Grand opening: Eastex Dental Academy

(Marshall, TX) Recently the Marshall Chamber of Commerce staff, board members and Ambassadors gathered with civic leaders, media, and friends to celebrate a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony for Eastex Dental Academy owned and operated by Terrie Jarvis.

Eastex Dental Academy is operated out of the dental offices of Daniel Balderrama, DDS PA at 2602 S. Washington in Marshall.

The Eastex Dental Academy program ensures the students are ready to “hit the ground running” when they graduate from my program. They are taught the skills necessary to be able to claim the status of a professional dental assistant – as an expanded dental assistant – which means they have learned and can perform extra duties such as: making and placing temporary crowns and bridges; taking, pouring and trimming dental models; making whiting trays, sports mouth guards, and in-office bite guards; placing and removing rubber dams, removing sutures, and packing cord. They have chair-side skills in four-handed dentistry, and can take four different types of dental x-rays which are: 4 bitewings, 7 bitewings, FMX (18 x-rays) and a Pano x-ray. They can also perform in-office bleaching on patients.

Students from Eastex Dental Academy also must graduate with their Registered Dental Assisting (RDA) license issued from the State of Texas. Eastex is the only school that requires the students to have their license before graduation.

Eastex teaches interviewing skills, performs mock interviews, and provides assistance with resumes. Students graduate with a portfolio of the items they crafted using their extensive knowledge learned in class to show the hiring dentists what they can actually do as a dental assistant, which sets them apart from other candidates.

Since Jarvis started the program, she has the best placement rates in the state of Texas at 91%. She hopes to keep the momentum going up just as the demand for these critical positions keep rising.

Special guests included Jarvis's parents, son and current students: Courtney Lewis, Kimberly Craft, Sarah Ard, Amy Gay, and Stephanie Dunham.

For more information about the academy or to set up an appointment for the deeply discounted services they offer as a part of their hands-on training, call Terri Jarvis at Eastex Dental Academy at 903-934-4627 or visit them on the web at www.eastexdentalacademy.com.