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Albert Abena, D.D.S., J.D., currently serves as Associate Dean for Community Partnerships and Clinical Professor in the Department of Preventative, Pediatric, and Community Dentistry at the 51Ʒ�� College of Dental Medicine. From February 2022 - September 2024, he was also appointed as Interim Associate Dean for Clinical Education and Patient Care.

A native San Franciscan, Dr. Abena received his D.D.S. and B.S. degrees from the University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry in 1986. Following graduation from dental school, he worked in the private sector in a variety of capacities, serving as a staff dentist for small and large group practices, working with an innovative company providing in-patient dental care to people in intermediate care facilities, as well as maintaining a private practice in San Francisco.

Dr. Abena relocated to Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1993 and quickly assimilated to the cheese and brats lifestyle. He worked in a large group practice for seven years, served as director for a dental insurance company, and then transitioned to an academic career in 2001 at the Marquette University School of Dentistry. As director of the Marquette University Community Dental Clinic – North, he was involved in several community-based engagement programs over the years and was the co-recipient of the City on a Hill Social Justice Award, presented to Marquette University for “tremendous work in engaging faculty and students in solutions to poverty and injustice.” Dr. Abena also graduated from Marquette University Law School in 2008, discovering a passion for mediation and dispute resolution.

Who moves 1200 miles in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic? Dr. Abena did, accepting his current position at 51Ʒ��in July 2020, with a primary responsibility of overseeing the 4th year dental student rotations at community sites in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts. He has thoroughly embraced the East Coast way of life, and is persistent in his quest for the best lobster roll.

Aside from being a self-admitted dental nerd, Dr. Abena is also an avid musician and gastronome. One never knows when he may be seen playing a clarinet, saxophone, bassoon or some other musical instrument. And if one stays in UNE’s Oral Health Center long enough, there’s bound to be an opportunity to sample his baked goods or the bottomless dish of chocolate treats on his desk.