Illinois Valley Community College’s dental hygiene program was recently granted national Commission on Dental Accreditation’s highest accreditation status.
The accreditation status shows the program meets or exceeds all standards, faces no compliance issues and does not require progress reports.
“Full accreditation with zero recommendations is an extraordinary accomplishment, especially for a brand-new program,” Illinois Valley Community College Dean of Health Professions Heather Segh said in a news release. “While the process was long and rigorous, I never doubted Lyndsey (Beetz, coordinator of IVCC’s dental health program) would lead this program to success.”
“We are honestly thrilled!” Beetz also said in the news release. “A lot of time, care and intention went into building this program, so to have that work recognized right away feels really rewarding. The accreditation review really reinforced that we started on solid ground and set the program up for long-term success.”
Students enrolled in the program can feel confident knowing a fully accredited program is preparing them well for their future careers, Beetz said.
The result recognizes the strength of the curriculum, the faculty, the clinical partnerships, and the student experience IVCC has developed, Seghi said. Beetz and Seghi credit program faculty members Kora Jones, Deanne Vicic, Heidi Modaff and Jenna Straughn for developing an academic and clinical foundation and the dentists, clinical partners and volunteer dentists supporting the program and students.
The first graduating class of eight, who were honored at a ceremony in December, also contributed, Seghi added.
“Their flexibility, professionalism, and passion helped shape the culture of this program and it was inspiring to watch them grow,” Seghi said in the news release.
Another amazing landmark of the program is that 100% of the inaugural class passed their clinical and written board exams and were hired in the field, Seghi noted. The program’s second class is scheduled to graduate in December.
Academic dental programs are subjected to a comprehensive review every seven years. Supplemental reviews also are performed annually.
For more information, visit ivcc.edu/dental, call 815-224-0632 or 815-224-0481 or email Lyndsey_Beetz@ivcc.edu or Heather_Seghi@ivcc.edu.