The University of Central Florida (UCF) Board of Trustees agreed on Thursday to establish a College of Dental Medicine at the UCF Health Sciences Campus at Lake Nona.
The college, which is expected to provide students with a local dental program, is estimated to create at least 110 local jobs and have an initial economic impact of $73 million. The dental college also will benefit Central Florida’s community by attracting research that could improve oral and overall health care.
“The College of Dental Medicine will mean opportunities for our local students to obtain a dental education that they must now leave our area to achieve,” said UCF President John C. Hitt. “The college will create opportunities to help more people in need of dental care who cannot afford it. And it will provide Central Florida with new jobs and an economic boost in challenging times.”
To jump start the project a private donor is providing $10 million and the University expects to secure a loan of $40 million to cover start-up cost.
The college will be housed in a facility to be built adjacent to the College of Medicine in the heart of Lake Nona’s “medical city.”
There are only two accredited dental schools with enrolled students in Florida – one in Gainesville and the other in Fort Lauderdale.
