The College of Dentistry at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center will hold its annual Give Kids a Smile Day February 26, from 8 a.m. until noon, at the Delta Dental of Tennessee Oral Health Complex, which includes Dunn Dental Building, 875 Union Ave., providing free dental services to 114 students from Freedom Preparatory Academy in Memphis.
For roughly a decade, the UT Health Science Center College of Dentistry has participated annually in Give Kids a Smile Day, which was launched in 2003 by the American Dental Association to provide free dental services to children through the help of volunteers.
At UT Health Science Center, dental procedures will be performed at no charge by third- and fourth-year dental students, along with dental hygiene students, under the supervision of faculty. The procedures will include examinations, cleanings, fillings, extractions, and fluoride applications.
Orpheus Triplett, DDS, associate dean for Extramural Clinical Education and Community Service for the college, said the event “has become one of the most rewarding community outreach projects engaged in the UT Health Science Center College of Dentistry. It has the full support of the university and the enthusiastic commitment of staff, students, and faculty here at the College of Dentistry. The bridge built between the college and the Freedom Preparatory Academy has been well-traveled, in offering mentoring, oral health education, and dental treatment to children from the communities served by the academy.”
“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with UT Health Science Center and Give Kids a Smile,” said Natasha Jean-Louis, Head of School for the Flagship Jonetta Campus. “This opportunity is an embodiment of the ‘in life’ part of our mission.”
This is the second year the event will be expanded to include high school students in addition to middle school students. This year, it will expand to include high school students from Flagship Jonetta Middle School and Brownlee Middle and High School campuses of Freedom Preparatory Academy.