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DSO Spotlight
With more than 390 locations in 28 states, Smile Doctors is the largest ortho-focused dental support organization (OSO) in the U.S. It was founded by Dr. Scott Law, Dr. Dana Fender, and Dr. Greg Goggans in 2015. In 2022, a year of economic uncertainty, Smile Doctors achieved impressive growth with entries into three new states, adding a total of 34 new practices, and 74 new clinics to its network during the year.
Now, Smile Doctors and its network of affiliated orthodontic practices are kicking off their summer reading program – Big Smiles or Bust! Summer Reading Adventure. The activation is an extension of the orthodontic service organization’s collaboration with Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, and its commitment to supporting education and literacy. To date, Smile Doctors has donated over 11,000 books to patients, schools, and libraries in its local communities.
During the summer months, there is a heightened need for children to have access to books at home. According to research from the Scholastic Kids & Family Reading Report™: 8th Edition, 41% of kids say they get most of the books they read for fun from their school—making this program more critical than ever.
Past, current, and future patients of all ages are invited to stop into one of the 131 participating clinics across the U.S. to pick up their reading road map kit. The kit will include a bookmark, bag, reading log to track books read over the summer, and a pack of five high-quality children’s books from Scholastic. Patients and families are encouraged to track the reading logs together over the summer, and for every five books read, the child will receive a reward when they bring their completed reading log into the clinic. Children who read a total of 20 books over the summer and return their log before August 1, 2023 will receive a gift card to Barnes & Noble.
“With children out of school for the summer, ongoing access to books and reading beyond the classroom is important – we’re happy to be a resource to help make that happen,” said Jenn McClain DeJong, CMO of Smile Doctors. “We see an increase in patients during summer break, so this program is a natural fit for our practices. Our clinics will welcome smiling faces back multiple times throughout the summer as they come in to redeem their rewards.”
“With children out of school for the summer, ongoing access to books and reading beyond the classroom is important – we’re happy to be a resource to help make that happen,” said Families with children as young as seven years of age are encouraged to make a free Rising Star orthodontic consultation for their child when they stop in to pick up their reading road map kit. The brand’s Rising Star program is focused on providing complimentary, high-quality, early orthodontic care for children ages 7 to 10. Bringing a child in for a consultation at a young age may ease future orthodontic treatment efforts and prepare kids to reach their full smile potential.
In addition to the Summer Reading Adventure, Smile Doctors affiliated practices are continuously partnering with local schools to provide books for classrooms and educational “Tooth Talk” visits by local team members. The brand also partners with local libraries and after-school programs to provide even more children with access to books in the community.
