The UF College of Dentistry’s Naples Clinic opened today, December 3, 2008, for its first day of providing patient care to underserved children in Collier County.
The building includes a state-of-the-art pediatric dental facility and educational space.The clinic will provide specialized pediatric dental treatment to Collier County’s Medicaid-eligible and at-risk children during an estimated 15,000 patient visits each year.
The project is a collaboration between the philanthropic Naples Children and Education Foundation, UF, Edison College and Collier Health Services Inc.
“We are very excited about the first day of patient care and are grateful for the efforts and support of many people who worked so hard to make this a reality,” said Dr. Teresa Dolan, dean of the UF College of Dentistry. 
“We are especially grateful to the Naples Children’s Education Foundation trustees for their generosity and vision which made this project possible.”
Edison College district board of trustees approved a long-term land lease agreement with UF to give the facility an academic home. While the first floor of the two-story building will be dedicated to UF’s clinical operations, Edison College will share use of second-floor classrooms and laboratory space.