Ann Arbor, MI — June 7, 2010 — Christine Farrell, a registered dental hygienist who earned a Bachelor of Science degree in dental hygiene from the University of Michigan School of Dentistry in 1981, has been named director of the Oral Health Program for the Michigan Department of Community Health. The appointment was announced June 1 by Jean Chabut, director of the state’s Public Health Administration.

Employed by the State of Michigan as a policy specialist in the Medicaid program for 22 years, Farrell will supervise a five-member staff that is responsible for an array of statewide oral health care and education programs. These include community outreach initiatives, the Cavity Free Kids Head Start oral health curriculum, the SMILE! Michigan dental sealant program, the Dental Treatment Fund for the Developmentally Disabled, the Volunteer Dental Program, and other programs. She will also represent the department as a liaison providing direct consultation to agencies and organizations on a range of oral health access issues.

Active in local, state, and national levels of dental hygiene and public health since earning her bachelor’s degree in dental hygiene, Farrell was president of the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association (1993-1994) and editor of the Bulletin of the Michigan Dental Hygienists’ Association (1998-2001). She served a three-year term on the School of Dentistry’s Alumni Society Board of Governors (1996-1999), including a two-year term as secretary. Farrell also served four terms on the ADHA’s Council of Public Relations (2000-2004), was ADHA delegate chair (2008-2010), and was national chair of the Medicaid/State Child Health Improvement Program (2004-2007).

In addition to her professional activities, Farrell continued her education and earned a Masters of Public Administration from U-M-Flint in 2006.

“My education at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry opened so many doors for me,” she said during a visit to the School in late May. “The classroom and clinical education from Wendy Kerschbaum, Karen Ridley, and other instructors was outstanding and helped me realize that there were opportunities for me as a dental hygienist that I probably would not have even considered, Farrell said. “My outreach and research experiences were especially valuable. They were steppingstones that helped me to see the big picture, a skill that I have used throughout my career.”

In April 2007, Farrell appeared before a Congressional subcommittee on health in Washington, D.C. and urged lawmakers to help the state expand the nationally acclaimed Healthy Kids Dental program. The hearings brought attention to the issue of dental care for underserved children.

Contact: Sharon Grayden, Communications Director (734) 615-2600, dentistry.communications@umich.edu, or Jerry Mastey, Editor, School of Dentistry (734) 615-1971, jmastey@umich.edu.