Dtnh1\ ltt~V\D/o~ ~ APe_c_ 1qq1-1qq~ The Dental Technology Review and Analysis contained in this document is organized according to the following outline: I. Introduction II. Overview of the Program Ill. Summary IV. Dental Technology Employee Survey V. Dental Technology Alumni Survey VI. Dental Technology Facility and Equipment VII. Dental Technology Advisory Committee Survey VIII . Faculty Perceptions of the Program .I IX. Student Perceptions of the Program x. National Board for Certification Results XI. Recommendations XII. Appendices XIII. Program Review Panel Evaluation l l~- 1 RD:Otl/17197 cad:OIJTUNE.DOC Introduction This is a review process required by the Academic Program Review Council for the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Dental Technology in the College of Allied Health Science. This process is reflective of data collection, an assessment, evaluation, and a plan of action as the outcome. The members of the Program Review Panel are as follows: • Mary Waldron, Dental Technology Faculty • Deborah Sokoloski, Dental Technology Faculty • Dale Harrison, Dental Department Head • Stephen Perialas, Associate Dean of the College of Allied Health Sciences and Interested Community Member • Paul Jackson, College of Business, Marketing Department Faculty • Roger Daugherty, Dental Technology Faculty and Program Review Panel Chair Overview of the Program Ferris State University has provided Dental Technology education for over 30 years. The Associate of Applied Science Degree has been presented to over 500 students who have successfully completed the course of study. The program is a two-year academic program, "professionally" accredited through the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association. We, as a faculty, have determined that program written goals exist, they contain realistic outcomes, and that written objectives have been developed and contain measurable objectives. (SEE APPENDIX A) 1 Ferris State University Dental Laboratory Technology Program At Ferris, the faculty teach and are committed to the success of their students. The students become "family" and are truJy cared about in our program. Dental technology students are a diverse group ethnically, nationally and physically. Most are Michigan residents; they have also come from Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. We have had international students from Brazil, Canada, Columbia, Czechoslovakia, India, Israel, Lebanon, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Portugal, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Thailand, and Zambia. Students also come in wheelchairs or have other physical or learning disabilities and are accommodated. Many times, we learn what is important from our students. Our students complete the Associate in Applied Science degree in Dental Technology. The degree involves a minimum of 580 lecture hours, 810 laboratory hours and a 400-hour internship. The course of study and practice includes Tooth Morphology, Dental Anatomy, Complete and Partial Dentures, Crown and Bridge, Ceramics, Orthodontics, and Pedodontics, Laboratory Management, Seminar, Specialization, Internship, English I& 2, Algebra, Chemistry, Social Awareness and Cultural Enrichment electives. Our students are taught by a Dental Technology faculty who are Certified Dental Technicians (CDT), who collectively, have two certifications in Complete Dentures, three with Crown and Bridge and Ceramics, one with Partial Dentures, and one with Orthodontics, with two holding Bachelors and two with Masters degrees. (SEE APPENDIX B) Upon graduation we have only touched the tip of the iceberg with what a graduate will need to be successful. We provide an educated entry level technician for the dental laboratory, who, we hope will seize the new opportunity of employment to 2 excel in their new role. This new employee can be a valuable asset to the laboratory in a very short time given encouragement and value for his/her education. The student at Ferris, for the most part, comes here with no experience or background in dental technology. Some have never seen a dental laboratory, nor do they know what a dental technician does for a living. Some are second generation dental technology students whose parents own a dental laboratory or a parent is a dentist and some are second generation students whose brother, sister or parent are FSU dental technology graduates. It is a challenge from the beginning for both student and faculty. By the end of the first 15 week semester, a student is able to operate a dental lathe, manipulate many instruments correctly, light a bunsen burner, understand safety procedures in the laboratory, and why its necessary to wear safety glasses or use suction at the bench when grinding. These are the "basics" and very important for their success. He/She has also completed lecture/laboratory courses in Tooth Morphology and Dental Prosthodontics that provides information about tooth form, function, occlusion and complete denture fabrication. The student is able to carve coronal and occlusal anatomy of all 32 teeth and fabricate complete denture dental devices, i.e., stone casts, impressions trays, baseplates, occlusion rims, etc., and perform all the procedures to fabricate, repair, reline, and rebase complete dentures, including crossbite, immediate and overdentures. They have had only 90 hours oflecture and 255 laboratory hours at this time (all of our specialty lecture/laboratory courses involve four hours of lecture and 15 hours of laboratory per week). As the only ADA "Accredited" Dental Technology Program in the State of Michigan, working within the requirements of Accreditation and credit hours for the Associate in Applied Science degree, the student is prepared for the workforce. The remaining three semesters of the program puts the student in "lock step" of professional courses that must be completed. The second semester concentrates on Dental Anatomy, lecture/laboratory courses in Orthodontics/Pedodontics and Fixed Prosthodontics. After completion, the student has had many experiences in fabricating 3 orthodontic and pedodontic appliances, crowns, bridges, inlays, onlays including a variety of waxing, casting, finishing and polishing and model and die techniques. We will introduce Concept, a composite system, this year. The third semester of the program requires lecture/laboratory courses in Ceramics and Partial Dentures and the final semester includes Laboratory Management, Dental Seminar, Specialization, and Internship. All of this is accomplished while completing all the General Education Courses. Working within the confines of Accreditation and limitation of credit hours for the Associate in Applied Science degree, we must teach the five specialties of dental technology in two years with emphasis on quality of instruction and product. Quality instruction and quality product must come first and must be emphasized, reinforced and repeated. The time to develop "speed" or meet the production requirements of all the laboratories in Michigan is not possible. He/She will learn the "laboratory specific production techniques" rapidly and be extremely valuable to any employer. As Ferris is an institution that can grant Baccalaureate, Masters and Doctorates in specific professions, we exceed the goal of the National Association of Dental Laboratories, Inc. that supports and encourages a Bachelor's degree in Dental Technology (only seven of30 dental technology programs in the United States are at B.S. granting institutions). The remaining Dental Technology Programs are offered at Community Colleges, Vocational-Technical Colleges and the Armed Forces. These institutions and the military are limited to granting the maximum of an Associate degree or a certificate. The Associate in Applied Science Degree in Dental Technology will transfer into approximately 17 Bachelor of Science degree programs at Ferris. In two additional years of study, a student may achieve a B.S. degree. These B.S. degrees include: Accountancy, Advertising, Business Administration, Computer Information Systems, Finance, Hospitality Management, Human Resource Management, Insurance, Management, Marketing, Marketing Sales, Public Relations, Small Business Management, Technical Communications, Television Production, Health Care Systems Administration, and Allied 4 Health Education (B.S. and M.S. degrees) with additional opportunities for an Associate of Science in Pre-dentistry and a B.S. in Applied Biology for those interested in pursuing a D.D.S. at a dental school. And, the student can be an Associate degree graduate of any ADA Accredited Dental Technology Program from anywhere in the United State to qualify for these degrees opportunities at Ferris. Many of our graduates continue their education, historically earning degrees in Management, Marketing and Marketing Sales, Health Care Systems Administration, Allied Health Education, Pre-dentistry and Applied Biology. Our graduates represent laboratory owners, managers, department heads, technicians, dentists, a physician, a veterinarian, sales and technical representatives in many fields, representatives of state and national dental organizations, and dental technology educators in Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin and Lisbon, Portugal. Many graduates have taken advantage of the educational opportunities at Ferris and expanded their horizons far beyond their original expectations. The Ferris Dental Technology program provided that foundation for learning and exposed their students to unlimited