Dr. Ron Wilkerson, St. James Dentist, Installed as 156th Association President

Dr. Ronald (Ron) D. Wilkerson, a general dentist with practices in St. James and Bourbon, Mo., was installed as the 156th president of the MDA at the Association’s annual House of Delegates meeting at Margaritaville Lake Resort, June 21, 2025.

As MDA president, Dr. Wilkerson will preside over each quarterly Board of Trustees meeting and also represent the MDA at various component meetings and at events of other dental stakeholder groups, at the state, regional and national levels. The MDA president also serves as an ex-officio member on the Missouri Dental Insurance Services board (the MDA’s wholly-owned insurance agency) and as a voting member on the MDA Foundation board (the MDA’s charitable subsidiary).

Dr. Wilkerson is the owner of St. James Dental Center, St. James, Mo., and Bourbon Dental Center, Bourbon, Mo. He has been in private practice since receiving his Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine in 2008.

He has been an active member in the American Dental Association, MDA and Central Dental Society. Prior to this MDA office, Dr. Wilkerson served as its President-Elect, Legislative and Regulatory Chair, Treasurer and New Dentist Committee Representative. Dr. Wilkerson has also been president of the Central Dental Society.

He currently serves as a trainer for the MDA Expanded Function Dental Assistant (EFDA) program, which offers upskilling education courses and certification to dental auxiliaries. He is a leader for the MDA Oral Preventative Assistant Pilot project, which is studying the effectiveness of a new type of EFDA to increase patient access to preventive dental care. In 2021 he was given the MDA Executive Director Award of Excellence.

Dr. Wilkerson serves as Chair of the Dental Advisory Committee of the Missouri Department of Health and Social Services. He is a member of the American College of Dentists, International College of Dentists and Pierre Fauchard Academy, all of which are which are honor dental organizations based upon invitation and/or meritorious recognition.

In his community, Dr. Wilkerson is Treasurer of the Phelps Health Foundation, and a member of the St. James Chamber of Commerce and the Rolla Airport Advisory Board.