Delta Dental Plan of Arkansas *

Delta Dental Plan of Arkansas Inc. is dedicated to both providing the state with group dental insurance and improving oral health education, prevention and treatment among those who need it most.

It’s the latter commitment that won the state’s largest dental insurance carrier a Corporate Philan-thropy Award from the Arkansas Community.

Delta Dental’s generosity to community programs is also likely to gather more steam in the future, after the company took another step last year to expand its charitable projects.

“Our board authorized the formation of the Delta Dental Foundation as a separate nonprofit corporation in late 2004,” said Ed Choate, president and CEO of the Sherwood company. “The initial endowment for the foundation is being determined now. Its objective will be to provide funding for oral health initiatives in Arkansas for many years to come.”

As it is, Delta Dental’s contributions to oral health awareness have already increased from $100,000 in 2002 to $230,000 in 2004, with $250,000 budgeted for 2005. Choate said a committee of dentists reviews all grant requests and makes recommendations to the company’s board of directors.

Through those various contributions, initiatives like the Future Smiles program have been created. Future Smiles addresses the lack of dental care among children at inner-city elementary schools by providing school-based oral screenings, dental sealants and educational materials to the Little Rock School District.

Delta Dental also donated nearly $71,000 to help create the Teeth On the Go program, which provided every elementary school in the state with educational kits that kindergarten through second-grade teachers worked into their lesson plans.

And the $80,000 Totally Tooth exhibit at the Museum of Discovery, which was wholly paid for by Delta Dental, is available to the approximately 50,000 students that visit the museum each year.