Project Saving Smiles reduces the prevalence of tooth decay in underserved children and remove barriers to learning.
This is accomplished by providing dental screenings, dental sealants, fluoride varnish, and oral health education free of charge targeting Houston’s at-risk 2nd graders who are enrolled in schools with 50% or more students on the Free and Reduced Lunch Program.
The 2001 Dental Needs Assessment in Harris County revealed 68% of 2nd graders had untreated decay. It is known that children who suffer from oral health problems cannot learn well and miss days from school. According to the 2000 Surgeon General’s Report, more than 51 million school hours are lost each year due to dental-related illness. Additionally, children who experience pain from tooth problems are likely to be distracted and unable to concentrate on their schoolwork.
Since its inception, Project Saving Smiles has provided dental screening to 98,800 students and applied 217,878 sealants. The Project also provides oral health education free of charge to pre-k, second grade, middle school and high school students enrolled in a free or reduced lunch program across Houston.
We very much appreciate your interest in Project Saving Smiles and look forward to having you volunteer with us!
You may get registered in our database so that you may look and add yourself to the schedule. See the link below.
If you should have any questions, please feel free to contact us via email at volunteer@houstontx.gov.
Best regards,
Volunteer Coordinator Team
