Press Release

Dr. Hodge Accepts New Position in School of Dental Medicine

The UCONN Health Center School of Dental Medicine welcomes Dr. Cynthia Hodge as Associate Dean for Community and Outreach Programs. She will head the Office of Community and Outreach Programs with primary responsibility for all School of Dental Medicine community programs, as well as those involving dental students and dental residents. Dr. Hodge will assume the role of principal investigator of the school’s Pipeline, Profession and Practice grant from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and will take a leading role in implementing all aspects of this project and in other related community initiatives. Dr. Hodge’s academic appointment is in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Community Health.

Dr. Hodge received her D.M.D. degree from Oregon Health Sciences University. She completed a General Practice Residency and earned an M.P.H. degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She recently received the M.P.A. degree from Harvard University and earned a certificate in Minority Health Policy. Her academic appointments include Chairperson of the Department of Hospital Dentistry, Meharry Medical College and Director of the Meharry Medical College’s Dental General Practice Residency. Just before accepting the appointment in the School of Dental Medicine, she serves in the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as a Harvard University research fellow within the Bureau of Health Professions.

A staunch public health advocate, in accepting this a position, Dr. Hodge stated, “This position will allow me to fully participate in community health promotion, as well as providing a direct role in shaping the knowledge and attitudes of students related to community health and community health care.”

In addition to Dr. Hodge’s impressive academic training and experience, she has held a number of distinguished positions in organized dentistry as well as being past President of the National Dental Association. She has been quite active in providing support to people with HIV/AIDS as evidenced by being on both the ADA and NDA (Chair) Task Forces on HIV/AIDS. In addition, her scholarly work has focused on promoting comprehensive, oral and systemic, approaches to the health care of medically compromised patients.

This article appeared in The Compass, Vol. IV, Issue IV, Winter 2003. The Compass is an internal newsletter published at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine.