The mission of the Dental Hygiene Program is to improve the health of Oklahomans and shape the future of dentistry by developing highly qualified dental hygienists through excellence in education, patient care, research, community service, faculty, and facilities.
GOAL #1: EDUCATION
Comprehensively prepare students, through appropriate academic and clinical education, to be qualified dental hygiene professionals.
1.1 Recruit students of the highest quality who can reasonably be predicted to successfully complete the educational programs of the College within specified time frames.
1.2 Provide appropriate didactic and clinical instruction through an interactive, competency-based curriculum that is reviewed regularly through an outcomes assessment process and modified as necessary to address the dynamics of a constantly changing profession.
1.3 Provide didactic and clinical instruction in a diverse positive learning environment that leads to social and ethical development along with technical competency and practice management skills.
1.4 Prepare students to integrate critical thinking, evidence-based dental hygiene, and life-long learning throughout their dental hygiene careers.
1.5 Integrate biomedical and clinical sciences throughout the curriculum.
1.6 Incorporate intraprofessional and interprofessional education and practice into the curriculum.
GOAL #2: PATIENT CARE
Provide appropriately supervised dental hygiene treatment of the highest quality.
2.1 Provide high quality efficient comprehensive patient-centered care in a humanistic environment throughout the clinical education programs as an integral component of the College's teaching and service missions.
2.2 Develop and implement a quality assurance program based on measurable criteria that facilitate reliable and valid assessment.
2.3 Teach the necessity of professional ethics and responsibility in the delivery of patient care.
GOAL #3: RESEARCH and SCHOLARLY ACTIVITY
Create a positive and rewarding academic environment that facilitates research and scholarly activity by both students and faculty.
3.1 Provide faculty with sufficient time, guidance and resources to engage in productive research and other scholarly activities.
3.2 Integrate research with the educational mission of the College by providing students with opportunities for direct experience in meaningful research activities under faculty mentorship.
3.3 Create a culture in which achievements in research and scholarly activity by both faculty and students are recognized and rewarded.
GOAL #4: COMMUNITY SERVICE
Foster opportunities for involvement in service activities that are consistent with the dental hygienist’s responsibility to promote oral health care as an integral component of the overall health and welfare of the community.
4.1 Promote participation in community and professional organizations by students, faculty and staff.
4.2 Identify new, and strengthen existing, relationships between the College's academic programs and the public.
4.3 Encourage student and faculty participation in and support of professional service organizations that promote the service mission of the College and the dental profession.
4.4 Promote programs, clinical experiences, and community service activities that emphasize an interdisciplinary approach and expand their clinical and cultural experiences.
GOAL #5: FACULTY
Provide students with highly qualified faculty and provide faculty with an environment that facilitates personal and professional growth.
5.1 Recruit and retain highly qualified faculty with the requisite education, knowledge, clinical skills, and motivation to facilitate student achievement of the College's didactic and clinical goals.
5.2 Provide a total compensation package and an environment that are competitive with peer institutions.
5.3 Provide opportunities for faculty development, leadership, and service within and outside the institution.
GOAL #6: FACILITIES
Provide a state-of-the-art educational environment.
6.1 Incorporate relevant innovations in information technology and management as an integral facet of the College's goals in the areas of teaching, patient care, research, and service.
6.2 Expose students to advanced dental technology and equipment to best prepare them for practice.
6.3 Initiate an ongoing program for facility maintenance and improvement.
