Meet Dr Zack
Dr Zack decided early that orthodontics was the career he wanted to pursue. Getting from that first idea to opening The Orthodontist took years of school, training, experience, and a few other life lessons along the way. The journey eventually brought him back to the New River Valley—the place he had hoped to call home—and gave him the opportunity to build the kind of orthodontic practice he first imagined years before.
Diplomate of the American Board of Orthodontics
What is Board-Certified?Tufts University School of Dental Medicine
Specialized orthodontic training at Tufts
Magna Cum Laude, top 5% of his dental school class, and research recognition
In ninth grade, Zack needed braces and visited two very different orthodontic practices. One felt busy, quick, and impersonal. The other was smaller, more relaxed, and simply felt like a happier place to be. Zack chose the smaller practice and was especially struck by how relaxed, kind, and happy his orthodontist, Dr Steven Goozh, seemed. The experience stuck with him. Orthodontics looked like a career he could enjoy—and the kind of practice he might want to build someday.
Zack began college at Radford University and quickly fell in love with the New River Valley. He knew this was where he wanted to live long term—even though becoming an orthodontist would eventually require years of training elsewhere.
Wanting to understand the profession beyond his own experience as a patient, Zack began spending time inside orthodontic offices. He first shadowed Dr Vaughan in Radford, beginning years of shadowing, assisting, and working in different practices as he learned how orthodontic care worked firsthand.
At Radford, Zack was elected president of the Pre-Dental Club, helping other students—and himself—work toward the goal of a career in dentistry.
Zack left the New River Valley for Boston to attend Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Getting there was part of the challenge: during his first year, his daily commute often took an hour to an hour and a half each way, switching between bus and train and frequently using the trip as extra study time.
School wasn't everything. Zack has always enjoyed competition, and video games became one way to unwind outside the classroom. While playing Overwatch, he eventually reached rank 8 in North America.
While in dental school at Tufts, Zack was elected president of the Pre-Orthodontic Club, continuing his involvement in organizations focused on helping students pursue careers in orthodontics.
Zack earned his Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine, graduating Magna Cum Laude in the top 5% of his class.
After dental school, Zack returned to Tufts for specialized orthodontic training. The residency focused entirely on orthodontics and the diagnosis, planning, and treatment behind moving teeth and shaping smiles.
During orthodontic residency at Tufts, Zack was elected class president—his third student leadership role after serving as president of the Pre-Dental Club at Radford and the Orthodontics Club in dental school.
Becoming an orthodontist had required years of intense focus and competition, but that intensity was never what first attracted Zack to the profession. He had always admired how relaxed and kind his own orthodontist seemed. As the career he had worked toward became a reality, meditation helped Zack slow down, become more present, and find more of that same sense of calm. It would influence the kind of practice he wanted to build.
Board certification isn't required to practice as an orthodontist, but Zack chose to pursue it as an additional way to test his orthodontic knowledge against a national standard. After completing the American Board of Orthodontics certification process, he became a board-certified orthodontist.
With his orthodontic training complete, Dr Zack could finally return to the New River Valley—the place he had hoped to call home since his years at Radford. This time, he came back with the opportunity to create the kind of orthodontic practice he had first imagined years before.
When it came time to create The Orthodontist, Dr Zack thought back to what first drew him to the profession. He wanted a smaller, more personal practice where patients could feel known, treatment could be individualized, and coming to the orthodontist could actually be something to look forward to. For him, every smile is a different puzzle—there may be more than one way to reach a great result, and the right approach depends on the person behind the smile. That combination of problem-solving, people, and the chance to make smiles for a living is still what makes orthodontics fun.
Years after first imagining the kind of orthodontic practice he might someday create, Dr Zack welcomed the first patient to The Orthodontist. What began as an idea during his own experience with braces was finally a real practice, back home in the New River Valley.
Today · Simply Smiles
Create great smiles, treat every patient as an individual, and build a place where patients, families, and the team can enjoy the process along the way.
Our Mission Is Simply Smiles
Schedule a Consultation