About
SAO & SWSO: Stronger Together
Two Constituents of the AAO, Now Operating as the SSO
Though our story goes back over 100 years, the Southern Society of Orthodontists was launched in June 2024, when the Southern Association of Orthodontists and the Southwestern Society of Orthodontists combined operations after several years of meeting together for Annual Sessions in Amelia Island, FL (2023), Austin, TX (2022) and Orlando, FL (2019). As the SSO, we share resources and organizational management while maintaining separate representation as the SAO and SWSO at the AAO House of Delegates.
The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) was created in 1900. Only dentists who successfully complete an accredited orthodontic residency program after dental school are accepted for AAO membership.
The Southern Association of Orthodontists (SAO) was founded in 1921. Originally incorporated in Tennessee as the Southern Society of Orthodontists in 1950, the association became the Southern Association of Orthodontists in Georgia on September 12, 1990. Included in its geographic area are the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana (east of the Mississippi), Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
The Southwest Society of Orthodontists (SWSO) was first organized in the fall of 1920 at the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas, Texas. The founding members included Dr. T.G. Duckworth of San Antonio, Dr. T.O. Gorman of San Antonio, Dr. W.T. Chapman of El Paso, Dr. O.E. Busby of Dallas, Dr. A.B. Conly of Dallas, Dr. C.M. McCauley of Dallas, Dr. P.G. Spencer of Waco, and Dr. E.B. Arnold of Houston. Dr. Thomas O. Gorman was elected to be the first official president of the society. The first annual meeting was held in Dallas, at the Adolphus Hotel, in March of 1921, with eleven members present. The society’s original geographic make-up included the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Arkansas. The boundaries were extended in 1923 to include Kansas.
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