From: Trevor Young, Vice-President and Provost
Date: April 16, 2025
Re: Appointment of Professor Anil Kishen as Dean, Faculty of Dentistry (PDAD&C #33)

I am delighted to announce that the Agenda Committee of Academic Board has approved the appointment of Professor Anil Kishen as Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry for a five-year term from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2030, after an extensive international search.  

Anil Kishen is a Professor, the Dr. Lloyd and Mrs. Kay Chapman Chair in Clinical Sciences, and a Canada Research Chair in Oral Health Nanomedicine (Tier I).  Professor Kishen received his BDS from the University of Madras, MDS from Dr. MGR Medical University, PhD from Nanyang Technological University, where he was also a Postdoctoral Fellow. As well, he was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at The Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.  

A world-class innovator in the field of endodontics, Professor Kishen has been an appointed faculty member at the University of Toronto since 2009. He served as the Graduate Coordinator and the Head of Discipline (Endodontics). He has also served as the President of the Canadian Association for Dental Research. Professor Kishen is cross-appointed as an Associate Scientist at Mount Sinai Hospital’s Department of Dentistry, in addition to other roles such as the Visiting Professor of Endodontics at King Juan Carlos University and Honorary Visiting Professor of Restorative Dentistry at Hong Kong University. He has been the Associate Dean, Graduate Education at the Faculty of Dentistry since 2023. 

As a prolific researcher and Principal Investigator, Professor Kishen’s research explores new developments in bioactive nanobiomaterials and phototherapeutics to fight oral infections and improve patient outcomes. His academic work includes more than 250 journal articles, 24 book chapters, and three books, and he is the co-inventor of 12 patents. Professor Kishen is the recipient of many prestigious awards for his research and teaching including the WW Wood Award from the Canadian Faculty Association for Excellence in Dental Education; the Louis I Grossman Award from the American Association of Endodontics; and the National Dental Research Award from the Canadian Association for Dental Research and the Association of the Canadian Faculties of Dentistry.   

I am grateful to the Advisory Committee for their diligence and thoughtfulness over the course of this search, and to Professor Laura Tam who has served exceptionally as Interim Dean since July 1, 2022. Professor Kishen’s commitment to excellence and a visionary future for the Faculty of Dentistry will be key to the Faculty’s success in the years ahead.  

Please join me in congratulating Professor Anil Kishen.