MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Construction is underway on a $12.5 million expansion and renovation of the West Virginia University School of Dentistry, and U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito stopped to take a tour Tuesday.
Phase I of the project includes renovation of the original 1955 WVU School of Dentistry and construction of a Dental Innovation Center on the Health Sciences Campus. The project has been designed to meet 21st-century needs and was put together by WVU Facilities Management and SmithGroup, an international architectural design company.
“The new Innovation Center, but also the modernization of the dental school that has not been modernized since it was built in 1955,” Capito said. “I was able to secure a $12.5 million grant to jumpstart it.”
The WVU Morgantown campus is home to the teaching hospital—J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, the new WVU Medicine Children’s Hospital, the expanded Ronald McDonald House, and will soon be the site of the new WVU Eye Institute and the improved WVU School of Dentistry.
“It’s no longer just the state university; it’s a regional health center that has all kinds of specialty care,” Capito said. “The WVU Medicine Children’s Hospital is a major boost to West Virginians and others who come here.”
Capito said expanded dental options and the opportunity for innovation will be critical for our state, where many face oral health challenges largely due to the high smoking rate. Making dental health options available early for residents will improve their chances of being successful.
“Oral health really impacts your overall health,” Capito said. “Your ability to learn if you’re a student, your ability to get a job, and your ability to join the military—it’s not just about having a pretty smile.”
The state of West Virginia is about 12 percentage points behind the national average for dentists per capita, and this opportunity will be an asset for the community and aspiring dentists.
“I think the school here does a great job in terms of getting students and residents out into West Virginia to make sure they want to stay,” Capito said. “Rural health is a challenge everywhere, and for dentists, it’s a particular challenge because there is a shortage.”
Capito went to the dentist Monday and was treated by a hygienist and dentist—both WVU graduates. During his remarks at the event, Dean Dr. Stephen Pachuta said he has learned that more than 80 percent (82) of the dentists in the state are graduates of WVU.
“It’s an exciting time at the WVU School of Dentistry today,” Capito said. “And a fun fact I learned today is that 82 percent of the dentists that practice in West Virginia graduated from the West Virginia University School of Dentistry.”