Celebrating a Milestone in Excellence: Coastal Alabama Community College Dental Assisting Program Renovation Advances Student Learning
In 2024, the Coastal Alabama Community College Dental Assisting Program proudly celebrated the graduation of its 50th cohort, marking a significant milestone in the program’s legacy of excellence in allied health education. This historic graduating class also represented the final group to be trained in the program’s original dental laboratory configuration.
In alignment with institutional goals for continuous improvement and modernization, college administrators, including the Dean of Nursing and Allied Health, the Associate Dean of Allied Health and the Dental Assisting Program Director initiated a strategic renovation project to redesign the dental assisting laboratory. The redesign was guided by a shared commitment to ensuring that the program reflects the evolving needs of contemporary dental practice and provides students with a learning environment that mirrors real-world clinical settings.
Before (left) and after (right) renovations at the Coastal Alabama Community College Dental Assisting Program.
The renovation commenced during the semester break of 2024, with the college’s facilities management team leading a comprehensive demolition and rebuilding of the dental lab classroom. When students returned for the spring 2025 semester, they were welcomed into a refreshed educational space featuring new flooring and lighting, updated wall finishes, a modern smartboard for instructional delivery and ergonomically designed student desks to enhance comfort and collaboration.
Recognizing that classroom aesthetics were only part of the transformation, the associate dean and program director pursued additional enhancements focused on hands-on training and digital integration. Through external grant funding, the program acquired advanced simulation manikins that include realistic gingival tissue, higher quality dentition and diverse skin tones to support inclusive clinical education. These updates allow students to practice with tools that better represent the patient population they will serve, while also increasing the realism and precision of clinical exercises.
Additionally, each operatory station was outfitted with a dedicated computer monitor to enable chairside documentation and integration with patient management software.
These monitors support a full range of clinical tasks, including seating virtual patients, entering new patient data, recording medical histories, treatment planning and accessing digital radiographs all from the dental chair. This upgrade reflects current clinical workflow and prepares students to confidently transition into modern dental practice settings.
To complement the technological and instructional upgrades, the Program Director collaborated with a local dental supply company to reupholster each dental chair and stool, resulting in a visually cohesive and professional laboratory environment.
Coastal Alabama Community College remains deeply committed to student success by providing state-of-the-art educational facilities and resources. Planning is already underway for future improvements to instructional technology and training equipment for the 2026 academic year. The recent renovation of the dental lab stands as a testament to the college’s proactive approach to preparing the next generation of dental assistants for excellence in clinical care and patient service.
Courtesy of Lisa Singleton, M.Ed., CDA, RDH, Dental Assisting Program Director, Coastal Alabama Community College
Published on July 9, 2025