Dental Assistant Faculty & Staff

Eva McKinzey Euler, CDA, RDH, M. ED, Dental Assistant Program Chair

Ms. Euler is a native of South Texas. After graduating from Pharr-San Juan-Alamo High School, she attended and graduated from the University of Texas, Houston-School of Dental Hygiene. She holds a Masters degree in Education She is active in the American Dental Hygienists’ Association, the Texas Dental Hygienists’ Association, and the Rio Grande Valley Dental Hygienists’ Society. For the past forty years Ms. Euler has worked in private practice as well as public health settings. She has been an educator at TSTC since 1999 in the dental hygiene and dental assisting programs. She serves as a mentor with the Office of Student Success.

Office Number- U-161 Phone 364-4704
email: eva.euler@harlingen.tstc.edu

Jill Brunson, C.D.A., RDA

Ms Brunson has been an Instructor for the Dental Assisting Program at Texas State Technical College for 9 years.  She has been a dental assistant for over 26 years. She worked with the American Red Cross and attained her title as a Dental Assistant while working with dentists on the military bases to include Fort Carson, Colorado and Fort Benning, Georgia.  Ms Brunson moved to Fairbanks, Alaska, where she worked for a private dentist, as well as the Indian Health service in a remote Eskimo village, Kotzebue.  She returned to Oklahoma where she continued to work for a private dentist.  While there, she received her Coronal Polishing and Sealants Expanded Function Certification.  Upon moving to Harlingen, Ms. Brusnons worked for a private dentist.  Ms. Brunsons's training and current certifications include: National Certified Dental Assistant (CDA), Registered Dental Assistant State of Texas (RDA),with expanded function certifications in: Nitrous Oxide, Sealants, Radiology, Infection Control, Jurisprudence, and Coronal Polishing.  Ms. Brunson has also attended the renowned Pankey Institute in Key Biscayne, Florida, for dental assistants expanded training, and she was given a completion certificate as a Dental Assistant I.  Ms. Brunson has reviewed text books for dental publishers.  She is currently working towards her Bachelor of Arts degree from UTB-TSC in the field of Psychology.

Office Number- U-145 Phone 364-4765
email: jill.brunson@harlingen.tstc.edu

Dr. Bob Bennett , Instructor and Supervising Dentist of Dental Hygiene/Dental Assisting.
Dr. Bennett received his Doctor of Dental Medicine Degree from Southern Illinois University and his Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Eastern Illinois University. After graduation from dental school, he was in the Dental Corps of the U.S. Army for 3 years. He was in private practice in Illinois for seventeen years, and was also an instructor in the Dental Hygiene and Dental Assisting Programs at Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois for eight years before coming to the Valley. He has completed the prestigious radiography educator’s courses at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and the University Of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Dental School by Dr. John Preece.

At TSTC, Dr. Bennett serves as the Dental Hygiene Clinic’s supervising dentist and also teaches Head and Neck Anatomy, Radiology, and Dental Materials. He is a member of the Texas Dental Association.

Office Number- U-197 Phone 364-4690
email: bob.bennett@harlingen.tstc.edu

Gladys C. Arjona, RDH, M. ED

Mrs. Arjona is a graduate of Fresno City College in California, where she received an Associate of Science in dental hygiene in 1993. She received a Master’s Degree in Adult Education through Texas A&M University Kingsville. She is an active member of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association as well as its Texas and local components, where she has participated serving as treasurer and providing continuing education workshops. Gladys also served as a member of the OHSAC, Oral Health Service Advisory Committee, for the state of Texas, providing input on oral health issues affecting the citizens of Texas. She is currently teaching dental hygiene and dental assisting with areas of expertise in the care of special needs patients and nutrition for dental health and overall wellness.

Office Number- U-159 Phone 364-4705
email: gladys.arjona@harlingen.tstc.edu

Maritza Trevino, RDH

Ms. Trevino is a 1999 graduate of the Dental Assisting program at Texas State Technical College, and a 2003 graduate with TSTC’s Associate in Applied Science in Dental Hygiene. Ms. Trevino has worked as a dental hygienist in San Antonio, Austin, and South Padre Island for 5 years. Presently at TSTC, she is the Radiology and Prevention Instructor for both Dental Assisting and Dental Hygiene and clinical instructor for Dental Hygiene.

Office Number- U-158 Phone 364-4871 email: maritz.trevino@harlingen.tstc.edu

Lori Renteria, R.D.A. Teaching Lab Assistant for Dental Hygiene/Dental Assistant 

Ms. Renteria is the patient coordinator for the dental hygiene clinic at Texas State Technical College. She has worked with the dental hygiene program since January of 2008. She helps with scheduling appointments for the dental hygiene student in the clinic. She also helps in the radiology labs.

Office Number- U-167 Phone 364-4696
email: lori.renteria@harlingen.tstc.edu

Laura Esquivel, CDA, RDH

Ms. Esquivel has been a clinical dental hygienist for 6 years before coming to TSTC in the Spring of 2010 to work in the Dental Hygiene Department.  Prior to her dental hygiene career, she worked as a dental assistant for 3 years.  She is a graduate of TSTC- Harlingen’s first dental assistant class of 1999.  She teaches in both the Dental Hygiene and Dental Assisting Departments.

Office Number- U-165 Phone 364-4975 
email: laura.esquivel@harlingen.tstc.edu