Purpose

• Create a grant program to help dental assisting and dental hygiene higher education programs expand student enrollment capacity.
• Target programs accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) or those applying for accreditation.
• Support efforts to grow the dental workforce pipeline by increasing capacity and resources for education.

Main Provisions

• Grant program is established for eligible projects to expand capacity in dental assisting and dental hygiene programs.
• Eligible projects include:
  • Expanding or improving existing clinic physical infrastructure
  • Creating or building new clinic physical infrastructure
  • Improving classroom physical structure
  • Creating student scholarships
  • Improving faculty and staff salaries
  • Obtaining needed equipment and educational resources
  • Addressing other needs identified by the applicant
• Programs may apply even if they have applied for accreditation but have not yet received it.
• Institutions with both dental hygiene and dental assisting programs may submit a single joint application.
• The program is overseen by the commissioner, who awards grants based on grant applications and may request additional information as needed.
• Priority is given to programs with the highest potential to increase student capacity and strengthen the workforce pipeline.
• The bill specifies no preference between dental hygiene and dental assisting programs when awarding grants.

Funding and Appropriation

• A one-time appropriation of $15,000,000 is provided in fiscal year 2026 from the workforce development fund.
• The funding is for the dental assisting and dental hygiene education program expanded-capacity grants.
• The appropriation remains available until June 30, 2027.

Administration and Oversight

• The Commissioner of Employment and Economic Development administers the grants.
• The commissioner may request additional information from applicants to determine eligibility and grant awards.
• Applications and decisions are based on the information provided in the grant applications.

Significance and Changes to Law

• Establishes a new Minnesota Statutes program under section 116J.4181 to expand capacity for dental assisting and dental hygiene education programs.
• Institutes a dedicated, onetime capital and program-support funding stream to improve facilities, equipment, scholarships, and faculty resources.
• Creates a formal process for evaluating and prioritizing grant applications to strengthen the dental workforce pipeline.

Relevant terms - Grants - Dental assisting - Dental hygiene - Higher education programs - Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) - Clinic infrastructure - Scholarships - Faculty salaries - Staff salaries - Equipment - Educational resources - Workforce development fund - One-time appropriation - Fiscal year 2026 - June 30, 2027 - Capacity expansion - Workforce pipeline - Joint application - Accreditation status (applied for but not yet accredited)