Dental Staff

Dentist in Marble Falls, TX

All professionals at Highland Lakes Dental maintain the highest levels of accreditation and pursue ongoing education to stay abreast of the latest trends in the medical field. Read on to learn more about our staff's experience and training.

Margaret Cowling, DDS

Dr. Margaret Cowling is originally born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. She went to UTSA and UTHSCSA for her undergrad and graduate studies of dentistry. She lived in Houston for two years as a public healthcare provider for the National Health Service Corps in a federally qualified health center providing dentistry for underserved dental populations. After JT and Margaret got married they moved to Abilene, Texas so JT could serve his time in the Air Force. Abilene has a special place in Margaret's heart as that's where two babies were born: Conner 6 and Zoey 4.  They welcomed some new additions to the family since moving to Marble Falls: Zayne (2) and Sawa (8 months). Margaret likes do anything and everything with her kids. Anything related to water and animals is a great time for the family.

Jefferson Cowling, DDS

Dr. JT Cowling hails from Sulphur Springs, Texas where he was born and raised. JT graduated with a bachelor's in Biology from Texas A&M Commerce. Then he completed his Doctorate in Dental Surgery from UT Health Science Center in San Antonio. It was in San Antonio that JT was lucky enough to have met Margaret. After a lot of persuading, Margaret agreed to marry JT. He was one of the few applicants to get accepted into the Air Force Dental Corps. JT served all four years at Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas. JT and Margaret have four children, Conner who is 6, Zoey who is 4, Zayne who is 2 , and Sawa who is 8 months old. The Cowling's are proud to be part of this community and are excited to meet you!

Dr. Matthew Smith

Dr. Matthew Smith was born in Burlington, North Carolina and moved frequently as a child. He attended Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia and attended the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio for his D.D.S. After graduation, Dr. Smith commissioned in the U.S. Navy as a Lieutenant. He completed a General Practice Residency program at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, VA. After residency, Dr. Smith was sent to Manama, Bahrain. On returning to the U.S., Dr. Smith was stationed at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. He is looking forward to serving the needs of Highland Lakes Dental patients.

Shannon Coulson - Hygienist

Shannon Coulson is originally from Memphis, Tennessee. She moved to Texas after marrying her husband, Drew 12 years ago. She attended the Dental Hygiene Program at Temple Community College after her husband graduated the RN program. She has been a Registered Hygienist for 6 years. Marble Falls is the perfect place for them to raise their three busy boys. She is also a member of Lakeshores Church and cannot wait to serve your family!

Melissa Harris - Front Desk

Melissa has loved living in Marble Falls since 2015. She has experience in guest hospitality and relations and likes to provide a positive experience for the people she meets. Her interests include surviving her family of five, upcycling, art, and patroning restaurants based on the quality of their salsa.

Alysha Damico - Dental Assistant 

Alysha is from Rochester, New York. She moved to Marble Falls in 1998. She spends her days with her 3 beautiful daughters, her spouse and her 2 dogs. Her hobbies include cooking Italian food and baking with her daughters. They love to explore new swimming areas, their favorite place to go is the beach. She can not wait to help assist in creating beautiful smiles.

Anja Nylander - Treatment Plan Coordinator, Insurance Coordinator RDA

Anja was born in the outskirts of Houston and has lived in marble falls area since 2018. She and her husband are raising 7 wonderful children, Ben-18, Joey-15, Bradley-12, Sophia-11, Clay-9, Olivia-7, and McKenna-6,  in the beautiful Hill Country. Though she doesn't have much but in her spare time she enjoys coaching different sports that her children play along with hiking going to the lake and sitting by a fire. She attended UT Health San Antonio for her Dental Assistant License.  

Ashley Koch - Registered Dental Assistant, RDA

Ashley is from the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and moved out here for some country fun. She loves to make people smile and feel good about themselves. Her favorite topic to get people laughing at the dental office is her crazy life at home with 3 dogs, 3 cats, and 28 chickens. She LOVES her chickens!

Patricia Bowser - Insurance Coordinator 

Tricia is originally from Florida but got to Texas as soon as possibly good! She joined Highland Lakes in September 2020. She enjoys spending time with her family binge watching all the best shows on Netflix, and getting involved in local activities within our community. Come to her for all your insurance needs. 

Kc Johnson

 Kc is 23 and moved from Arkansas to Texas about 4 years ago. She has 2 cats named Fiona and Morty. One of her favorite things about working for us is seeing patients smiling.