Community Events and Programs
Mayor's Back to School Fair
The Mayor's Back to School Fair is a collaborative effort between the City of Dallas, Dallas area schools, public health departments, state agencies, non-profit organizations, corporations and hundreds of volunteers. The College of Dentistry participates in the event annually providing preventive oral health screenings for attendees.
Miles for Smiles Runathon
The Annual Miles for Smiles runathon event, a partnership between the University of Texas at Dallas Pre-Dental Association and Texas A&M College of Dentistry, benefits the dental school’s Social Services Fund. The fund coordinates subsidized care for qualifying patients.
The event also features live music and entertainment, as well as prizes, giveaways and refreshments for participants.
An entry fee is required for runners. Those who cannot be present but would like to support the event may either make a one-time donation or pledge a specific dollar amount per mile run.
Sealant Programs
Paying attention at school is difficult if your teeth hurt. About two-thirds of Texas school children between the ages of six and eight suffer from tooth decay, significantly more than the 53 percent average nationwide. Sealants, thin plastic coatings painted on the chewing surfaces of the premolars and molars, shield the teeth from bacteria that can lead to decay and cavities. Two Texas A&M College of Dentistry sealant programs are making this preventive treatment available at no cost to Dallas-area children and youth.
Sealant Initiative
The Dallas County Sealant Initiative strives to improve the dental health of Dallas County children by putting sealants on second graders’ teeth. The initiative is a unique community partnership that also provides the children oral screenings, oral health education and referrals to dentists as appropriate.
The Seal Mobile, one-of-a-kind in Texas, is a brightly colored van funded through the Dallas County Sealant Initiative that transports portable dental equipment to DISD elementary schools to place sealants on children’s teeth. Dental students meet the van at area elementary schools and use the equipment it carries to treat second graders, under the supervision of the college faculty members.
Since the Sealant Initiative’s founding in 2000, Texas A&M College of Dentistry students have placed sealants on the teeth of more than 18,000 Dallas children. The program was initially funded through grants from the Crystal Charity Ball Foundation and the Baylor Oral Health Foundation. In 2003, the program became a part of the college's Department of Public Health Sciences and is now funded by the dental school.
Sealant Initiative community partners: The Texas A&M College of Dentistry; Baylor Oral Health Foundation; DISD administrators, teachers, parents and children; Dallas County child advocacy groups and dental professionals; Communities in Schools; Dallas County Dental Society; Dental Health Programs, Inc.; Community Council of Greater Dallas; Children’s Medical Center; Parkland Memorial Hospital; Dentsply International; Colgate-Palmolive Company and Oral Health America.
Sealant Days
The spring and fall Sealant Days, which began in 1998, are sponsored by the Asian-American Dental Society at Texas A&M College of Dentistry.
Children between the ages of six and 14 visit the Department of Pediatric Dentistry where they are treated by students under the careful guidance of faculty members and local dentists.