Welcome to Dental Hygiene at CNCC

Program Mission Statement

The dental hygiene faculty at Colorado Northwestern Community College affirms that education is a lifelong endeavor. Our mission is to collaborate effectively, with one another and with our students, to create a learning environment that supports the development of dental hygienists who demonstrate personal, professional, and social competence.

We are committed to fostering an atmosphere in which students recognize that serving the public in our clinic requires honoring the individuality, dignity, and rights of every patient, regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, or medical/dental condition.

Graduates of our program will understand that dental hygiene is a diverse and dynamic health profession. As members of this profession, they are expected to competently serve the public in a variety of roles, including clinician, educator, consumer advocate, researcher, manager, and change agent.

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CNCC has two routes by which students are accepted into the Dental Hygiene Program

• Guaranteed Admission Program (GA) - students complete the majority of their course work at a CNCC campus. Application Opens: September 1^st.
  • Application Deadline: March 1st 
• Competitive Entry Process (CE) - students who complete their course work at another college are ranked based on three criteria: course work (completion, grades, minimum GPA), dental experience, letter of self-recommendation, and references. Application Opens: September 1^st. 
  • Application Deadline: March 1st

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Accreditation

Each program accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation must develop and implement a procedure to inform students and other interested parties of the mailing address and telephone number of the Commission on Dental Accreditation. The Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association (ADA) will review complaints that relate to a program's compliance with the accreditation standards. The Commission is interested in the sustained quality and continued improvement of dental and dental-related education programs but does not intervene on behalf of individuals or act as a court of appeal for individuals in matters of admission, appointment, promotion of dismissal of faculty, staff or students.

Comments must pertain only to the standards or policies and procedures used in the Commission's accreditation process.

A copy of the appropriate accreditation standards and/or the Commission's policy and procedure for submission of complaints may be obtained by contacting the Commission at

211 East Chicago Avenue,
Chicago IL 60611
or by calling 1-800-621-8099 extension 4653.

A copy of the "Accreditation Standards" is also on reserve in the Colorado Northwestern Community College library.

Comments may be sent directly to the Commission or to the Colorado Northwestern Community College Dental Hygiene Department Chair.

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Dental Hygiene Faculty & Staff

Clinical Adjunct Staff

• Stephanie Behunin, RDH, BAS
• Elise Fernandez, RDH, BAS