Dr. Elisandra Reyes-Perez

I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, but my family is originally from the Dominican Republic so we moved back there before I was two years old. I grew up in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, and I spent most summers visiting relatives in Puerto Rico. Growing up in the Dominican Republic was very laid back. I loved listening to the great music in the 80’s, but I didn’t understand the song lyrics in English. It’s funny to listen to that music now that I understand the words I used to sing!

I was always inclined toward health care. I debated between medicine and even pharmacy, but I made the right choice with dentistry.

What stands out the most is seeing how universal dentistry is. I had a great dental education in the Dominican Republic, even though the school was not the most high-tech in comparison with schools in other parts of the world. But it prepared me to care for my patients and practice dentistry in a very conscientious way. When I completed my prosthodontics program in Puerto Rico, it expanded my knowledge of dentistry and the English language. All the literature we read was in English and that made it a tough start for me because I grew up speaking Spanish. Once I moved to New York City to complete a master’s degree in clinical research, I felt like I had most of the tools in my toolbox. In my opinion, all the schools I attended were exceptional institutions in their unique ways, and they all helped me become the professional I am today.

I fell in love with teaching while I was in my prosthodontics graduate program. The closeness among the residents is a great bond. Being able to guide and teach those who were a year or two behind me made me see how much I can contribute.

During my first semester in the prosthodontics program, I had significant challenges speeding up my literature review reading and comprehension because I spoke Spanish and all the written materials were in English. The chief resident’s wife was also a student in the program and she welcomed me into her home where we spent long nights reading the literature together. I always had many questions – not about the content, but about the language. She was kind and patient with me, and she helped me speed up my comprehension of the language. By the second semester, and because of all her help, I was more confident and was able to complete all my readings ahead of schedule. The help she gave me might have seemed like a small gesture since she was doing the same readings anyway. But she took a lot of time and helped me along the way. She never complained or made me feel that I was holding her back. She had a very positive influence on my progress and I will always be grateful for that. Her impact allowed me to stay on track in my program and succeed.

The most surprising thing was how many issues can be resolved with communication. We sometimes get involved in our own spaces and forget that the college is a large place where multiple areas collaborate in teaching our students and providing patient care. It’s good news that we can prevent and resolve many issues through communication.

I once took a solo trip through several parts of Switzerland by train. It was fascinating to depart from the southern part of the country where all the signs and announcements were in Italian, and then move to the parts of the country where everything was in French and German. It was a beautiful and fun trip, and I felt proud to make it on my own. This was before smart phones, so I managed to take all the trains just using paper maps to travel through a country with several languages that I didn’t speak!

Life is short, and there is so much to learn and so many lives to impact on our path. So my motto is ‘Go get it!’

My husband and I have two daughters. The oldest is 16 and the youngest will be 13 in May. Time flies by so quickly and I see that while raising my girls. So take advantage of every single day at the College of Dentistry because time is precious and it won’t come back!