Alumni Spotlight: Vinh “Danny” Nguyen, DDS ’08, RDH

Vinh “Danny” Nguyen, DDS ’08, RDH, took a more winding road to his dental degree than most.

Starting college as a business major, Danny pivoted to the dental hygiene program at UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry, graduating in 2001. Three years later, he started the DDS program and graduated in 2008.

Danny went on to build Eco Dental, a successful private practice that also focuses on reducing its carbon footprint. In 2018, he and his wife, Kristy, began a journey of generosity that has grown over the years. They established two endowed funds that support faculty in the dental hygiene and the general and restorative dentistry programs.

“The faculty devote their lives to teaching and giving back to the students,” Danny says. “I want to show a little appreciation for everything they do.”

The Nguyens further enhanced their generosity in 2024 by elevating one of the endowed funds to a professorship and creating an endowed scholarship—cementing a legacy of giving to the faculty and students of the School of Dentistry.

“Money can’t buy happiness until you give it away,” he says. “That’s part of the satisfaction you get from being able to give back.”