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KIRKSVILLE, MO --
A.T. Still University named Wayne Cottam as Vice Dean of the Missouri Dental program Tuesday.
    
Cottam will be responsible for leading the implementation of the new dental program.

“We're gonna start filling some of our positions that we need to fill in order to take a look, a lot of things around basic sciences, the other thing we need to do is continue to work with our partners, the community health centers and continue to work with them on the issues we need to work on in order to solidify our partnerships,” Cottam said.
    
Community health centers are a key player in the dental school because they will be used for clinical rotation sites. That includes the one in Kirksville run by the Northeast Missouri Health Council.
    
The new dental program will be part of ATSU’S Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health, otherwise known as ASDOH.
    
The Kirksville program will be called ASDOH Missouri.

As far as plans for an actual building for the school, that's moving forward as well.

“We've hired an architect. He's starting the design, that architect will be visiting with faculty and the administration, trying to figure out exactly what's needed, and then they will do a design and then once we get a design that we approve, we'll put it out for bids,” said Jack Magruder, ATSU President.
   
The ATSU Board of Trustees must approve building proposals before construction can begin.
    
Magruder hopes to have a proposal for the board as early as October.
   
If all goes according to plan, the first class of about 45 students will start the dental program in the fall of 2013.