Kari Ann Kuntzelman (Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma) (she/her,hers)
Executive Director, American Dental Therapy Association
Licensed Dental Therapist – Oregon
This year marks twenty years since the founding of the American Dental Therapy Association (ADTA), and the organization used its 2026 Annual Conference in Detroit to look back on that history while turning its attention to what comes next. The conference, held under the theme Rooted and Rising: Dental Therapy Education, Identity and Opportunity, brought together dental therapists, students, educators, researchers, employers, and advocates for three days of shared learning.
Dental therapy in the United States traces its roots to Alaska Native communities, where the profession was first developed to bring ongoing access to oral healthcare closer to people who otherwise had limited or no access to it. Since then, dental therapy has grown from a small number of providers into a national workforce. Today, nearly 300 dental therapists practice across the country, and that number is expected to continue growing as more states authorize the profession, and more education programs open their doors. According to research cited at the conference, enrollment in dental therapy education programs increased by more than 500 percent between 2021 and 2026, based on data from the American Dental Association.
The Detroit conference, held in partnership with the Michigan Primary Care Association, also included ADTA’s first Dental Therapy Educators Summit. This new gathering gave educators and education partners from across the country a dedicated space to compare notes on training approaches, identify shared challenges, and discuss how new education pathways might develop as the field expands.
Two conference sessions stood out for the direction they set. In a discussion called “One Voice, One Future: A State of the Profession Conversation,” attendees considered what dental therapy needs over the next five years. A related session, developed with the equity consultancy Be Culture, gave dental therapists a chance to speak directly about their experiences and hopes for the profession. That conversation will help shape ADTA’s next strategic plan, building on a Board Strategic Planning session held earlier this year.
A consistent message ran through these conversations: the next stage of dental therapy’s growth depends on infrastructure as well as expansion. Conference participants pointed to a shared set of needs, including, more accessible education programs with larger cohorts, clearer pathways from graduation into jobs, support for states as they move from passing legislation to putting it into practice, continued investment in Tribal and community-based programs, additional outcomes research and greater recognition for dental therapists as members of the oral health care team.
That shift reflects how ADTA’s own role has evolved. Rather than serving only as a professional home for dental therapists, the organization is increasingly focused on building the national systems the profession needs to succeed. That includes supporting students and new graduates, strengthening the connections between education and employment, developing research that documents dental therapy’s impact, and helping states carry new laws through to full implementation. It also means deepening partnerships with Tribal communities, community health centers, and other oral health organizations.
That commitment extends to New York as well. ADTA is pleased to be a founding member of the New York Partnership for Dental Therapy, working alongside statewide partners to bring dental therapy to New York communities.
Twenty years ago, dental therapy in the United States was just beginning. Today, dental therapists are practicing; a new generation of educators is organizing shared goals, and people gathered in Detroit to help chart the profession’s future. ADTA’s mission, that “all Americans have access to high-quality oral health care”, remains the throughline connecting that history to what comes next.