Dental School Leaders Set Six Priorities to Reshape Dental Education

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Posted: June 23, 2026

Dental School Leaders Set Six Priorities to Reshape Dental Education

Edited by Dentaltown staff

Leaders from dental schools across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom met at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine in early June for a two-day summit aimed at setting an action agenda for the future of dental education, the school reported.

The Reimagining Dental Education summit drew deans and representatives from 36 dental schools along with national dental, research, and policy organizations. Participants split into six working groups charged with producing consensus recommendations rather than restating familiar problems.

The six priority areas were access, equity, and the oral health care gap; student debt, sustainability, and pathway reform; academic career pathways for clinical educators and scientists; interprofessional education and health system integration; leadership development at every career stage; and technology and practice transformation.

HSDM Dean William Giannobile opened the meeting by framing dental workforce shortages, persistent gaps in access to care, rising student debt, and disruptive technologies as the central challenges facing the profession. He noted that many concerns raised by the 1926 Gies Report, which anchored dental education in science and research, remain unresolved.

Organizers said the profession also faces newer pressures, including risks to federally funded research, uncertainty around international student enrollment, and the spread of dental deserts in underserved regions.

Keynote speaker Eric McNulty, associate director of the National Preparedness Leadership Initiative and an instructor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, told attendees that “turbulence is the new normal” and urged leaders to work across institutions toward shared solutions.

The summit was hosted by the Harvard School of Dental Medicine. Participating organizations included the American Dental Association, the American Dental Education Association, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, and the American Association for Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Research. The nonprofit CareQuest Institute for Oral Health supported the event.

Organizers said the working groups’ recommendations are intended to form a shared agenda for action across dental education, research, policy, and clinical practice.

Sources:
Harvard School of Dental Medicine, “Dental school leaders chart a path for the future of dental education,” June 16, 2026: hsdm.harvard.edu
Harvard Gazette, “Dental school leaders chart a path for the future of dental education,” June 23, 2026: news.harvard.edu/gazette


Dental School Leaders Set Six Priorities to Reshape Dental Education

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