Sheridan College Opens New Dental Wing

Students at Sheridan College that want to get into the field of dentistry now have more room and new equipment to use.

Recently the college opened its new dentistry wing which is on the south side of the Whitney Building.

It used to be on the east side of the building, but school officials say there were more students then there were working areas to learn, forcing students on a rotating basis, to go out and learn in the field at local dentist offices.  

The dentistry program only takes 24 students each school year.

Sara Beres is the director of the dental hygiene program at Sheridan College.

She says there has been a need for dental hygienists in the Sheridan County area, and the demand has increased since the COVID pandemic started.

She adds the college offers an associates degree, which for some places is the minimum requirement to get a job as a hygienist, thus the college is trying to help fill the demand.

“Unfortunately there were some people that retired or left the profession, but that is opening up job opportunities for our students locally but definitely in the state as well. There are job opportunities anywhere and everywhere our students are interested in.”

Beres says there tends to be about 60-to-80 applicants each school year that have met prerequisites for the program.

The school also has an agreement with UW to finish a bachelor’s degree.