Dental Clinic for Migrant Children this Friday
Project Contact: Esperanza Gamboa, 941.751.7900, x 1045, gamboae@manateeschools.net
Manatee Technical Institute’s Farmworker Education and Services Program will host the Passport to Wellness Dental Project in partnership with MTI’s Dental Assisting Program. Schoolchildren enrolled in the School District of Manatee County Migrant Program are set to receive dental care at the MTI East Campus in Lakewood Ranch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on November 14. The event is one of two Passport to Wellness events being sponsored by Tropicana Products Inc. this year.
The Passport to Wellness Dental Project will serve school-age migrant children, who have limited access to routine dental care. The November 14 clinic is free for the migrant children.
The project is a joint effort of Manatee Tech and the School District of Manatee County Nurses and Migrant Program. It is similar to the We Care Project in that it offers dental services to schoolchildren in need; it is different in that the focus is on migrant children. Both projects rely on local dentists and hygienists performing their work pro bono. Tropicana will provide transportation and lunch to the migrant children.
MTI Dental Assisting students will provide pediatric teeth polishing, fluoride treatments, radiographs, and oral health screening. The students will be under the direct supervision of local dentists who will volunteer their services.
The MTI students are active in HOSA, SkillsUSA, and the MTI Student Chapter of the American Dental Assistants Association. The Passport to Wellness Dental Project is a community-service / service-learning project for these students.
Tropicana is committed to sponsoring the Passport to Wellness Dental Project for Migrant Children on an annual basis. The We Care project is looking for funding. Both are in need of professional volunteers to continue services. Interested donors, dentists and hygienists are encouraged to contact Kim Bland at 941-752-8100 x 2110 or blandk@manateeschools.net.
MTI’s East Campus is located at 5520 Lakewood Ranch Boulevard, Bradenton.
