A proposal for a new master's degree in dental hygiene that will come without a price tag jumped another hurdle on the path to approval Tuesday night.
A shortage of dental care available statewide and declining oral health both nationally and in New Mexico is the reasoning behind the expansion of the program that is based in the School of Medicine. The Board of Regents Academic Affairs Committee approved the measure at its meeting, but the program still needs to be embraced by the full Board of Regents and the Commission on Higher Education.
"This is not only an academically sound move, but also serves our state," said William Galey, professor and assistant dean of Graduate Studies at the School of Medicine.
Christine Nathe, an associate professor and the program's director if it is approved, outlined the reasoning behind the expansion proposal.
The goals of the new degree include training students to provide dental education, research, public health programs and work on patients. Nathe said that several national dental organizations and the federal government have declared a shortage in proper access to dental care and oral health education.
"The problems are worse in New Mexico because there is a shortage of dentists here," she said.
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The program expansion has already received the support of the state Legislature, which urged the University to develop a program to help provide dental assistance in rural parts of the state. Nathe said another development that will help solve dental care problems is that dental hygienists can now do more than just preventative care without a dentist.
"We are going to use that as an opportunity to allow our students to practice basic dental care and refer patients to dentists when it is needed," she said.
The program would be open to five students annually and offers a thesis option for those interested in more academic uses of the degree and more hands-on practice for those who want to pursue research or dental practice.
One of the more unique aspects of the program expansion is that it costs nothing for the University because the dental faculty set up a practice with students and raised money for the cost of the program, hired more faculty and can pay for the purchase of more library journals to meet the students' needs.
"This is really great because it is entirely self-sustaining," Nathe said. "We aren't asking UNM for anything and we don't have to go to the state for anything, either. This does have start-up costs but it's all coming from the money we have raised through the dental practice."
If the new master's degree is approved, Nathe said UNM will be one of nine universities nationwide to offer a master's degree in dental hygiene and the only to have it based in a medical school.
"Our closest competition are schools in Texas and the interest from students has been overwhelming, so we think we will have a very competitive program that can do a lot of good for the state and UNM at the same time," Nathe said.
During the same meeting, the regents approved the fall prospective degree candidates and a lengthy list of faculty leaves, retirements and hires. The faculty list spawned a brief discussion about how the University recruits professors.
Provost Brian Foster said he thought the process should be approached with the same emphasis that the University of Kansas would use to pursue after a prospective basketball coach.
"We really want to make sure that we see this as a competition for some of the best talent in the country that will have a long-term impact on this University," he said.
Faculty Senate President John Geissman and Regent David Archuleta agreed but added that the salaries offered to incoming faculty should be balanced against the need to improve the pay of professors who have worked at UNM for a long time.
The committee also was updated on the progress of the Student Union Building and Childcare Center construction projects, and the possible future renovation of Mesa Vista Hall, which Eliseo Torres, vice president for Student Affairs, said was outdated and sorely in need of drastic improvement.
