LAS VEGAS, NV -- The Board of Regents unanimously approved today a proposal by UNLV President Carol Harter to seek funding to establish the state's first College of Dental Science. The school will help meet some of Nevada's critical health-care needs as well as provide access for Nevadans who seek a dental education.
The dental school will be the next major step in the development of graduate and professional education at UNLV. There are 54 dental schools in the United States, but only 14 are operated by public universities located west of the Mississippi.
"We are excited about this opportunity to develop another professional degree program at UNLV," said President Carol C. Harter. "Providing education and research programs that address community and regional needs are an important part of UNLV's long-range plan, as is collaboration with our colleagues in the University and Community College System of Nevada and in the community. A UNLV College of Dental Science will fit perfectly with both of those goals."
In a bold and innovative move, the Regents approved the request to site the UNLV dental school on the West Charleston campus of the Community College of Southern Nevada.
UCCSN Chancellor Richard S. Jarvis stressed that this decision "will bring desperately needed clinical services closer to the city center, help strengthen relationships between UCCSN programs and nearby University Medical Center, and create opportunities for collaboration with CCSN's dental hygiene program and the University of Nevada School of Medicine's Family Medical Center and dental residency clinic already located at West Charleston."
Last year, only 72 Nevadans managed to enroll in U.S. dental schools. Nearly 70 percent of those students were enrolled in expensive private schools or had to pay high non-resident tuition at a public school in another state. Private dental school graduates can expect to graduate with an average debt load of $113, 128 -- twice the amount for public school graduates.
"The Board's action today is a giant step forward for Nevada's students and our health care education programs," said Dr. Jill Derby, chair of the UCCSN Board of Regents. "Not only are we increasing access for our students to a quality education in Nevada, we are also substantially improving the access for our elderly and disadvantaged to quality dental care."
In 1997, Nevada ranked last in the nation for the ratio of dentists to the resident population (35 per 100,000). This imbalance is compounded by the fact that dental students often graduate with a high debt burden and are unwilling to return to rural areas or to serve disadvantaged populations in urban Nevada.
"The Board of Regents is committed to our strategic directions which includes providing quality in our graduate and professional education programs as well as meeting Nevada's needs for quality health care," said Dr. Derby. The 4-year program could be launched as early as fall semester 2000 with an initial entry class of 40 students.
Comprised of two doctoral-granting universities, four comprehensive community colleges and one environmental research institution, the University and Community College System of Nevada serves the educational and job training needs of the nation's fastest growing state. As Nevada's only system of higher education, the UCCSN provides educational opportunities to more than 78,000 students.
