So often we don’t take the time to get to know the professionals that we entrust with our health. Dr. Rodney O’Connor, DDS, is originally from Sharon, PA, but has called the 19th Ward neighborhood of the city of Rochester his home for nearly four decades.
Please tell us about your educational background and what was the major influence in you pursuing dentistry?
In a nutshell, I excelled at constructing plastic model kits- boats, monsters, hot rods, and racing slot cars. I was awarded a trophy for a gold, twin-engine Corvette Sting Ray when I was 13. I enjoyed learning about science and biology. I admired my dad to the point of wanting to duplicate what he did. I knew that he wanted to help people, but garnered a passion for the interactive realms of physics, art and science. I declared myself a pre-med student at Kentucky State, bypassed my senior year, and was able to enter University of Kentucky College of Dentistry in 1971, after completing a summer prerequisite physics course at the U. of Rochester. I asked Dad to show me some things about dental procedures, but he told me that all would be explained in dental school. I guess he was right. I wouldn’t have any classmates as friends, If I were the one with his hand up most of the time in some classes. While studying, I managed to play in a couple of R&B and rock bands, as well. Altogether, living in Lexington was a wonderful experience. I graduated from U.K. in 1975.
