Many factors contribute to the ability of Arkansans to live full, healthy lives, with one of the most important being access to quality medical care and treatment from well-trained professionals who live and work in local communities. 

Dental hygiene and preventive treatment are important components in attaining that goal. In fact, oral disease can lead to serious health complications like heart disease and endocarditis, as well as pneumonia and even complications with pregnancy that can result in premature birth and low birth weight. 

This reality clearly demonstrates the need to prioritize oral health, but it can be hard to do so without convenient access to dental care. That has been a challenge in our state historically.

The America’s Health Rankings 2024 Annual Report showed that just 55.6 percent of adult Arkansans reported visiting a dentist in the last year, and that number was even higher for high school students: 69.2 percent. An Arkansas Center for Health Improvement finding indicated that in 2019, eleven of our counties experienced a dental provider shortage including two – Cleveland and Lafayette – that were without a single active dentist.

Until just recently, there were no dental schools in our state to train the future providers of this vital care. 

Fortunately, we have just made an important and encouraging stride to help ensure our communities have the opportunity to receive affordable, reliable and quality oral health care and treatment. And I am proud to have played a role in this tremendous progress that is finally coming to fruition.

Earlier this year, as the first dental school in Arkansas prepared to launch, it received accreditation. In even more exciting news, it has now welcomed its inaugural class of students.

This day was only made possible through a great deal of vision, planning and hard work. The result of that effort has brought a dental school to Arkansas, with Batesville’s Lyon College establishing the new home for its School of Dental Medicine in Little Rock. This historic moment is worth pausing to reflect on and celebrate.

The inaugural class boasts 80 students, 43 percent of whom are Natural State natives hailing from communities as diverse as Bentonville and Jonesboro to McGehee, Atkins and Ozark. Seventeen of these native Arkansans are also first-generation college students. We are thrilled to keep them inside our own borders with a campus that will boast state-of-the-art facilities and cutting-edge technology.

The school is committed to tailoring the curriculum to emphasize both education and community care, ensuring students benefit from a hands-on clinical experience and have many occasions to provide comprehensive dental care to the surrounding community.

Last year, Congress passed, and the president signed into law, legislation that delivered funding including $15 million for Lyon’s dental school. That investment into our state, which I was pleased to secure, represents a positive step forward on the priority to train and retain health professionals who will likely provide care in Arkansas throughout their careers.

The first class at the Lyon College School of Dental Medicine is poised to play an important part in that mission and usher in an exciting new chapter for oral health in Arkansas. It will also hopefully inspire more bright young men and women to pursue this profession and grow the ranks of those providing this essential care to our families, friends and communities.