LITTLE ROCK, Ark—Tens of thousands of uninsured Arkansans may soon benefit from faster relief from painful toothaches and gum disease, thanks to major revisions of the Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation’s signature grant program.

Starting June 17, 2024, the “Community Grants” will be launched as rolling grants instead of annual grants at https://www.deltadentalar.com/communitygrants. Applications will be reviewed quarterly, with approved grant amounts issued shortly after that, as opposed to each January. Projects must focus primarily on dental treatment or disease prevention. Requests exclusively for oral health education, which previously were eligible for Community Grant consideration, must now be submitted under a different grant category. However, the individual grant amounts have remained unchanged, ranging from $2,500 to $40,000.

“We made these changes in response to the needs we observed in the community,” said Sharon Lanier, Ph.D., the foundation’s executive director. “Shortening the grant cycle from an annual to a rolling process with quarterly reviews accelerates equitable access to dental care for underinsured and underserved communities. Our grants will equip charitable dental organizations with treatment funding when needed. As a result, more Arkansans will be able to have healthy smiles.”

Community Grant applicants must be Arkansas-based 501(c)(3) non-profits, government agencies, schools or charitable dental treatment facilities. They may request funding for program-specific administrative/staffing costs, dental clinic expenses, equipment and supplies, or program-related operational expenses.

Grant guidelines and the online application may be accessed at https://www.deltadentalar.com/communitygrants.

Last year, Community Grants benefited more than 40,600 Arkansans statewide.