Oral Health: Grants & Other Resources

Grants, a conference, and more!

 

The American Association of Public Health Dentistry is a sponsor of the National Oral Health Conference April 20-22 in Portland, OR.  The conference will focus on public health dentistry and oral health programs.  Sessions topics will include: efforts to increase the oral health workforce, promoting school based sealant programs and community based oral cancer detection programs.   

 

I found several grant programs that can finance oral health projects.  I mentioned the Wisconsin Dental Association’s grant program in a previous post.  They will award grants up to $10,000 for community-based oral health promotion programs.  Eligible activities include purchasing supplies for low-income dental clinics and oral health education programs.  The application deadline is August 31.  You should really think about applying for this one—the proposal should be no more than five pages, so it’s not a burdensome application process.  This is a great “starter grant” if you’ve never applied for one before!

 

These grant programs don’t specifically target oral health.  But don’t let that stop you from applying for funding for your oral health project:

 

  • The Build a Bear Workshop corporation sponsors A Champion for Kids grant program.  The program provides support for children in the areas of health and wellness.  They give special consideration to organizations near their Workshop stores (locations can found on their website).  Application deadlines are April 30, July 31 and October 31.  Grants range from $1,000 to $10,000.  They award grants for one time material and equipment purchases or for ongoing program expenses.
  • Many “big box” stores (Target, Home Depot, Best Buy, etc.) have community grant programs.  These often target a particular area such as education or youth programs.  WalMart has two programs you should consider for oral health (and other) projects.  One goal of their State Giving Program is improving health and wellness, including improving access to healthcare and promoting healthy lifestyles.  The application deadlines for this program are April 17 and September 18.  The Giving Programs focus on funding improvements in the communities where WalMart and Sam’s Club stores are located.  Contact the Community Involvement Coordinator at a local store for more information.  There is no application deadline for Giving Programs.

 

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health has an online searchable library of over 700 health related video presentations, including a few on oral health.  I urge you to take a look at this free resource.

 

Another resource is the Children Health Alliance’s Wisconsin Oral Health Coalition.  Their mission:  “The Coalition, consisting of diverse public and private partnerships, works to create meaningful change to improve oral health and access to care in Wisconsin.”  You can become an active partner in the coalition, review their policy papers on issues like fluoridation and sealant programs, or subscribe to their regular newsletter, Oral Health Bytes. 

March 20, 2009 · KJacobson · No Comments
Tags: , , , ,  · Posted in: Conferences and Webinars, Grant Advice

Leave a Reply