Dr. Amp W. Miller, professor and director of comprehensive dentistry at Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas, retires May 31 after decades of crafting smiles and shaping the careers of thousands of dentists.
If anyone needs a new smile or a history lesson about Texas A&M University College of Dentistry in Dallas, Dr. Amp W. Miller III, professor and director of comprehensive dentistry, can provide both. The prosthodontist spent decades restoring and replacing missing and damaged teeth, and even longer studying and teaching dentistry.
Now, after 53 years as an A&M Dentistry faculty member and four years before that as a dental student at then-Baylor College of Dentistry, Miller will say goodbye to everyone on the Gaston Avenue campus. Miller will officially retire effective May 31 – his 79th birthday.
“He’s taught thousands of dental students, including me,” said Dr. Lily T. Garcia, A&M Dentistry’s dean and a prosthodontist and BCD Class of 1984. “The dental college has served the North Texas community for 120 years, and Dr. Miller has been an important part of it for nearly half the time. His contributions are immense.”
Either as a part-time or full-time instructor, Miller’s courses ranged from preclinical classes to graduate prosthodontics. He also earned a prosthodontics certificate from his alma mater and employer in 1980, while also working in private practice. His academic career includes stints as interim assistant department head of comprehensive dentistry, interim chair and then chair of restorative dentistry, director of curriculum and interim associate dean for clinical affairs.
Miller relinquished the dean role because he missed teaching and daily interactions with students too much.
“Students have inquiring minds,” he said. “I like to watch them develop their knowledge and skills. They are full of questions, and they develop some swagger as they gain confidence in their abilities.”
Students adore Miller, and they named him Teacher of the Year in 1992, 2005, 2011, 2018 and 2025.In addition, he was named to A&M Dentistry’s Hall of Fame in 2025, alongside Dr. Ernestine Lacy, professor and associate dean for student affairs at A&M Dentistry, who also retires effective May 31.
Miller is an incredible resource, offering insights that fundamentally change how students think, said Eric M. Weideman, a third-year dental student at A&M Dentistry.
“I remember sitting in class when he briefly explained how to tell which side a patient likely sleeps on just by looking at their dentition,” he said. “It was one of those moments where it just clicked. It seemed so simple, and so far, it has held up.”
Weideman said Miller helped him be more observant and think differently about patients’ dental needs.
“I can only imagine the impact he has had on so many others,” he said.
Once retired, Miller and his wife, Barbara, associate professor emerita at A&M Dentistry, retired assistant dean of recruitment and admissions and BCD Class of 1983, will finish renovations on their home in Lake Highlands and spend time with grandchildren in Virginia.
“It’s been the kind of job where I’ve looked forward to coming to work each day,” Miller said. “The College of Dentistry is in good hands for the future.”