Our Dental Office Staff in Cedar Park, TX
Nicole Wallace
Lead Dental Assistant
Nicole was born and raised in Austin, Texas, and considers herself a true “Austinite.” Nicole graduated from a small charter school where she walked with only 24 other people! From there, she took a few college courses at ACC, including psychology and math. Finally, she ended up at Austin Dental Assistant School and graduated in July 2016.
Her favorite part of her job is seeing the patients who come in and are entirely silent, hesitant, and anxious, and eventually begin to smile, laugh, relax, and start telling their own jokes. She loves being a part of that breakthrough transformation and building that trust and relationship. In her free time, Nicole considers herself an outdoor person. She loves being at the lake with her family and seeing her boys enjoy the hobbies she used to, like dirt bike riding and sports. Nicole cherishes family time and building memories as a family (with a little “me time” in between). Nicole is currently engaged, and she and her fiancé have three boys. They also have a nutty Chihuahua mix named Milo.
Sarah Lloyd
Lead Hygienist
Sarah was born and raised in Texas and has worked with Vista Ridge Family Dentistry since 2013. She loves everything about her job, especially interacting with patients, caring for people, working with a great team, and learning new things daily! Sarah is married and has two amazing kids, Gracie and Alex.
Tatiana Loomis
Hygienist
Tatiana was born and raised in southwest Russia. She moved to the U.S. in 2002 and Austin in 2010. She attended Darton College in Albany, GA, for her dental hygiene degree. Tatiana chose to work in the dental field because she loves creating strong relationships with patients and helping them improve their quality of life. Tatiana believes the best advice she has ever received is to become a dental hygienist. She enjoys dancing, live music, and walking nature trails outside the office.
Tara Mayberry
Front Office
Tara remembers that she loved going to the dentist as a child, which led her to become a registered dental assistant as an adult. Tara embraces the Vista Ridge mission of making our patients feel like family, and we love having her on our team because of her joy in helping patients feel at ease. When Tara isn’t hard at work helping our patients achieve healthy smiles, she loves spending time with her husband, son, and daughter.
Shelby Moreno
Front Office
Shelby, a born and raised Texan, loves her job! She chose to work in dentistry because she wanted to help people regain their confidence and love their smiles. Shelby raises our patients’ spirits daily and helps them achieve their dream smiles. She enjoys the outdoors and her two young sons when she’s not promoting smiles. Someday, she hopes to explore the world and maybe go to Jamaica. In the meantime, we’re happy to have her on the Vista Ridge team!
Alice Hernandez
Front Office
Alice is from Lamesa, TX, and currently lives in Lubbock. She is detail-oriented and does her best every day to ensure that patients can get the most out of their dental benefits. Alice loves what she does and the people she works with daily. Outside the office, she enjoys spending time with her family, cleaning, and painting. She also has a miniature Yorkie named Itsy and a Yorkshire Terrier named Trixie, who she enjoys hanging out with in her free time.
Kisha Arnold
Front Office
Kisha was born in Fort Hood and grew up in Copperas Cove, where she still lives. She worked in the medical industry for six years before transitioning to the dental field. Kisha loves being surrounded by positive, supportive coworkers and always strives to greet patients in a positive and friendly manner to help ensure they have great experiences in our office. When she’s not at the office, Kisha enjoys spending time with her two children, Ayesha and Eric, relaxing, swimming, traveling, and enjoying life.
Kiley Burton
Dental Assistant
Kiley is from Austin originally and grew up in Burnet. She attended Burnet High School before earning her dental Registered Dental Assistant certification from Austin Dental Assistant School. Kiley knew she wanted to work in dentistry because a person’s teeth are one of the first things she notices about them. While working with Kiley, you can expect her to strike up a fun conversation with you during every visit. Outside of the office, Kiley loves being outdoors, working out, hiking, swimming, roller skating, and playing basketball.
Kelley Chandler
Front Office
Kelley was born and raised in Muskegon, Michigan, and moved to Killeen when she was 19. Once she found her way into dentistry, she realized how much she enjoyed the work and decided to stay. It’s always her hope that patients see the friendly, smiling faces in our office when they walk through the door, and some of their anxiety is relieved. In her free time, Kelley enjoys going to the beach, reading historical fiction, and spending time in her backyard with her six chickens.
Heather Nixon
Dental Assistant
Heather was born in Austin, raised in Elgin, and resides in Hutto. She decided to pursue a career in dentistry after taking an aptitude test and following the results. As it turns out, Heather loves being a Registered Dental Assistant and providing quality patient care. Her favorite part of her job is making patients feel comfortable and happy while helping them maintain their oral health. Heather enjoys spending time with her husband, two children, and two dogs in her spare time.
Brandon Lacy
Dental Assistant
Brandon was born in Waco but grew up in Austin. He attended Manor Dental Assistant School for his Registered Dental Assisting certification. Brandon enjoys working in the dental field because he loves helping others and believes having a healthy smile is incredibly important. He also makes sure to listen to each patient’s concerns carefully to provide them with the best care he possibly can. Outside of the office, Brandon enjoys playing basketball and working out.
Emily Kruger
Dental Assistant
Emily was born and raised in Round Rock and graduated from Austin Dental Assistant School in 2017. She always knew she wanted to pursue a health-related profession and loved going to the dentist, even as a kid. However, it was the dental team at the practice she went to for 15 years who ultimately encouraged her to give dentistry a try. Emily loves making patients laugh and believes visiting the dentist doesn’t have to be such a serious experience. In her free time, Emily enjoys cooking, country dancing, spending time with family, and going to dog parks with her two black labs, Luke and Tucker.
Jennifer Starr
Hygienist
Jennifer is a born and raised Texan. Always keenly interested in understanding how things work, a love for biology and an interest in healthcare led to a career in dentistry. Jennifer loves explaining the “why” in the dental treatment process. If you’ve ever wondered why we recommend a particular treatment plan, Jen will help you understand it! Outside the practice, she loves spending time with her husband and two kids, Memphis and Phoenix, and catching up on much-needed zzzs.
Kayla Whited
Dental Assistant
Kayla was born and raised in Lockhart and currently resides in Liberty Hill. She attended Dental Genius Assisting School in Liberty Hill for her dental education. Kayla chose a career in dentistry to help patients feel confident about their smiles, and she loves bonding with each patient and making their dental experiences as stress-free and pleasant as possible. In her free time, Kayla enjoys working on crafts and spending time with her friends, family, and two Yorkies, Libby, and Bently.
Aleysha Swoboda
Hygienist
Aleysha is a Midwest girl—she grew up in a small town in Iowa and recently relocated from Minnesota. She graduated from Minnesota State University, Mankato, in 2016 with a B.S. in Dental Hygiene and a minor in Food and Nutrition. Aleysha continuously stays educated on the latest research and techniques concerning her patients’ oral health. She is certified in nitrous administration and CPR. For Aleysha, the best part of this job is getting to know each patient and caring for them as a whole person. She loves educating and seeing patients’ hard work pay off through improved oral and overall health. In addition, Aleysha is a proud wife and dog mom. She’s been married to her husband, Derek, for two years, and they have a lab-collie mix named Chance, their first child. When she’s not in the office, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, hiking, reading a good book by the pool, exploring Austin, and watching sports.
Leah Fulgium
Dental Assistant
Leah was born and raised in Seguin and lives in Killeen with her husband, Spencer, and their mouthy Schnauzer, Porter. Leah values having a stable career and securing her future, which is what led her to attend Texas State’s dental assistant training program. She loves seeing patients smile after their treatment is complete and feels it is important to maintain a positive attitude while explaining dental procedures. When she’s not in the office, you can usually find Leah spending time with friends or lying on the couch and watching the Twilight Saga on repeat.
Valeria Cosme
Dental Assistant
Valeria was born in Puerto Rico and lives in Harker Heights. She has always known she wanted to work in a health-related field and was inspired to pursue a career in dentistry because of her sister, who is a registered dental assistant. Valeria attended Harker Heights High School and Austin Dental Assistant Academy for her dental training. She loves everything about her job, especially helping patients and making their experiences fun, so they look forward to coming back. In her free time, Valeria enjoys playing with her son, Jayce, and spending time with her boyfriend, Jalen.