Our pediatric dental office is located in the heart of Lakeview in New Orleans, Louisiana. With over 40 years of combined dental experience, Dr. Claudia Cavallino, Dr. Kellie Axelrad, and Dr. Nicole Boxberger work together as a team striving to provide their patients with the highest standard of dental care.  

Our office is designed to create a warm, family-like environment, and extra effort is given to provide each child the time, special attention, and individualized care they need.  We proudly offer the latest treatments and technologies available in the dental field to ensure that our patients achieve and maintain beautiful, healthy smiles while developing a positive relationship with our office that will transition them into a great adult patient.

Our mission statement is to provide our patients and their families with personal, individualized, quality-focused care resulting in a superior experience for all. 

Meet Our Team

Our Hygienists

Abby Schaefer, RDH

Miss Abby is our long standing Registered Dental Hygienist, who studied her pre-dental coursework at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge and completed her Bachelor of Science Degree in Dental Hygiene at LSU School of Dentistry, New Orleans in May of 2011. Abby took an interest in pediatrics and special needs patients early on in her dental education. Our office is the perfect environment for Abby to let her personality and expertise shine through! From age one visits to periodontal screenings in our older patients, Abby’s extensive skill set in preventive care allows her to provide an individualized visit for your child. She also accompanies our doctors to the hospital for the care of our patients who require sedation. Abby attends both local and national continuing education courses with our doctors to maintain her knowledge of the most current evidence-based recommendations in our field.

Kristin Dorcey, RDH

Miss Kristin joined our office in 2019 with four years of experience working in the pediatric specialty. She completed her pre-dental requirements at Southeastern Louisiana University and Delgado University and earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Dental Hygiene at LSU School of Dentistry, New Orleans in May of 2014. Kristin excels at calming nervous patients, with a systematic approach to communicating with them what to expect at each step of the visit. Her extensive knowledge in oral health and preventive care makes her an expert in our field. She also has specialized skills in the treatment of both medically compromised and special needs patients of all ages. Kristin completes her continuing education courses annually through regional and national meetings to keep her skill set up to date with the latest recommendations for our families.

Stephanie Fortenberry, RDH

Miss Stephanie joined the NOCDC team with 14 years of experience exclusively in pediatric dentistry. She attended LSU in Baton Rouge, Louisiana for her undergraduate studies, and received her Bachelor of Science degree in Dental Hygiene from LSU School of Dentistry. Well versed in medically compromised and special needs patients, Stephanie is truly an expert in caring for our most delicate patients. As a registered dental hygienist, Stephanie is passionate about educating our families in all aspects of oral health.  Providing a professional, yet relaxed and fun environment is one of Stephanie’s greatest strengths.  She completes her continuing education requirements by attending local and out-of-state meetings with our doctors.

Tysha Lopez, RDH

Miss Tysha joined our office in 2021, coming to us from her home state of Florida!   She was born in Jacksonville, then raised in Puerto Rico.  Keeping in her family’s tradition, Tysha served in the Navy for six years, where she worked with patients in various departments of medical care.  Some include Family Medicine and Maternal Infant Unit.  In the Navy she also acted as a Dental Assistant which led to her furthering her education receiving an Associate’s Degree in Dental Hygiene from Florida State College.  Tysha’s special interest in our special needs community allows her to draw on her many years of clinical care provided to her by her military career.  Drawing on these experiences allows Tysha to be a unique and expertly trained provider for our patients.

Our Expanded Duty Dental Assistants

Ashleigh Chabert, EDDA

Miss Ashleigh is a certified Expanded Duty Dental Assistant, with over 14 years of experience in the pediatric setting. She is our head restorative assistant, meaning she spends most of her time assisting our doctors with procedures. Ashleigh has a natural touch when it comes to making our restorative patients feel comfortable and safe during their procedures. Because of her EDDA certification, Ashleigh can also provide cleanings and sealants to our patients as needed. She also travels to Ochsner and Children’s Hospitals to aid our doctors in the care of our patients receiving treatment under sedation.

Monique Withers, EDDA

Miss Monique, who boasts 24 years of pediatric dental experience as an Expanded Duty Dental Assistant, has been an amazing asset to our practice. Because of her extensive training and experience, Monique assists our doctors in procedures and regularly provides cleanings and sealants to our patients as well. She has a fun personality and sense of humor, which creates a positive atmosphere for our patients. Because she has been working in pediatric dentistry for so long, Monique also schedules appointments and reminders for our families, as well as facilitates insurance processing before your family’s appointments.

Cerissa Fulton, EDDA

Miss Cerissa brings 14 years of skill and experience as an expanded duty dental assistant to our office. Because of her broad areas of expertise, Cerissa assists our doctors in all types of chairside procedures, as well as accompanies them to the hospitals they service to care for children who require their dental treatment to be completed under general anesthesia. Cerissa also provides dental cleanings, x-rays and fluoride to our recare and new patients in the office. Cerissa’s friendly and upbeat personality helps to brighten up the room!

Drew Rougelot

Miss Drew joined our team in February 2023 with aspirations of a career in the dental field. Drew is
currently our main laboratory technician and contributes as a hygiene assistant to our four registered
dental hygienists. She has also begun training to be a chairside dental assistant, as well as learning to
assist our doctors when they are providing treatment in a hospital setting. We look forward to watching
Drew’s knowledge and expertise grow with our office.

Our Office Team

Taylor-Marie Gaspard

Miss Taylor-Marie, our Office Manager, has been working in customer service and as a patient liaison in dental offices for over 15 years. She is our expert in patient insurance, claims and billing. Taylor also acts as one of our Hospital Coordinators, assisting our doctors in scheduling and working with insurance companies for our patients who require sedation for their restorative treatment.  She also ensures that our office policies and procedures are being followed, in order to provide the best experience for every family. 

Angelica Montemayor

Miss Angelica, our Assistant Office Manager, has been working with children for 10 years. She is a New Patient Specialist, and she is most often speaking to you on the phone when making your child’s first appointment. Angelica is also a liaison for children requiring treatment in a hospital setting. Because she is bilingual, Angelica often accompanies our Spanish speaking patients to treatment areas to ensure proper communication throughout the visit.