Monday, October 30, 2006
PRCC dental hygienists reunite

     HATTIESBURG - About 90 graduates of the Pearl River Community College dental hygiene program gathered Friday in Hattiesburg for their first-ever reunion.
     The first class graduated in 1994.
     “It’s been fun looking back,” said Renee Henry of Lucedale as she and fellow 1995 graduate Lisa Taylor of Buckatunna looked at a scrapbook of their student days.
     “We’ve all changed,” Taylor said. “There are more blondes than brunettes now.”
     The dental hygiene program is one of nine health-related training programs offered by PRCC at the Allied Health Center at the Forrest County Center in Hattiesburg.
     Sixteen new students are accepted each fall for the two-year program, said Dr. Stanley L. Hill, director.
     “We get 80 or 90 applicants a year,” he said.
     Hill was planning the reunion a year ago but postponed it after Hurricane Katrina devastated South Mississippi.
     “It was something the students have been on me for years to do,” he said. “I think that speaks well for our program.”
     The reunion coincided with National Dental Hygiene Month.
     The former students earned three hours of continuing education credit for a lecture Hill gave on childhood oral health, the theme of National Dental Hygiene Month. Dental hygienists are required to complete 20 hours of continuing education every two years.
     “Dental hygienists are the front line of defense against oral disease and play a key role in educating their patients about the benefits of proper oral health care for children,” Hill said.
     Both Henry and Taylor say they frequently recommend the PRCC program to prospective students.
     “The instructors are the best and they have a high number of students passing the boards (for certification),” Henry said.
     The program has an impressive track record of 99.5% of its students passing the written national board exam and 100% passing the clinical state board exam.
     Applications for the dental hygiene class that begins in August must be received by May 1. For more information, telephone 601 554-5509 or go to the college Website at www.prcc.edu.