The mission of the NYU College of Dentistry is to collaborate with students to achieve academic excellence; to provide the best oral health care; and to engage in research, scholarship, and creative endeavors to improve the world of health for the highly diverse population of New York City and surrounding areas. The mission of the NYU Department of Health and Dental Assisting is to achieve academic excellence in partnership with students; to promote scholarly activity, health promotion, disease prevention, and research; to engage in community service; and to utilize critical thinking and evidence-based decision-making to provide comprehensive customer service. As goals, the program will prepare a competent dental hygienist, maintain a contemporary dental hygiene program that reflects relevant and current dental hygiene practices, and provide an interdisciplinary and integrated curriculum.