By Jennifer Modenessi and Lisa Hom, Vitals contributors
A new, first-of-its-kind apprenticeship program that prepares aspiring dental assistants for a future career brightening smiles is making its debut in Santa Cruz County.
With an investment of $50,000 from Sutter Health, Dientes Community Dental Care is offering seven paid, on-the-job training opportunities through its Dental Assistance Apprenticeship Program. Conceived in partnership with the Santa Cruz County Office of Education, the 9-month pilot program supports high school graduates and others from under resourced areas by creating paths to financial advancement while building a talent pool of qualified job candidates. It will address a critical workforce gap in Santa Cruz and surrounding counties, where there are more than 600 job openings for dental assistants annually.
“This innovative program is important for two reasons: It increases the number of dental assistants graduating each year, providing more front-line workers for us and other dental providers,” said Laura Marcus, Dientes CEO. “It also creates an opportunity for underserved young people to learn professional skills and pursue an exciting healthcare career — one that has many available living-wage job openings in our community.”
Santa Cruz County Office of Education instructor Deborah Martinez addresses dental apprentices.
The apprenticeship program kicked off Aug. 12 with five weeks of intensive instruction in the classroom. Apprentices will earn industry certifications in infection control, the Dental Practice Act, and basic life support and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Beginning Sept. 18, apprentices in this year’s cohort will earn $18.45 an hour for 32 hours per week of on-the-job training while they attend weekly classes in Dientes’ four dental clinics. Once participants complete the program, they have the potential to become fully employed by Dientes at a starting wage of $25 per hour.
Dientes’ focus on workforce development and career access was a natural draw for Sutter Health’s community benefit partnership program, which invests millions of dollars annually in healthcare programs, services and benefits for historically marginalized and under-resourced communities.
“At Sutter, we are dedicated to breaking down barriers to healthcare access,” said Stephanie Connor Kent, CEO of Sutter Maternity & Surgical Center of Santa Cruz and a registered nurse. “A critical component of that is addressing the shortage of healthcare workers who reflect the diversity of the communities they serve, including here in Santa Cruz County.”
Sutter has previously supported Dientes, including a $200,000 capital investment in a new clinic that opened in 2022. Founded more than 30 years ago, Dientes is the largest dental provider in Santa Cruz County and serves about 15,000 patients each year, including individuals on public insurance and those without insurance.
Along with the investment from Sutter, the apprenticeship program is supported by a $1.02 million grant from the California Apprenticeship Initiative and funding from the Santa Cruz Workforce Development Board.
