Eustaquio Araujo, D.D.S. is not only a world-class orthodontist, he also coached the Brazilian national indoor soccer team to two world championships. Araujo is the new director of the Graduate Program in Orthodontics at Saint Louis University Center for Advanced Dental Education (CADE).
Donald Ferguson, D.D.M., M.S.D., director of CADE, stated in a press release that the skills that made Araujo a champion coach means good news for SLU’s graduate orthodontic students.
“Dr. Araujo has a commanding presence and is an outstanding and passionate teacher in every respect, both in the classroom and the clinic,” Ferguson stated. “He is a superior orthodontist clinician, and his ability to motivate others is legendary.”
Araujo completed his graduate orthodontic training at the University of Pittsburgh in 1981. He initiated the Graduate Orthodontic Training program at Catholic University of Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where he served as dean of the School of Dentistry.
“The Saint Louis University Center for Advanced Dental Education is considered the no. 1 facility in the world for graduate dental education,” Araujo stated. “It is a distinct pleasure to be here. There are a lot of people around the world who would love to be in this position.”
When it comes to dental care, Araujo believes in prevention. “My main focus is on early treatment,” he stated. “It’s important to get the kids at a very early age, between 6 and 10 years old. My experience is that we can have great success if we can treat them early enough.”
Although it was difficult for Araujo to leave Brazil, he said it was his dream to direct an orthodontic program in the United States.
“I had a large clinical practice in Brazil,” Araujo stated. “Fortunately, I have two brothers-in-law who are orthodontists who take care of the clinic. We are from big families-my wife and I-we miss the people, but we’re happy to be in St. Louis.”
The Araujo family moved to St. Louis after spending the past 20 years in Brazil. Araujo and his wife, Teresa, have two children. Araujo has 13 siblings. He is close to his brother, the Most Rev. Serafim Fernandes de Araujo, one of the 135 Catholic cardinals in the world and president of Catholic University in Brazil.
Araujo plans to focus on dentistry, not soccer, in St. Louis, but the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has asked Araujo to teach soccer clinics here in St. Louis. In coaching 150 games, Araujo has only seen two losses and has won 17 other championships in an 11-year coaching career.
