06 June 2024

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School’s strengths cited after accreditation review team completes site visit

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The Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) completed its site visit at the School of Dentistry in March, and preliminary findings identified numerous strengths during the formal review that American dental schools must complete every seven years.

The initial, verbal report from the site team members will be followed in coming months by a final written report and accreditation verification.

Among the strengths cited by members of the CODA team:

• A highly supportive staff and excellent facilities.
• Strong mentoring of junior faculty.
• A research culture that is strong, not only in basic science, but also in clinical and educational research.
• The Community-based Collaborative Care & Education (CBCE) program was cited as a service to the broader community and helps students learn the value of caring for the underserved.
• The school’s humanistic environment created and fostered by faculty, staff and students benefits the entire community and the delivery of patient care.
• A strong commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion is exhibited within the School of Dentistry and throughout the U-M campus.

CODA is an independent organization that serves the public and dental profession by developing and implementing accreditation standards that promote and monitor the continuous quality and improvement of dental education programs. Every seven years, schools prepare a comprehensive self-analysis and self-study report detailing their resources, curriculum, policies and operational standards. Then a site visit team, comprised of dental school faculty and administrative peers from around the country, visits each school to verify the self-study and ensure programs meet minimum accreditation standards.

During a school-wide reception marking the completion of the CODA site team visit from March 26-28, Dean Jacques Nör noted that the accreditation process required dedication and a significant amount of time from faculty and staff across the school over many months prior to the visit. “We are truly ‘living our values’ and delivering meaningful outcomes in our work everyday to educate students, conduct research and deliver patient care,” he said. “I am very thankful for all that you have done to make our site visitors feel welcomed in the school.  I am very proud of our school, the school that you enrich every day through your work and your commitment to inclusive excellence.”

The school is reviewing and will act on three potential recommendations to enhance its programs in the coming months.

Source: https://news.dent.umich.edu/