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There's more to Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey than providing quality dental benefits programs. Our charitable arm, the Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey Foundation, Inc., reaches out to communities and helps those without dental insurance get dental treatment, as well as fund scholarship programs for dental assisting and dental hygiene programs at schools throughout New Jersey.
In 1986, the Delta Dental Endowment Association of New Jersey was organized to help promote educational projects devoted to enhance dental health, and support research programs that increased public awareness of the importance of dental health. In 2000, the Endowment Association changed its name to the Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey Foundation, Inc. The Foundation continues to provide financial support to programs that promote and provide dental care.
The Foundation's 14-member board meets four times a year to decide who gets funding and how to disperse the funds. It also follows up on all grants by requiring each funded organization or school to submit outcomes reports giving a breakdown of the results of their programs. Organizations and educational institutions apply each year for financial support. The Foundation must determine which ones are most in line with the Foundation's goals.
Delta Dental's Foundation donates money to many community clinics and organizations to help the underserved (individuals who do not have dental insurance or are unable to get dental treatment) get dental care. Some of those facilities are Dover Community Clinic, Henry J. Austin Health Clinic in Trenton, Newark Beth Israel Medical Center, Northwest New Jersey Dental Coalition (Newton Memorial Hospital), Paterson Public Schools Dental Clinic, and Virtua-West Jersey Hospital in Camden.
The Foundation also funds organizations that provide dental treatment to children and adults with severe disabilities. Some of those organizations are:
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Kessler Memorial Hospital (treat developmentally disabled)
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Kimball Medical Center (offer emergency dental care to underserved, mentally handicapped people and children)
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Matheny School and Hospital (provide dental care for children and adults with developmental impairments such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida and muscular dystrophy)
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NJ Foundation of Dentistry for Persons with Disabilities (provide dental care for elderly and mentally/physically handicapped-with disorders such as lymphoma and multiple sclerosis-for patients of all ages who have severely neglected dental problems)
Thanks to the support of the Foundation, dental assisting and dental hygiene scholarships have been established at colleges throughout the state. Some of the schools include: Bergen Community College, Camden County College, Mercer County Technical School, Middlesex County College, and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ). Due to the shortage of dental professionals, the Foundation provides a certain number of students pursuing a career in dental care financial support each year.
For the past 17 years, the Delta Dental Plan of New Jersey Foundation, Inc. has been supporting community clinics and organizations to help ensure that everyone has access to dental care, as well as funding dental scholarship programs. The Foundation continues to promote the importance of dental health through all the programs it funds each year.
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