Longtime Faculty Member Retires

of Love 43 Years Dedication &

After 43 years, Dunn H. Cumby, D.D.S., head of the Division of Community Dentistry at the college, has stepped down.

He plans to pursue life, family and the groundwork for a new master’s degree program within the college.

The first African American man to graduate from OU College of Dentistry in 1976, Dr. Cumby said he has achieved everything he sought to do over the past 43 years.

While Dr. Cumby was an instructor at the college, he also founded his private practice in 1976. In 1999, he began teaching courses such as Introduction to Practice Management, Practice Management and Fundamentals of Dental Practice. He also taught Introduction to Ethics.

In 2007, Dr. Cumby was approved for a training program, called the Community Dental Health Coordinator Pilot Training Program, which generated $1.4 million to the OU College of Dentistry.

In addition to his dental career, in 1998 Dr. Cumby became an ordained deacon for the Catholic Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. He's also a 4th Degree Black Belt and World Taekwondo referee, as well as directed and instructed for the East Side YMCA World Taekwondo School for three years.

“It wasn’t that I was ready to retire, I just needed more time and flexibility," Dr. Cumby said. “I’ve got nine grandkids now and eight of them live in California. My wife goes to visit them for long periods of time and it makes me want to have more time with them.”

"I spent three years at OU for my undergrad and went to dental school in Oklahoma City at the OU College of Dentistry. After the fourth year, I received my M.P.H. and D.D.S. Soon after, I became a faculty member at the college and have been for the last 50 years," Dr. Cumby said. Last year, Dr. Cumby, 68, said he was offered a deal to sell his private practice.

a solution, just praying for God to decide something for me and I would be ready to do it. About two weeks later, one of my former partners went out to dinner with me and asked if I would be interested in selling him my practice," he said.

Dr. Cumby's colleagues said he's highly respected and has touched the lives of countless patients and students.

Dr. Raymond Cohlmia, dean of the college and longtime colleague of Dr. Cumby, said that he is an exemplary professional and an invaluable asset to the university. He's one of the last faculty that would know all 2,237 graduates who have come through this college, Dr. Cohlmia added.

"I mean it when I say that I am one of Dr. Cumby's kids. When you come to him about anything, it's like everything stops and all of his attention is dedicated and focused is on you. He is a very compassionate man," Dr. Cohlmia said.

Dr. Cumby was one of Dr. Cohlmia’s professors long before he became the dean of the college and Dr. Cohlmia attributes much of his success to the help he received from Dr. Cumby.

"When Dr. Cumby came to me about retiring, I knew he wouldn't be able to sit idle," Dr. Cohlmia said. "Dr. Cumby is a professional, and a professional will continue their work until the day they die. ... He would be bored in retirement.

"I offered him a project to work on and I told him to do it in his own way. We're working to add a master’s program for public health, and who better than Dr. Cumby could we find to fulfill this duty?"

Dr. Cumby will continue to teach ethics and help at his former practice one day a week.

"OU has been good to me and I feel that I've been good to them. It's a symbiotic relationship and I have nothing but great experiences here," Dr. Cumby said. “Whatever you do in your life, make sure in yourself that you have the talent or gifted ability to do what you want to do. It will almost always work out.”