our doctors

Dr. Joanna Silver Dover

My passion for dental health started with my mother, Susan, a dental hygienist. She instilled in me a love for dentistry, and I applied to dental school fresh out of high school and attended an early acceptance program at the University of Florida. My undergraduate degree is in Human Nutrition, and I went on to continue dental school and graduated in the top 8 of my class. I continued my education at a residency program at Palmetto Health Richland, here in Columbia, SC. While in residency, I met my future husband, Michael Dover, at a gamecock tailgate and quickly decided that there is just too much to love about Columbia to leave. We have three children, Ethan, Weston, and Layton. We also have a very fuzzy dog, Etta.

I hope that, in my practice, in all that we say, and all that we do, we are a testament to God's love for all people.

Dr. Sarah Anne Knowlton

I was born in Columbia, SC, grew up in Greenville and went to Clemson. I then attended MUSC in Charleston for dental school where I married my husband, Yates. We lived in Jacksonville, FL where I practiced a few years and he finished his Ob/Gyn residency before moving back to South Carolina. I am staying busy with Junior League, church, catching up with old friends, and fixing up our new home. We love the Columbia area and are thrilled to serve the community here!

Dr. James Nyland

Dr. James Nyland has been practicing pediatric dentistry in Columbia for over 30 years. He received his D.D.S. degree at Ohio State University and completed his residency at Columbus Children’s Hospital in Ohio. During his 10 year military career, Dr. Nyland served in the United States Military at Fort Jackson as an Army dentist. A former president of both the Greater Columbia Dental Association in 1987 and the South Society of Pediatric Dentistry in 1992, Dr. Nyland has extensive experience leading dental organizations. He is currently serving as Chairman of Continuing Education for the Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentistry, a job he has held for over 25 years.

Dr. Angela Schweiger

My philosophy of care has always centered around my passion for preventative dentistry – changing not only the lifestyle, homecare, and diet choices of my patients, but also changing their perspectives on the importance of oral health and how to prevent oral disease. This focus on prevention also extends into early guided growth and development, something that was very important in my life personally, and a passion i hope i bring to this practice. It is my mission to educate and empower, and in turn maintain a healthy patient base that needs less treatment and has the tools for a healthy life.

I owned two family dental practices before selling them to be able to spend more time with my family. Dr. Dover actually covered my first child’s maternity leave for me, and our younger children became friends at school. I was thrilled when asked to join Columbia Children’s Dentistry alongside Dr. Dover, her amazing associate dentists, and her skilled and talented team who share the same enthusiasm for providing superb comprehensive dental care to all of their patients.
Although Columbia has been my home since 2006, I grew up in Nicholasville, a small town just outside of Lexington, Kentucky. For my undergraduate degree, I attended Georgetown College and obtained my D.M.D. degree from the University of Kentucky College of Dentistry. I have 3 beautiful children, Annika, Alden, and Aeker and a silly black Goldendoodle named Charlotte. My children and I have planted strong roots in Columbia area. We love the local, family-oriented atmosphere and how close we are to the SC beaches and NC mountains. My boys love playing on local basketball teams and my daughter has enjoyed some visual art opportunities here.