CLEVELAND (NBC 26) — A nearly $1.2 million expansion at Lakeshore College in Cleveland should be ready for dental assisting students by the end of June. But that's not the only positive development coming from the project.
Construction crews have been hard at work expanding the existing dental assisting classroom clinic into a larger space where more students can improve their skills.
"Yeah, very exciting, very exciting! We have lots of plans for new dental simulators for students to practice with, and just the atmosphere here at Lakeshore is very excited to have this new clinic space," said Lakeshore College Dental Program Coordinator Christina McGinnis.
Watch: $1.2M Lakeshore College expansion to address shortage of dental professionals
"Yeah, it's very exciting that there will be something right here in the Cleveland area," said Lakeshore Dental Assisting student Kyle Burgess.
McGinnis and Burgess are both excited about the expanded space, which will accommodate more students. But they say they’re mostly looking forward to the school’s new dental hygiene program, which administrators hope to have accredited by the fall of 2026.
"A little bit of both! Yeah, definitely, a state-of-the-art facility is going to be great. You get all the fancy machines and everything, and a lot of that updated equipment makes it easier for learning," Burgess said.
McGinnis hopes the expansion and new hygienist program will help address the region's shortage of dental professionals.
"We're very excited to have new providers in the area and stay local to many of the rural clinics, as well as to increase access to care for patients in the community," McGinnis said.
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