Delta Dental of Colorado CEO Helen Drexler announced in March that the company is making a $1.5 million gift to support the dental hygiene programs offered by Colorado Community College System, including Community College of Denver (CCD). The gift will provide student scholarships, faculty support and funding for state-of-the-art equipment.

CCD is one of three schools to receive this funding. The monies will be evenly split between CCD, Pueblo Community College and Northwestern Community College in Rangely.

CCD offers Associate of Applied Science and Bachelor of Applied Science degrees in dental hygiene. It also offers continuing education for licensed dental hygienists.

“Through this generous investment in our dental hygiene programs, Delta Dental of Colorado has demonstrated its commitment to the oral health of the state as well as to the value of the profession of dental hygiene,” said Stephanie Harrison, Dean of Health Sciences. “We are very grateful for their support.”

The gift from Delta Dental of Colorado aims to strategically advance the field of dental hygiene in Colorado by:

• Attracting and retaining top faculty to work in high-quality educational facilities and programs;
• Ensuring programs have current equipment, technology and supplies to foster a learning environment centered on evidence-based dental care; and
• Providing scholarships for dental hygiene students, prioritizing students who are committed to career paths in public health or community clinics, education, and/or rural communities.

“We are proud to invest in these dental hygiene programs that play such a key role in developing future public health leaders,” said Helen Drexler, CEO of Delta Dental of Colorado. “Working with CCCS, we feel we can make a tremendous impact preparing students for careers in dental hygiene, especially in rural and underserved communities.”

An immediate $100,000 will be made available to each school to purchase equipment, according to CCCS. The remaining $1.2 million will be invested as a term endowment to be spent over the next 10 years on student scholarships and faculty support.

Delta Dental of Colorado was established in 1958 and is the largest dental benefits provider in the state, serving more than 1.2 million residents. The company’s mission is to improve the oral health of the communities it serves.

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Pictured Left to right:  Everette Freeman, President, Community College of Denver, David Siguenza, Office of Academic Advising, Pueblo Community College, Helen Drexler, President and CEO of Delta Dental of Colorado; Allison Cusick, Executive Director of the Delta Dental of Colorado Foundation; Dr. Russell Meyer, Chair of the State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education (SBCCOE); Presley Askew, SBCCOE Liaison to the Foundation for Colorado Community Colleges; and, Ron Granger, President of Colorado Northwestern Community College.