KCU prepares to graduate doctors, open dental school

May 4—The latest educational institution to be established in Joplin, the Kansas City University College of Dental Medicine, has enrolled its first class and will hold opening activities this summer.

The first class will have 80 students; 70 have been accepted. Acceptances have been sent to those invited to fill the remaining openings and the school is waiting to hear if they will accept, Niessen said.

Students file applications through the American Dental Education Association's online service, called AADSA. They provide transcripts and other information and designate which schools they want applications to go to.

Those who select KCU receive a secondary application from the school. Then they provide information on their education and grades, work history, athletic activities, and their volunteer and leadership experiences.

KCU administrators then invite selected prospects for a school visit.

Linda Niessen, vice provost for KCU's oral health division and founding dean and professor for the Joplin dental school, said the first class will start orientation July 31. That is a three-week process. A white coat ceremony, which signifies entrance into a medical profession, will be held Aug. 19 and classes will start Aug. 21.

"The orientation is longer than usual because it's the first class," she said. "We want to welcome them to the Joplin community. We want to show Joplin and the region off, so we want to take them to various areas. We'll have a day of community service called "We Care" to volunteer time at a local organization."

The students also will participate in a curriculum wellness program called "Thrive." That program provides information and techniques for managing a stressful academic environment.

With an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. school day and then homework, the wellness curriculum is intended to help students identify when they are stressed or need a break. and how they can best cope with stress.

"With medical students and dental students, these are students who have gotten A's all their lives," Niessen said. "These are overachieving students. They don't necessarily ask for help. They've never needed help. But this a rigorous program. It's teaching them when they are stressed not to be afraid to ask for help. and help can come from a friend or it could be a colleague. We have counselors and advisers who can help students get through difficult times."

Before then, a grand opening for the oral health center will be held June 26. The first patients will visit July 17 and will be treated by the school's faculty. The school has employed 70 faculty members and 30 staff.

The $80 million dental school adjoins the KCU College of Osteopathic Medicine that was built in 2017.

The medical school will graduate about 150 third-year students May 6, said Kenneth Heiles, dean. KCU Joplin has the advantage of being a part of the 116-year-old Kansas City University, which was among the first osteopathic schools to be established in the country, Heiles said. The school is geared to graduate about 160 students a year.

KCU has a faculty of about 20 and local physicians serve as adjunct faculty. Enrollment has been approximately 600 since the school opened.

Those interested in considering medical school may obtain information about admittance requirements on the KCU website and by talking to guidance counselors in their high schools.

There also is a partnership between KCU and Missouri Southern State University called MKEAP, which provides an early admission program to KCU, Heiles said.

KCU focuses on primary care as well as rural health because of a shortage of rural practitioners. The American Association of Colleges and Osteopathic Medicine reports that shortage of primary doctors is expected to be more than 50,000 by 2025.

In addition, counties within a 100-mile radius of Joplin qualify as a Dental Health Professional Shortage Area by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. Missouri needs 376 additional dentists to remove the designation.

Almost half of KCU graduates go on to practice in rural areas, the college reports.

"That is part of the mission of KCU is to get service in the underserved areas," Heiles said. In the admissions process, that is one of the things looked at when a student applies.

Asked if students and faculty are comfortable in Joplin and rural Southwest Missouri, Heiles said, "I think all in all the students enjoy the area. They get a great education. Housing here is more affordable than it is in other areas, and has good rentals. That bodes better with them."

Recruiting KCU to establish a Joplin campus involved the work of a number of community leaders over nine years, including Dr. Larry McIntire, who is credited with starting the effort, and Rudy Farber, a regional banker who chaired a fundraising alliance that raised about $8 million toward the costs of establishing the medical school.

Called the Joplin Regional Medical School Alliance, that group has pledged $10 million to the dental school and has contributed $8 million of that so far.

The campus here is named the Farber McIntire campus. It is located at 2901 St. John's Blvd.