From Curiosity to Commitment: How Tufts Shaped a Lifelong Legacy

The first time Rustam DeVitre, DI77, DG76, D12P, heard of Tufts University was as a curious 10-year-old boy sitting in an orthodontist’s office in India. Fascinated by the office, he noticed the word “Tufts” displayed on the wall and asked what it meant. “To me, Tufts was a tuft of hair,” DeVitre recalled, laughing. The orthodontist explained simply: ‘It’s a university in America.’”

Decades later, childhood curiosity has evolved into a lifelong connection and profound generosity. Together with his wife, Virginia Shahinian, D77, DG79, D12P, DeVitre recently established the DeVitre and Shahinian Family Professorship in Prosthodontics. Their gift reflects deep gratitude for the mentors, education, and experiences that shaped both their careers, while helping to ensure future generations of students benefit from the same transformative experience. 

As DeVitre grew older, so did his interest in dentistry—and in Tufts. After excelling in dental school, DeVitre graduated second overall at the university and was awarded a prestigious scholarship from the government of India to pursue his master’s degree in orthodontics. Yet throughout all his studies in India, the goal of completing his dental education in America remained. In 1974, this goal became a reality when he was admitted to the International Student Program at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. To a young, ambitious dentist, Tufts represented excellence, possibility, and a gateway to the wider world.

Yet the opportunity came with significant financial challenges.

“I didn’t have much money coming from India due to financial restrictions for international students,” DeVitre explained. At the time, the chair of the prosthodontics department, Gino Passamonti, D58, DG55, DG57, A84P, A88P, was, as DeVitre recalls, a “tough gentleman" who required his students to purchase his textbooks and a camera to photograph patients. Unable to afford the equipment and fearful of losing his spot at the dental school, DeVitre leaned on his small network of friends and family in the United States for help. “I called my cousin in California, and he sent me a $500 loan and said, ‘Look, here's $500, buy a Nikon camera. You'll be okay.’” 

The challenges of those early years would ultimately shape DeVitre’s life for the better, both personally and professionally. 

While living in shared apartments to save money, he met his roommate, Virginia Shahinian—also a Tufts prosthodontics student—who would later become his wife. And over time, the demanding Passamonti evolved from an intimidating department chair into one of DeVitre’s most formative mentors. Along with S. George Colt, A57, D61, DG70; Joseph Evans; Nadeem Karimbux; Nitan Khankari, DI10; Sam Lee; Maurice Martel; Noshir Mehta, DI77, DG73, J01P, A07P; Lloyd Miller, A54, D58; Francis Ursoleo; and Albert Yurkstas, D49, DG56, J74P, J81P, these distinguished faculty members played a pivotal role in shaping DeVitre’s approach to dentistry, teaching, and mentorship.

In recognition of their profound impact, the DeVitre and Shahinian Family Professorship honors the faculty whose dedication shaped not only their own careers, but also the generations of prosthodontists who followed.

In 1976 and 1979, DeVitre and Shahinian respectively completed their training in prosthodontics—the specialty focused on restoring and replacing missing or damaged teeth—during a time when advances in restorative dentistry and dental aesthetics were reshaping patient care. Their professors demanded rigor, discipline, and precision. Though they both still recall their professors’ intensity, they credit them with teaching them how to think critically and pursue excellence throughout their careers.

After graduation, DeVitre remained at Tufts as a full-time faculty member from 1977 to 1984, teaching prosthodontics and mentoring students. Even after establishing a successful private practice, he returned to teach part time—an expression of gratitude for the educators who had invested so deeply in him and a way to pass that commitment to future generations.

Over time, Tufts became woven into the broader story of the DeVitre and Shahinian family. Their daughter, Adrina, D12, and two nephews, James Shahinian, D14, and Thomas Shahinian, D17, are also alums of the School of Dental Medicine.

“Five people in the same family to go to Tufts,” DeVitre reflected. “Isn’t that special!”

That lifelong relationship with Tufts, combined with a shared desire to advance excellence in prosthodontics education, ultimately inspired the couple to establish the school’s first endowed professorship in prosthodontics.

For DeVitre, education is a gift whose value extends far beyond tuition paid or degrees earned. The knowledge, mentorship, and opportunities provided by faculty become lasting gifts that alumni carry with them throughout their lives and careers.

The DeVitre and Shahinian Family Professorship marks an important milestone for Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and its Department of Prosthodontics, strengthening the school’s leadership in restorative dentistry and prosthodontic education.

Damian Lee, associate professor and chair of prosthodontics, is the inaugural incumbent of the professorship. “It’s a catalyst for scholarly activities,” Lee said. “It serves as a springboard for creative minds to come together and start sprouting these new ideas and projects."
 

Reflecting on his motivation for giving, DeVitre returns to a simple but deeply held belief:

“I owe this to my professors who have given me the knowledge and wisdom to go forth and make a living. That is why I give back.”

Crediting the educators at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine for his and his wife’s success, DeVitre gives special thanks to the following faculty members:
Abhayjit Singh Bedi, DI02, DG00
S. George Colt, A57, D61, DG70
Joseph Evans
Nadeem Karimbux
Nitin Khankari, DI10
Samuel Lee
Maurice Martel
Noshir Mehta, DI77, DG73, J01P, A07P
Lloyd Miller, A54, D58
Gino Passamonti, D58, DG55, DG57, A84P, A88P
Francis Ursoleo
Albert Yurkstas, D49, DG56, J74P, J81P