James A Smith Jr. • DMD

Endodontist

Dr. Smith is a native of Bessemer, Alabama and attended The University of Alabama, where he was a “walk on” football player for Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. After graduating with a B.S. in 1976, he entered The University of Alabama School of Dentistry graduating near the top of his class in 1980. He then entered a residency program in endodontics with The University of Alabama School of Dentistry and the Birmingham V.A. Hospital completing his specialty training in 1982.

Since then he has continued his endodontic training with many years of continuing dental education, including specialized training in microsurgical endodontic techniques with Dr. Gary Carr (father of the dental operating microscope) in San Diego, CA. Dr. Smith was one of the first two endodontists in the state of Alabama to use the dental operating microscope while performing root canal treatment and periradicular surgery. Since 1995, he has performed more than 21,000 procedures using the microscope.

He is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the UAB School of Dentistry and teaches in the Endodontic Department on Fridays.   Dr. Smith is the co-author of a clinical research paper published in the Journal of Endodontics in November 2014.  He lectures to dental groups across the country about endodontics and most recently the GentleWave procedure.

Dr. Smith and his wife, Lisa, enjoy traveling, exercising, college football and baseball, and visiting with their three grown children and many grandchildren.

Chris Hawkins • DMD

Endodontist

Dr. Chris Hawkins was born and raised in Madison, AL. He attended Mississippi State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering before attending the UAB School of Dentistry. After graduating with his DMD in 2019, he completed a general practice residency at the University of Utah. He practiced as a general dentist for 2 years in Alexandria, AL, before returning to UAB for endodontics specialty training.

Now, Dr. Hawkins is a member of the American Association of Endodontists. In his spare time, he enjoys the outdoors and spending time with his wife, Carolyn, and their dog, Rippy. Dr. Hawkins has known Dr. Smith since 2017 and shares the same treatment philosophy of providing high-quality, personalized endodontic treatment to his patients. He’s even had a couple of root canals himself, so he has a special eye for treating patients how he would like to be treated!