David Thein
Clinical Associate Professor and Practice Management Curriculum Director
Room 396A
School of Dentistry
Phone: 816-235-5253 (office), 816-835-7480 (mobile)
theind@umkc.edu
David J. Thein, DDS, MSD, MBA, is a full-time associate clinical professor and has been teaching continuously since 1982, beginning as an adjunct faculty at the dental school and becoming full-time in 2013. He started and operated private periodontal practices in both Overland Park and Kansas City until 2019. Dr. Thein is currently the curriculum director/designer/facilitator for the D1-D4 Transitions practice management courses which teaches the business aspects of dentistry, resource management, and organizational leadership. He is a faculty member in the Department of Dental Public Health and helps to teach and implement teledentistry into the professional curriculum. Other duties include mentoring students and recent grads in professional career options and practice administration, reviewing employment and acquisition contracts, teaching practice administration in the AEGD residency program, participating in the STAHR Scholar’s program, and being a part-time lecturer and pre-doc clinical faculty member within the Department of Periodontics. He recently initiated the creation of a DDS/MBA dual-degree track in conjunction with the Bloch School of Business at UMKC for interested dental students. In addition to his university responsibilities, Dr. Thein consults on various legal cases in dentistry, helps in the development of the web-based online Dental Practice Ready teaching program with UTHSCSA School of Dentistry, serves on multiple faculty committees, is the faculty advisor for a UMKC undergrad fraternity, the treasurer of the OKU Dental Honorary Fraternity, teaches an online MBA course at the University of Wisconsin, and spends as much time as possible with his six grandkids and three grown children.