American Association of Women Dentists

A Blue Bell Lovin’ girl, Catherine grew up in Brenham, TX and moved to San Antonio once she found out her dental school dreams were coming true. Prior to starting college she was a dental assistant, allowing her to develop a passion for dentistry and everything it is made up of. Catherine went to Texas State University where she received her bachelor’s degree in Biology. She is currently a third year dental student at UTHSCSA. Volunteering in her community and helping in any way she can is something she treasures. In her spare time she loves going to the beach, traveling, and spending time with her family, friends, and two weenie dogs.

Julia was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas where she attended Winston Churchill High School. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin and was a student-athlete on the Longhorn women’s tennis team. Julia’s father is an accomplished dentist himself so she has grown up around the field of dentistry. While in college, Julia realized she wanted to help improve people’s first impressions, their smiles, which led her to follow in her father’s footsteps. As her love for dentistry continues to grow, Julia enjoys working on challenging cases and improving the self-confidence for patients of all ages. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, working out, drinking tea, exploring the outdoors, eating sour straws, watching movies, eating dessert, cuddling with her puppies, sunbathing in her backyard and playing the harp.

This Texas Panhandle girl moved to San Antonio for dental school after receiving her undergraduate degree in biology from Texas Tech University. In her spare time, Holly enjoys spending time with her husband, Jordan, and Black Lab/Golden Retriever mix, Cooper. Holly also enjoys spending time outdoors whether it be snow skiing in Angel Fire, NM or tubing on Lake Brownwood. Community outreach has always been dear to Holly, as she spent numerous hours giving back to communities both locally and globally. She’d love to open a practice with her husband in West Texas and give back to people in that region!

Aalia Farukhi is a 3rd year dental student. She was born in LA but raised a Texan. She has lived in H-town for most of her life and moved to San Antonio for dental school. In her free time, Aalia enjoys photography, working out, cooking and watching re-runs of Parks and Recreation.

Angela grew up in Medford, Wisconsin. She served in the USAF as a Serbian Croatian linguist for 6 years. After the completion of her enlistment, she completed her BS in Dental Hygiene at UTHSCSA. After several international mission trips she decided to further her education in dentistry in hopes of having more to offer her patients. She was recently commissioned back into the USAF and will be practicing dentistry with them following dental school. In her free time she loves to spend time with her friends and family, weave baskets, paint, workout and travel the world.

Dr. Karen Troendle is a San Antonio native, who was in the fourth graduating class of the UTHSCSA School of Dentistry. Karen entered dental school with the intention of pursuing academics in dentistry as a career, and was offered a teaching position in the Department of Prosthodontics upon graduation. During her tenure with the Health Science Center she has directed numerous courses in several departments. She currently serves as the Director of Direct Restorations for the Department of Comprehensive Dentistry. Karen is a member of the Health Science Center’s Academy of Master Teachers, and has been awarded the title of Distinguished Teaching Professor by the University of Texas Board of Regents. Her favorite pastime is to spend time with her two children and three grandchildren.