Dental school consultant brings strong experience

As FAMU continues its planning process for a College of Dental Medicine, it is receiving guidance from a national expert in the field.

Howard L. Bailit, a professor emeritus at the University of Connecticut’s School of Medicine, is advising FAMU as a consultant. He received his Doctor of Dental Medicine from Tufts University and went on to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Throughout his career, Bailit’s held numerous leadership positions in the field of community health, including: Chair, Department of Health Administration and Policy, Columbia University School of Public Health (1982-1986); Head of Behavioral Sciences and Community Health, University of Connecticut Health Center (1967-1982); and Director, University of Connecticut Health Center Health Policy & Primary Care Research Center (1996-2005).

In his current position as an emeritus faculty member at UConn, Bailit is focusing on research that explores the development and evaluation of delivery system innovations for underserved populations and community-based dental education programs.

One of his grant current projects is entitled: “Pipeline, Profession & Practice: Community-Based Dental Education.” It is a six year national demonstration program designed to reduce disparities in access to dental care. The 15 participating dental schools are recruiting more underrepresented and low-income students, having senior students and residents spend an average of 60 days in patient-centered community clinics providing care to underserved patients, and preparing students to care for a diverse group of patients.

Bailit’s research interests and experience fit well with the potential FAMU dental school’s proposed mission of training dentists “from underrepresented populations to serve underserved populations.”