MINNEAPOLIS — In February, the U of M's School of Dentistry is helping to "Give Kids a Smile."
The U has been part of the national "Give Kids a Smile" event for 20 years with dental students leading the charge.
Earlier this month, students treated more than 60 young patients in one day. They did everything from dental work to finding grants to pay for care for patients with no insurance.
We spoke with faculty about the lengths these students go to to serve the community and give back.
"We know that if they're doing this in such magnitude here while they are in school, I just look forward to the big things they are going to do after they graduate," said Dr. Teresa Fong, Pre Doctoral Clinical Director at the division of pediatric dentistry at the University of Minnesota.
"All of these students are going to be dentists, and there are lots of kids out in the real world to see beyond these walls of the dental school. So we want them to be prepared. We love to see that they want to give back to their community and want to serve others because that’s what dentistry is all about."
Miranda Thacker, a third-year dental student, helped spearhead this year's event. She said students worked for months to arrange everything, including finding an MNsure navigator to help patients find insurance options for future care. While it's hard work, the students were thrilled to be a part of it.
"It’s something big to get 200 dental students to come on a Saturday at 7:15 a.m. So I think that speaks for itself that everyone is pretty excited to help out," Thacker said. "It’s really rewarding seeing the kids come in and they do really well, and they get a lot of treatment done and that’s really rewarding."
The work doesn't end with the Give Kids a Smile event. After students find grants for kids, that money goes on to fund further treatment for the kids.
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