Commission on Dental Accreditation Meets this Week, Considers Changes to Dental Hygiene Education Faculty Standards

The Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) meets for its 2025 Summer Meeting August 7-8, 2025, at the ADA Headquarters in Chicago. The meeting on August 7 is a Closed Session for review of confidential accreditation matters and not open to the public.

The CODA Open Session related to review of policy matters will be held on Friday, August 8, and is open to registered observers to attend virtually. 

The full meeting materials and policy reports to be considered are available at  https://coda.ada.org/accreditation/meeting-materials

FORTIS College has submitted an application to CODA to establish a new dental hygiene program in Richmond. The VDA has worked with FORTIS in bringing together local support for the program and in standing up a program advisory council. 

Among the policy issues to be considered by CODA this week are a change to allow a pathway for qualified internationally trained dentists or dental hygienists to serve as faculty in dental hygiene programs. The VDA submitted  public comment in support of that change to increase the pool of potential faculty members in those programs. The change was also supported by the ADA Council on Dental Education and Licensure. 

In the letter of support to CODA, VDA CEO Ryan Dunn noted:

The Virginia Dental Association, representing 4,000 member dentists in the Commonwealth of Virginia, supports the proposed addition to Dental Hygiene Standard 3-6 as it pertains to qualified internationally trained dentists and dental hygienists serving as faculty. 

 Virginia law already permits a faculty license to teach dentistry in an accredited dental program to internationally educated dentists with demonstrated clinical competency and clinical experience that meet the credentialing standards of the dental school with which the applicant is to be affiliated. 

 This proposed revision would similarly allow states to recruit dental hygiene education faculty from a broader pool of qualified, experienced professionals with advanced degrees and help address one frequently cited barrier to the sustainability of dental hygiene education programs. 

 The Virginia Dental Association strongly supports this proposed revision to Accreditation Standards for Dental Hygiene Education Programs and encourages CODA to adopt it.