Board of Directors

Mr. Lee is a serial entrepreneur and has 33 years of business management and entrepreneurial experience, including 27 years in the dental technology arena. Mr. Lee is currently the President and CEO of Planet DDS, Inc. He founded Planet DDS, Inc. in 2004 and has successfully guided the company to become the leading Cloud-based Practice Management and Revenue Cycle Management company for the global dental industry.

Prior to Planet DDS, Mr. Lee served as CEO of Dental Connect, Inc., a dental connectivity company that launched the industry’s first internet-based, HIPAA compliant, real-time claims processing and eligibility verification system used by many major insurance carriers. In 2001, Mr. Lee successfully managed the sale of Dental Connect, Inc. to a consortium of insurance companies which included, United Healthcare, MetLife, Aetna, Guardian, Ameritas and several Delta Dentals.

Mr. Lee also served as the CEO and co-founder of dentalxchange.com, the leading portal, e-commerce, and premier application service provider in the dental industry. Dentalxchange built the industry’s most-trafficked website, the largest on-line continuing education library, and help launched the most sophisticated e-commerce shop for the industry’s largest distributor, Henry Schein, Inc.

Mr. Lee is well regarded in the Dental Industry and serves as an advisor to several dental companies. Throughout his career, Mr. Lee has become known for his unique ability to successfully adapt new technologies into volatile markets.

Ern Blackwelder is President & CEO of Onsite Dental, which he joined in January 2008.
Prior to joining Onsite Dental, Ern served as Senior Vice President at Business Executives for National Security (BENS), where he was responsible for designing and leading the BENS Partnership Program, the nation’s leading model for mobilizing businesses to prepare with government to prevent and respond to catastrophic events. The Partnership began after 9/11 and encompassed seven regions including more than 200 corporations, the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, and multiple federal and state agencies.
Prior to joining BENS, Ern was Division President of Vivra Specialty Partners, a healthcare services firm that managed physician practices and regional physician networks in selected medical and surgical specialties. Ern also served as Chief Operating Officer and board member of Ars Digita, a venture-backed, open source enterprise software firm. He started his career at Bain & Company, an international business strategy consulting firm.
Ern holds a BS from UC Berkeley and an MBA from the Harvard Business School; he has served on several non-profit boards and is co-founder of Compass, a volunteer organization that matches MBA alumni consulting teams with non-profits in the Washington, DC and Philadelphia areas. He and his wife, Sheila, live in Orange County.

Tom Clark is a serial entrepreneur and founder of Banyan, the leading healthcare marketing firm for dentists and healthcare professionals. Tom founded his first company, Whitecap Dental Solutions in 2010. Ultimately he oversaw Whitecap Institute, which has trained over 4,500 Dental Professionals and continues to be a powerful advocate for patient centered care, WhiteCap Dental Solutions, a dental implant surgical equipment provider, and WhiteCap Implant Dentistry, whose mission is to “inspire, motivate, and train like-minded dental professionals.”

 By 2015, Tom founded Social Dental, or Banyan, a patient engagement company specializing in social media marketing, HIPAA-compliant photo sharing, website design, and review management. Tom’s family is deeply immersed in the dental space, with many dentists and dental assistants to provide him with firsthand experience and inspiration for his various projects.

Bob Dea holds almost 20 years of advertising sales and sales management experience in the areas of: public television, print, digital and direct-response revenue development across the United States. With 18 years in print, Mr. Dea has recently redirected his talents towards a new industry and has taken on the responsibilities of sponsorship and corporate revenue development at PBS SoCaL, the primary PBS TV station in Southern California.

At PBS SoCaL, Mr. Dea’s primary responsibilities include, but not limited to: team evaluation and performance development, lead sourcing, sales coaching and training, client relations development and identification of new revenue streams, such as: digital asset development, special event funding and incremental client revenue development. Additionally, Mr. Dea sits on the Strategic Planning committee for PBS SoCaL and carries his own list of clients that include: City National Bank, Orange County Transit Authority, UC Irvine, Snell & Wilmer L.L.P., Farmers & Merchants Bank and Automobile Club of Southern California.

As a true resident of Southern California; born and raised in Riverside, graduating from California State University, Fullerton and currently living and working in the Los Angeles area, Mr. Dea has been able to leverage his Southern California experience in every position. Additional positions covering: Associate Publisher, Advertising Director and New Business Development Manager for the LA Weekly, where as Associate Publisher Mr. Dea successfully launched several digital initiatives, including: SEO options, Deal of the Day platforms, SMS programs and targeted banner and newsletter services, in addition to watching over the 150,000 weekly circulation of the LA Weekly. Additionally, Mr. Dea reorganized the entire publication to better address the changing environment of print revenue, covering: circulation, degrading legacy categories, real estate space, staff positioning and marketing/branding initiatives.

Belinda de la Libertad has been programming and managing computer systems for more than 2 decades. In that time, her roles have included software developer, network consultant, technology coordinator, database manager, and systems analyst with private firms, public agencies, and non-profit organizations. She has provided professional computing and analytical services to IBM, MIT, UT Austin, the Rancho Santiago Community College District, the City of Anaheim, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Office of Management & Budget in the Executive Office of the President.

In 2007, Belinda founded A-Z Techs in Santa Ana, California. The firm provides clients with computer-based solutions for day-to-day business needs, and its team has nearly 30 years’ experience in providing support for computer and information networks. Since its founding, A-Z Techs, has helped numerous private and non-profit clients in California and Texas to resolve computer software, hardware, and network issues and enhance their productivity.

Belinda holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She has served on the Board of Directors of Central Orange Coast YMCA and the National Hispanic Business Women Association. Originally from San Antonio, Texas, Belinda currently lives and works in Santa Ana, California with her husband and her daughter.

Dr. Ligia Hallstrom serves as Principal for Wilson Elementary in the Santa Ana Unified School District. Her areas of expertise include staff development, project-based learning, data analysis and applications, and curriculum and instruction. As Principal, her duties include teacher evaluation and program development.

 Ligia has served as Principal at Los Alisos Middle School and John Glenn High School, with special assignments in the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District.

 Ligia received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and her Master of Science in Counseling from California State University, Fullerton. She received her Doctorate in Educational Leadership, Administration, and Policy from the Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education.

Jeff Miller serves as Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Western Dental, where he oversees all legal matters, including corporate governance, acquisitions, regulatory compliance, litigation, and government affairs.

Jeff’s professional career has focused on supporting health care organizations to deliver the highest quality patient care, including hospitals, dialysis facilities and radiology practices. Prior to joining Western Dental, Jeff spent several years as Vice President-Deputy General Counsel and was named Acting General Counsel at DaVita, a leading provider of kidney care with over 2,000 dialysis centers across the United States. At DaVita, he oversaw legal affairs and managed the company’s 75+ member legal team. More recently, Jeff served as General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer for Imaging Advantage, a radiology practice management company.
Before going “in-house,” Jeff was an Associate with Latham & Watkins, where he represented large health insurance companies, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies. He also worked at RAND Health where he advised state governments in connection with health care financing initiatives aimed at increasing access to care.

Jeff earned a J.D. from Georgetown University, a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins and a Bachelor of Arts from Duke University.

Dr. Meschgan Popal is a Western Regional Board certified general dentist.  Dr. Popal is a 2006 graduate of Loma Linda University School of Dentistry. She received Outstanding Achievement in the study of Prosthodontics during her dental education and is published in the Pacific Coast Society for Prosthodontics and the Journal of Prosthodontic Dentistry.   Prior to her U.S. dental degree, she studied the art of dentistry at the University of Eppendorf in Hamburg, Germany.  She is experienced with pediatric and geriatric patients and is fluent in English, German, Farsi, Dari, and conversant in basic Urdu.  Dr. Popal is a member of the American Dental Association and has extensive clinical experience as well as practice. Dr. Popal enjoys traveling and learning about public oral health establishments in a variety of different countries and has provided dental care in several non-profit organizations in South America and the Middle East.  Dr. Popal adores her three children and husband, enjoys family time as well as painting, photography, design, crafts and traveling.

Gary L. Van Arnam is a Senior Vice President with Northern Trust. In this role he oversees comprehensive financial and fiduciary services for high net worth individuals, families, foundations, and non-profit relationships for the Newport Beach and Rancho Mirage offices. Gary has over 20 years of experience in financial services as a private practice financial planner and senior trust officer.

Mr. Van Arnam received his B.S. in Business Administration & Finance from California State University, Long Beach. Gary completed the Financial Planning Program at USC, and the National Graduate Trust School of the American Bankers Association with Honors.

Active in the community, Gary was Past President of the Board of Healthy Smiles For Kids of Orange County, Member of the CHOC Professional Advisory Council, former President of the Board of Human Options, former President of the Board of the Estate Planning & Trust Council of Long Beach, former President of the Board of the Planned Giving Round Table of Orange County, former Adjunct Faculty Member for the College for Financial Planning, and a Certified Financial Planner.