U-M wrestling team. He credits the combined excellence of the university, the dental school and the U-M athletic teams with making him a diehard “Go Blue!” fan who says Michigan Stadium on Game Day is his favorite place on the planet.
Q: You are one of the fortunate individuals who are able to figure out their career interest early on, follow it through and end up doing exactly what they always hoped they would do. How did that start for you?
A: My interest began with that trip to the orthodontist for my brother. I sat across the desk from Dr. J. Victor Eagan, a U-M alum (DDS 1983) in Southfield, Michigan. His excellence and professionalism shined through and left an impression on me. I can vividly remember him demonstrating using the dental models and what the findings were for my brother. It was really impactful. Ultimately, I got braces as well and as a patient was able to observe his work. I found it very interesting, just watching him perform his work. Over time, the thought went through my mind that this is something that I could do, that I would enjoy doing, and would give me an opportunity to provide for my family, do honest work and make an honest living.
Q: That was just the first of many mentors, including your uncle, Dr. Ronald Livingston, a family practitioner in Highland Park, Michigan, who helped you prepare your career vision.
A: I was fortunate to have my uncle’s guidance. He prepared me with advice like “have excellent grades, take the SAT, take these courses to prepare, here’s how many years it is going to take.” But also it was important to just see him as the owner of a practice, as a regular person and a family member. I saw how dentistry and practice ownership impacted his life and how his personality, work ethic and approach made him successful. All those things helped to guide me and keep me interested and reassure me that this was something I could do. I could see myself having that kind of career. My general dentist Dr. Karson Carpenter (U-M DDS 1982) was also an influence, along with Dr. Eagan, the orthodontist. The one thing that all of those folks have in common is their commitment to professionalism and excellence. That really rubbed off on me. I had the opportunity to see people providing dental care at the highest level, along with running a business and a practice. I was very fortunate to have that experience.
Q: While doing your undergraduate studies at U-M, you gained insight into dental school through the university’s Pipeline program and the dental school’s Profile For Success (PFS) program that helps undergrads learn what to expect. How did your four years at the U-M dental school compare with those expectations?
A: I loved my experience in dental school. For me, someone who had been pursuing a career in dentistry for many years before entering dental school, it was like coming home. All the things you envision yourself doing as a dentist, now you are able to get your feet wet. It certainly wasn’t easy. Dental school is an extremely challenging curriculum, but that’s another case where having the great mentorship from so many folks, particularly my uncle, was important. My uncle shared with me early and often that dental school is supposed to be hard. It is not supposed to be easy. That set the tone for me. Yes, it was hard. Yes, it was demanding. It’s like going to work every day from 9 to 5, and then you have to go home and study for several hours at night. But it is what I expected. Obviously, I had a goal in mind. It wasn’t difficult for me to work toward that goal.
Q: Which faculty members influenced you the most in dental school?
A: Dr. Marilyn Woolfolk, who had I met in the preferred admission program as an undergrad, continued to be a wonderful mentor and guide. Dr. Todd Ester was tremendously supportive and made sure to keep me on track. I appreciate them both leading up to dental school and while I was in dental school. I worked in the research lab of Dr. Jim McNamara, whose career and world-class accomplishments showed me another perspective of excellence while I was helping him preserve the Michigan Growth Study records. Dr. Lysle Johnston once said something that stayed with me to this day: “It’s one thing to say you are good; it’s another to be good. In order to be good, you have to put in the work.” They were two more dental superstars who, because I was at Michigan, I had the opportunity to learn from and develop relationships with.
Q: You’ve credited faculty at Howard with also having an important role in your career development. Since Howard is in Washington, D.C., is that how you ended up practicing in Maryland and the D.C. area?
A: I had every intention of returning to Michigan for my career, but the interim dean at Howard told me about a practice, Maryland Orthodontics, that was looking for an associate. It was a good opportunity, so I thought I would stay a year or two, but it turned into seven. I learned a lot about treatment planning and clinical practice. In 2017, when the practice was sold to a Dental Service Organization, I left and purchased a practice on my own. Then two and a half years later, they contacted me because they were selling the practice with its three locations. I saw it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. So now our practice has offices in Hyattsville, Upper Marlboro, Fort Washington and LaPlata. I never planned to have a practice with more than one location. Part of the reason for doing it – like when I tried out for the wrestling team in college – was to see if I could do it. It has pushed me out of my comfort zone to expand beyond what I thought my limitations were. You can’t run a successful multi-location practice without it being organized, without having robust systems, without being efficient and productive. But it’s a lot on some days. I plan to add a partner soon.
Q: You mentioned the challenge of being part of the U-M wrestling program. In high school you were a good wrestler, but not highly recruited after an injury ended your senior season early. Wrestlers are famously self-motivated people, but even so, why try out for the elite U-M team when they hadn’t recruited you?
A: I had considered going to a smaller college so I could wrestle, but then U-M admitted me and I knew that was best for me academic-wise. To satisfy my interest in wrestling, during my first undergrad year, I re-started the U-M wrestling club with another student and did that for two years. My sophomore year, I tried out for the U-M varsity team, but no walk-ons made it. So I continued to train, then made the U-M varsity team for my junior year. At a program like Michigan, the wrestlers are the best of the best. Everybody on the team is a state placer and most were state champions once or multiple times. So I spent most of that year getting my butt kicked, but I really loved being part of a high-level team. A year of that was enough, though, and I decided to refocus my attention to getting into dental school. The experience left me with so much respect for student athletes because the commitment that they make to their sport and their academics requirements, especially at Michigan, is unbelievable. Having had that experience myself, I just respect so much what student-athletes at Michigan put into their sports. I bleed blue. My friends have heard me say that no one has a bigger “Go Blue!” than me. My vacation schedule every year revolves around my plans for following the Michigan football team. My wife Cheri and I love to travel, but my favorite place to be is Michigan Stadium. I’d rather be at Michigan Stadium than the beach, and I love the beach.
Q: In addition to coming back to Ann Arbor for football games, you have come back to the dental school regularly for the annual Moyers Symposium. You also have consistently provided annual financial gifts to the school.
A: I love giving back, whether it be resources or time. I love coming back to Moyers because it makes me a better orthodontist. I always learn something. It keeps me on the cutting edge of clinical practice and philosophy. As for the dental school, it really motivates and inspires me. How awesome is it to be able to say that the dental school you went to is the No. 1 dental school in the country? Every time I come back, they are making the school better – making the curriculum better and providing more for the students. What a blessing, what a treat, to be able to remain involved in that.
Q: A lot of people reflect positively on their time at their alma mater, but they don’t stay engaged with it.
A: Michigan has been such an important part of my journey, and of who I am, that it is easy for me to give back. It is called “The Michigan Difference” and I think it is true. Michigan is high level no matter where you look. Around every corner on campus, there are leaders in their fields and they are making a difference. It inspires and motivates me. It’s more than just having a feather in your cap and saying, “Oh, I went to Michigan.” It is a big part of what motivates me to push myself to do things at as high a level as I can. It’s beautiful. It is a great inspiration. I push myself to deliver high-quality care to my patients consistently. We’re making a difference for our patients. We have a choice every day about how we go about our work. What a shame it would be to spend all these years in school, and be exposed to the amazing leaders and teachers and clinicians at a place like Michigan, and not be providing care at the highest level. Why go through all of that to just be average? So for me, that is my commitment, that is what motivates me every day – to do an excellent job for my patients, as excellent as I can.
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The University of Michigan School of Dentistry is one of the nation’s leading dental schools engaged in oral healthcare education, research, patient care and community service. General dental care clinics and specialty clinics providing advanced treatment enable the school to offer dental services and programs to patients throughout Michigan. Classroom and clinic instruction prepare future dentists, dental specialists and dental hygienists for practice in private offices, hospitals, academia and public agencies. Research seeks to discover and apply new knowledge that can help patients worldwide. For more information about the School of Dentistry, visit us on the Web at: www.dent.umich.edu. Email: [email protected], or (734) 615-1971.