KinderSmile Oral Health Program (KSOHP)

We are grateful to welcome our new KSOHP Coordinator, Dr. Sooyun Park, who is passionate about strengthening and expanding the program.

“Having lived in Harlem and seen my own children receive similar community-based care, I deeply value the impact this work has on families by lowering barriers to access to care. Hearing your stories further reinforced my desire to be part of a compassion driven team, where I can contribute more to oral health care and reach bigger populations through education."

Under new leadership with Dr. Park, we are excited to be in and around Bloomfield, Newark, and Trenton five days a week, and continue the incorporation of Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) applications, as a public health measure to reach optimal oral health. KinderSmile Foundation's school based program includes a critical link to a brick and mortar Dental Home to all children served.

Through a connection from Karen Walter from First Bank, we revived our partnership with Covenant House, Newark. We are grateful for new partnerships with BelovED Community Charter School in Jersey City, Irvington Public School District, South Plainfield Pre School Programs, Fresh Start High School Academy, and others. We look forward to working together to serve the children and families in our Garden State!

KinderSmile Foundation's 19th Annual Global Outreach Trip

Rwanda, Uganda, and Tanzania

“In 2025, the idea of introducing Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) to the students of Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) School of Dentistry in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, came during our initial meeting with Yonah Mussa, an incredibly motivated 4th year dental student and co-founder of Kinywa Salama Initiative (KSI). Yonah spoke passionately about the work KSI was doing in community schools to help educate the children and teachers on decay prevention. I immediately thought of the implementation of SDF to help further their community outreach initiatives. It was at that point the planning for 2026 Global Outreach started,” Dr. Nicole stated.

We would like to thank global outreach extraordinaires, Drs. Brian Swann and Valli Meeks for assistance with the connections to Dr. Danilo Milanes, Dean of the University of Rwanda School of Dentistry, and Dr. Jane Mandera for her connections with The Gulu College of Health Sciences in Uganda.

We developed a continuing education session on “Bridging the Gap: Global Expansion Partnerships Increase Access to Oral Health Care with Silver Diamine Fluoride,” and presented in all three countries.

We would like to recognize another partner, Elevate Oral Care, for the generous donation of SDF. This Global Outreach Trip, presentation, and partnerships encouraged the dental students to create a pilot project and implement outreach and data collection abroad.

Preparing for the trip included relentless fundraising efforts. We had a goal of furnishing KinderSmile Community Health Center Uganda with its FIRST X-Ray unit. This was slated to be an immeasurable improvement for the Dental Home. With gratitude to Dr. Meena Jetley, Trisha, Ariana, and Allison and our partner Terry Craven at OnlineNYC, who helped raise $4,990.60, our goal became a reality.

Dr. Jane's outreach program since our visit to Bweyale last year increased the number of patients actively linked to the Dental Home by 63.3%. Our global expansion was leaving a legacy, and supporting long-term improvements in oral health outcomes on a wider scale.

In Uganda and Tanzania we had the privilege of providing oral health education sessions to over 1,200 primary school students. Our US and Ugandan Community Service Learning Program student volunteers delivered the material beautifully. The school children were incredible, attentive, and knowledgeable. They asked about malocclusion, the layers of dentin and enamel in tooth anatomy, bruxism, tonsil stones, and gingivitis. They explained that you can use a stick when there is no toothbrush, charcoal when there is no toothpaste, and thread when there is no floss.

Hiba Abid and Amir McGrath, Community Service Learning Program pre-dental student volunteers were able to strengthen their leadership skills and experience from our New Jersey KSOHP visits, and apply their knowledge in East Africa.

The communities foster a culture of giving and sharing. We returned with a sense of sincere gratitude, feeling energized to continue the collaborations and partnerships, empowering the next generation of Public Health Dentists.

Kigali Genocide Memorial, Akagera National Park, Kibale National Park

“The more we empower the community the more they will listen to us. Let’s embrace collaboration! We can transform the community when we collaborate and work together. There are many like minded people around the world.”

-Denish Yapi, Public Health Dental Officer, Gulu, Uganda

Medical Dental Integration

KinderSmile Foundation's Medical Dental Integration Initiative continued, with visits from Mobile Lab Techs and All About You Healthcare Advocates to our Dental Homes, linking patients and community members to essential medical care services.

On a quarterly basis at each of our three Dental Homes, we are inviting the community at large to have FREE A1c and blood pressure screenings, along with comprehensive nutritional education and guidance.

This is a critical resource to many of our uninsured adults, who aside from lacking access to dental care, also lack a medical provider.

Community Health Workers and volunteers track data points and feedback, and act as liaisons to ensure continuity of care!

A new partnership with the New Jersey Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (NJAAP) will enable KinderSmile Foundation dental providers to conduct training sessions for medical pediatricians in the rural parts of the Garden State on the provision of oral health assessments and fluoride applications, increasing awareness about oral health as an essential part of primary care!

Congratulations to Dr. Michal Herman!

Dr. Herman's essay was accepted for publication in the The Journal of the American College of Dentists!

Please enjoy reading about The Long Lasting Impact of Public Health Dentistry to learn more in her own words.

Please join our efforts of changing the landscape of access to oral health care in New Jersey by supporting KinderSmile Foundation.

It truly takes a village!

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Your tax-deductible donation has a direct lasting impact on the health and wellbeing of every child and adult served at our Dental Homes and through our programs.

Legacy Giving

To learn more about donations of stock or planned giving, please email

Trevor McPherson.