GREATER CLEVELAND DENTAL SOCIETY

The CLEVELAND DENTAL SOCIETY (formerly the Cleveland Dental Society), established in 1886 by thirteen Cleveland-area dentists, had approximately 1,100 members in its centennial year. The organization has provided continuing education for professionals, community education on dental care, and clinical aid to the needy, meeting six to eight times per year and sponsoring an annual two-day meeting. In 1897 the society appointed a committee for dental education in public schools; it established a free dental clinic for the poor at City Hospital in 1906. However, the program attracted no children, only hospital personnel and people living in the immediate area. In 1910 examinations of children in four public schools found that ninety-seven percent needed dental attention. As a result, four free clinics were established throughout Cleveland. The society soon offered examinations of all public school children, and in 1928 children in all Cleveland Catholic Schools PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS. This program was later abandoned because of lack of funding. The organization convinced legislators to approve fluoridation of the Cleveland WATER SYSTEM in 1957, and its auxiliary produced the "Big Tooth" display at the HEALTH MUSEUM. Membership in 2005 was 926 At that time Ms. Carla J. Alderdice was the organization's executive director, and Dr. Jennifer Kale was president of the executive committee. Dr. Kale was the first woman to serve as the Society's president.