Reimagining the pipeline: Saturday Academy at New York University College of Dentistry goes virtual

Abstract

Purpose/objectives This study describes and evaluates efforts to transition an established pre‐dental pipeline program to a remote platform, in response to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Methods The semester‐long pipeline program, Saturday Academy at New York University College of Dentistry, was conducted remotely through Zoom, and materials for hands‐on, pre‐clinical activities, were mailed to participants. Saturday Academy aims to educate underrepresented minority and low‐income high school students about the college application process and the dental profession. After the program's completion, program applications and engagement data were analyzed. An anonymous online survey was administered to the high school student participants. The survey questions included topics about their interest in the profession of dentistry, satisfaction with the Saturday Academy programming, and program engagement. Results In its remote format, Saturday Academy had an average attendance of 87.8% at each session. All (60/60, 100%) of the high school student participants responded to the anonymous program satisfaction survey. Sixty‐seven percent reported an interest in the profession of dentistry before participating in the program and 82% after participating in the program. Ninety‐eight percent agreed with the statement “I enjoyed my experience participating in Saturday Academy.” Additionally, 97% agreed with the statement “Saturday Academy's virtual programming was effective.” There were no statistically significant differences in program satisfaction when data from the virtual program were compared to 2 years of in‐person program satisfaction data. Conclusion Challenges to fulfilling the missions of dental institutions in response to the coronavirus pandemic impact service and recruitment efforts, in addition to formal dental education. Transitioning pipeline programming efforts, with hands‐on components, to a remote format is possible and was met with favorable engagement and responses from program participants.

A decade of grassroots pathway programming: Saturday Academy at New York University College of Dentistry

“…As diversity programs have been critiqued for their apparent inability to increase the enrollment of dental students of HUREs, we felt that it was important to share outcomes beyond program satisfaction, as previously reported. 27,30 While reports on programmatic outcomes from a single institution may have limited generalizability, we believe that lessons learned from the past 10 years of Saturday Academy at NYU Dentistry can be applied to other dental schools and beyond. This is evidenced by pathway programs at other dental institutions that have been inspired by Saturday Academy at NYU Dentistry.…”

“…A recent study which included alumni of Saturday Academy at NYU Dentistry found that former participants of pathway programs perceived financial and systemic barriers to their successful application to dental school. 30 Participation in multiple pathway programs helped reduce the negative effects associated with these perceived barriers that students experienced throughout their journeys to dental school. 30 Further, a recent study of US dental school seniors found that for HURE respondents, recruitment activities, inclusive of pathway programs were more likely to be cited as the top reason to get a dental doctoral degree when compared to the overall response group.…”

“…30 Participation in multiple pathway programs helped reduce the negative effects associated with these perceived barriers that students experienced throughout their journeys to dental school. 30 Further, a recent study of US dental school seniors found that for HURE respondents, recruitment activities, inclusive of pathway programs were more likely to be cited as the top reason to get a dental doctoral degree when compared to the overall response group. 34 Saturday Academy at NYU Dentistry has provided mentorship to 346 high-school students.…”

“…The alumni database contains demographic and academic data from participant applications and responses to alumni surveys. Program applications and survey responses were collected and stored using Slate, a comprehensive admissions and enrollment management software 29 . Additionally, information on participants’ academic and career progress, collected through direct communication (email, text, or phone) with program alumni, were added to the alumni database, via Slate.…”

“…Due to the COVID‐19 pandemic, NYU Dentistry Saturday Academy was conducted remotely through the Zoom platform in 2020 and 2021. The program curriculum remained largely unaltered, and materials for hands‐on pre‐clinical activities were mailed to participants to be used in real time with live instruction 29,31 . Similarly, alumni meetings and conferences were shifted to a virtual format via Zoom.…”