was founded by Dr. Edward Rossomando in 2001 as an area of oral health. Biodontics is currently funded by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR). The purpose of Biodontics is to expand the dental profession in its research capacity, skill sets, and entrepreneurship [1]. An educational program known as the Biodontics Educational Program is held at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine every July and assembles business leaders, entrepreneurs, management executives, scientists, architects, and dental manufacturers to give presentations and lectures to students from all dental schools New technologies and new educational models are believed by many to have disrupted and made obsolete the traditional models of dental education. The 1995 Institute of Medicine’s report, Dental Education at the Crossroads, suggested that dental schools must “continue efforts to increase the productivity of the dental work force, including appropriately credentialed and trained allied dental personnel”; and, “avoid policies to increase or decrease overall dental school enrollments.” The report’s recommendations stemmed from the fact that in 1993 six private dental schools closed; and many schools were plagued with inefficiencies which resulted in “gross wastes of student time [that added] to the student’s overcrowded week, squandering [of] patient time, and provided an inappropriate model of patient care.” Revisions in the process of accrediting dental schools was also recommended. [3]
In 2002 the NIDCR began an initiative to fund experimental educational programs in dental schools across the country. The Biodontics Educational Program is one such program
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