Weir

JACKSON — Andrew Weir, a recent graduate of East Central Community College, a junior at Mississippi College and Newton native, was recently selected to participate in the undergraduate portion of the Mississippi Rural Dentists Scholarship Program (MRDSP). He is the son of Sam and Karla Weir of Newton.

Created in 2013 by the Mississippi Legislature, MRDSP identifies up to seven college sophomores and juniors who demonstrate the necessary commitment and academic achievement to become competent, well-trained rural pediatric or general dentists in our state. The program offers two years of undergraduate academic enrichment including DAT (Dental Admission Test) preparation and clinical experience in a rural setting. Upon completion of all dental admissions requirements, the student can be admitted to the University of MS School of Dentistry.

During dental school, each MRDSP scholar may receive $35,000 per year based on available funding. The program will award nine scholarships in 2019-2020 totaling $315,000. With continued legislative support, the program hopes to grow to 12 scholarship totaling $420,000 by 2020. Additional benefits include personalized mentoring from practicing rural dentists and academic support.

After completing dental school, MRDSP scholars must practice general or pediatric dentistry in a rural, medically underserved community. The MRDSP scholar must provide dental services as determined by the MRDSP in a full-time clinical practice in an approved Mississippi community of 10,000 or fewer population located more than 20 miles from a medically served area.

The MRDSP provides a means for rural Mississippi students to receive DAT preparation, benefit from mentoring, learn the art of oral healthcare from practicing rural dentists, and earn a $140,000 dental school scholarship in return for four years of service.

About MRDSP/MRPSP

The Mississippi Rural Dentists Scholarship Program and the Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program are state-funded efforts to increase the number of dentists and physicians serving the health-care needs of Mississippians in rural areas. Housed at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, and collaborating with its schools of medicine and dentistry and the College of Osteopathic Medicine at William Carey University in Hattiesburg, the programs use various outreach, mentoring and training methods to identify, support, educate and deploy new generations of health-care workers for Mississippi’s underserved populations.