Photo Provided by Heather Taylor Taylor Family Dentistry Owner Heather Taylor, right, is excited to welcome Dental Associate Annie Fox to the practice.

MCMECHEN — Annie Fox is happy to make her return to the Ohio Valley after graduating from West Virginia University School of Dentistry as the first-ever Dental Associate at Taylor Family Dentistry.

Taylor Family Dentistry Owner Heather Taylor said she wanted Fox, 25, to join her McMechen practice to bring “new ideas” into the office. She noted the importance of continuing to learn over her 24-year dental career.

“I feel like I’m always learning, and I felt like bringing someone young who has just graduated from school can teach me a lot and bring new ideas into our office,” Taylor said. “I think it’s a great combination to have our thoughts together, old and young, to know what’s being taught now versus what I learned 25 years ago.”

After graduating from Wheeling Park High School in 2017, Fox headed to WVU. She began dental school after completing her undergraduate degree in biology and graduated in May 2025.

Fox’s interest in the dental field began as a patient of Wheeling orthodontist Dr. Daniel Joseph. From this initial interest, Fox said Joseph served as a “super great mentor.”

Joseph assisted Fox when she shadowed dentists and helped her with the application process for dental school. Upon graduation, Joseph advised her to apply to practice in the Ohio Valley area.

“I went to Dr. Joseph anytime I felt like I needed advice,” Fox said. “When I was graduating and looking for jobs, he, of course, told me that I should come back home and that it would be a great experience. He said, ‘I know people are looking to hire, and we always need dentists in the area.'”

When Fox was connected with Taylor upon graduation, she found “another great mentor.” As a young professional, Fox said it was comforting to be under Taylor’s guidance.

“It’s intimidating as a new graduate because you really have to have a lot of confidence in yourself and kind of sell yourself and your abilities as a dentist,” Fox said. “Taylor has been excited to teach me all of these things and even more excited to hear about what I’ve learned in school.”

In addition to learning from Taylor, Fox said she has also been able to share advancements in the field at the practice. She noted that technology was a continually evolving aspect of the dental field, with advancements such as intraoral scanners being used to create dental impressions.

“One aspect of how the dental field has evolved from when Dr. Taylor was in school and even further back is the use of technology,” Fox said. “She has intraoral scanners, which is huge. The days of using that gooey material to take impressions of someone’s mouth are pretty much done here, which is awesome.”

In addition to Taylor smoothing Fox’s transition from school to work, Fox noted that the familiar faces of patients have also made her first two weeks at the practice easier. She said seeing the faces of friends and former classmates in the practice made her happy with her choice to return to the valley.

“It can be so random the people I see sometimes,” Fox said. “I’ll walk into a room and start to introduce myself, and then I recognize that it’s my friend’s dad. It’s easy to find commonality with people here.”

Taylor noted the familiarity between dentists and patients is what makes having a smaller dental practice “special.”

“Annie gets to treat the people that she grew up with, from teachers to coaches,” Taylor said.

Taylor added that she was also excited to mentor a young woman in the field, noting a trend of female dentists returning to the valley since she started her practice in 2009.

“I think the Ohio Valley has seen a large handful of female dentists come back,” Taylor said. “It’s been wonderful to be able to talk amongst us and support each other through owning our practices. I can see Annie having the same professional journey as me, moving from being a dental associate to possibly owning her practice once she gains enough experience in the field.”