Dental Science professors, students volunteer their expertise

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (April 10, 2014) – Teams of Daytona State College dental science instructors and students took service to heart this spring, putting their training to use as volunteers benefitting underserved populations.

Pam Ridilla, chair of the School of Dental Sciences, this semester took part with groups of students in a number of volunteer service activities. During one activity, Ridilla completed nearly 70 oral hygiene screenings and referrals as part of her volunteer work with the Flomich Avenue Baptist Church’s Dental Bus.

In the same activity, students in Daytona State’s Dental Hygiene and Dental Assisting programs participated, gaining valuable experience assisting volunteer dentists in performing various procedures, provided free to patients. They included Marliz Figueroa, Kylee McDaniel, Nicole Woehr, Rebecca Echevarria and Shannon Young.

In March, Ridilla and Dental Sciences Assistant Chair Leslie Fehl took a group of students to participate in Mission of Mercy, a two-day event held at the state fairgrounds in Tampa, which was sponsored by the Florida Dental Association. Dental hygiene students who participated in the event were Echevarria, Jennifer Balduf and Thao Tran. Dental assisting students included Ashley Johnson, Stephanie Hall and Mary Rymarczyk. Collectively, event volunteers performed free dental procedures valued at more than $1.1 million, treating more than 1,600 low-income patients.

In other service work, dental assisting and dental hygiene students volunteered, along with community dental personnel, for “Give Kids A Smile” and “Early Head Start Dental Hygiene Clinic” to provide preventive and restorative dental services.

The students also provide ongoing oral health education to residents in two assisted living centers and a retirement community in DeLand. 

The college’s School of Dental Sciences offers a certificate program in dental assisting and an associate of science degree in dental hygiene.

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