Reinstate the Funding for The Cabrillo College Dental Hygiene Program

Due to budget cuts, Cabrillo College has decided to decrease the funding of The Dental Hygiene Program. The detrimental effect to students, patients, and staff is significant.

This cut will affect many parts of the program. Not only will it cause the tri-county community to lose a high quality, low-income dental hygiene clinic, it will also alter the program so it is only able to accept one dental hygiene class once every two years. Admittance for students on the wait list will be postponed from 2 years to 4 years, and the students will not have the benefit of shadowing upperclassmen that will also serve as their mentors.

The Cabrillo College Dental Hygiene Program has one of the highest job placement percentages on campus. On average, Dental Hygiene graduates move onto positions that make an annual take home wage between $83,750 and $100,000 per year.

The student population enrolled in the program is approximately 50% belong to a minority and 90% are female.

The Cabrillo College Dental Hygiene Program is the only community college program in the tri-county area. Without this program, students would have to travel as far as Los Altos Hills to obtain a comparable education. Additionally, approximately 10 staff members will lose their jobs. Many of those being dedicated faculty and staff who have been working for the program and devoting their lives to it for over 10 to 25 years.

As for the community, the limited hours of the clinic will cause patients to wait between 9 and 18 months for an appointment. The decrease in instructional hours will limit the amount of time the students spend with instructors and with the patients.

Help us save this vital program by signing the petition and urging Cabrillo to reinstate the funding.