High Point University announced on Tuesday, May 9 that the new dental school, which is expected to enroll its first class in 2023, received a $32 million donation from the Rick and Angie Workman Foundation.
So it should come as no surprise that HPU also announced that the new dental school would be named the Workman School of Dental Medicine.
Dr. Rick Workman is HPU’s dental innovator in residence and the founder of Heartland Dental, which supports more than 1,600 offices nationwide.
HPU President Nido Qubein said, “We are blessed by the generous donations from people like Dr. Rick Workman and his wife. This is what keeps our community and the HPU family growing. Our growth is on merit and by design, and we appreciate the faithful courage from the entire HPU family as we expand our academic schools and campus.”
The $32 million donation is part of $100 million investment from three separate families which was announced in March. The total cost of the dental school, which will be housed in a new 80,000-square-foot building on HPU’s Innovation Corridor, is estimated to be $100 million, which means, as Qubein announced in March, it is already paid for.
The Workman School of Dental Medicine will be the only private dental school in North Carolina and at full capacity will have 240 students.
Founding dean for the new dental school, Dr. Scott De Rossi, said, “This is an incredible, transformational gift for the School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Workman is a pioneer in the field of dentistry dedicated to excellence in our profession. He knew a gift this size would enable us to lead the way in oral health care and education. With this gift, we will create a dental program second to none. It is an honor for our school to now carry the Workman name.”
Before founding Heartland Dental in 1997, Dr. Workman practiced dentistry for nearly 20 years. With his experience he realized that there had to be a better way to balance the clinical and business side of a dental office. He created Heartland Dental to provide this support for non-clinical, administrative support services.
