Committees should consist of a chairman and three to five members, depending on the size of the student chapter and the scope of the committee’s activities. Committees should meet at the beginning of each academic year to discuss their activities and responsibilities. These meetings can be informal, but minutes of some type should be kept so that an accurate record of the committee’s work can be presented at the end of each year. Committees can be delegated or charged with specific projects or programs. Committee structure and responsibilities depend on the size of the student chapter. In small chapters, the entire membership may be involved in the implementation and completion of a project; larger chapters may expect the committee to handle a project from the very beginning through completion. The general membership should reach consensus about the scope and functions of each committee.
Constitution and Bylaws Committee
- Prepare a Constitution and Bylaws.
- Review the Constitution and Bylaws annually to ensure that they accurately reflect the student chapter’s needs.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee.
Program Committee
- Arrange programs.
- Contact speakers.
- Arrange social functions through Hospitality/Social Committee.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee to the membership.
Special Projects Committee
- Conduct clinics at local and state meetings.
- Organize fund raising projects.
- Complete special assignments delegated by the Executive Council.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee.
Welcoming / Hospitality Committee
- Write to each incoming student.
- Aid in welcoming each incoming student.
- Assist the students throughout the year.
- Assist in social/hospitality arrangements for special functions, i.e., homecoming, capping/pinning, and graduation.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee.
Component / Constituent Liaison Committee
- Develop communication with the ADHA component located nearest the dental hygiene program as well as the constituent.
- Work with members of the local component to identify those projects or programs, which can be implemented as joint program activities. These may include dental health projects, inviting component members to attend the student chapter meetings, presenting table clinics at the component meetings, providing a speaker at the component meeting to discuss the student chapter’s activities and, in return, requesting that a component member address the student chapter on current issues.
- Provide the component with a list of the student chapter’s officers and committee personnel and request that they reciprocate.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee to the membership.
Community Dental Health Committee
- Organize dental health projects for implementation by the student chapter. Suggested activities may include:
- National Dental Hygiene Month activities.
- National Children’s Dental Health Month activities.
- Dental health talks and demonstrations to schools, hospitals, children’s homes, and other public institutions.
- Activities on campus, which involve students in other disciplines.
- In cooperation with the Liaison Committee, contact the local ADHA Component Committee on Community Dental Health and work with them in identifying projects, which can be jointly undertaken by the student chapter and the component to increase access to care.
- Submit an annual report of the activities of the committee.