About the DALE Foundation

President: Vicki Brett

Vicki L. Brett, CDA, RDH, B.S.D.H., is the prevention dental service coordinator for the Virginia Department of Health. Previously, Ms. Brett worked as campus director of Academic Affairs with ECPI University, where she was employed for approximately 14 years. She also worked in numerous aspects of dentistry, including serving as a dental hygienist, dental sales representative, and dental assisting program director and instructor.

In addition to her passion for education, volunteering has long been a labor of love for Ms. Brett. She is currently serving as the executive director and dental project chair of Montero Medical Missions, providing free dental visits to veterans and through missions abroad. She is the board chair for safety net, Park Place Dental Clinic. Ms. Brett also has been a Mission of Mercy volunteer chairperson since 2014.

Ms. Brett has received a Community of Excellence Award from ECPI University, completed the ECPI University Leadership Institute, and served on the Regulatory-Legislative Committee DAI and DAII for the Virginia Board of Dentistry. She is an active member of the American Dental Assistants Association, American Dental Hygienists’ Association, and Tidewater Dental Hygienists’ Association.

Ms. Brett earned DANB’s Certified Dental Assistant (CDA) certification in 2011. Additionally, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in dental hygiene from Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Virginia. Ms. Brett also holds a certificate in dental assisting from ODU and an Associate of Science from Tidewater Community College in Portsmouth, Virginia.

Secretary-Treasurer: Royann Royer

Royann Royer, CDA, RDH, M.P.H., is the founder and director of Healthy Smiles Forever, a nonprofit organization providing dental treatment for long-term-care residents in the Anchorage, Alaska, area since 2016. She has been involved in dental education throughout her career.

She was the founder of the dental assisting program of Southcentral Foundation on the Alaska Native Medical Center Campus, serving as director for 25 years. The program was CODA-accredited as an off-campus site of Salish Kootenai College in Montana for five years. Ms. Royer also served as a faculty member in the dental hygiene program at the University of Alaska Anchorage for over 20 years.

Ms. Royer has spent many years developing educational resources, such as co-authoring textbooks and developing videos and dental simulators, as well as contributing to public health initiatives and certification courses. She has helped bring dental services and education to various international clinics, including in Russia, Mexico, and Nepal. For 20 years, she also served as an examiner and chair of several Western Regional Examining Board committees. She was a member of the Alaska State Dental Board for eight years.

Ms. Royer has worked in clinical practice her entire career, which she began as a clinical dental assistant after obtaining her certificate at Spokane Community College and earning DANB’s Certified Dental Assistant (CDA) certification. She continues to work clinically as a dental assistant and an expanded functions dental hygienist at the long-term-care clinics.

She is a member of numerous organizations, including the American Dental Hygienists’ Association, International Federation of Dental Hygienists, and Health Volunteers Overseas.

Ms. Royer holds a Master of Public Health degree from Loma Linda University, a Bachelor of Arts degree from Eastern Washington University, and an Associate of Dental Hygiene degree from Clark College; she also studied dental assisting and expanded functions at Spokane Community College. She currently holds DANB’s CDA certification and is a registered dental hygienist in Alaska, Oregon, and Washington.