Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation Awards 2025 SMILE and SMILE Mini Grants to Support At-Risk CT Populations

16 CT Organizations Receive Grants, Benefitting Nearly 12,450 Individuals and Families

Glastonbury, CT—December 3, 2025—The Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation announced $389,224 in grant funding, benefitting 16 organizations across the state dedicated to improving oral and overall health among vulnerable populations.

This year’s list of grantees spans the state’s eight counties and reaches nearly 12,450 children, seniors, individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), and veterans through preventive screenings, direct patient care, mobile clinics, and dental equipment and supplies. Grants ranged from $5,000 to $75,000 and were given to organizations that included four first-time recipients and returning grantees, including:

• Ädelbrook Behavioral & Developmental Services
• Camp Courant Healthy Choices and Habits Program
• CATCH Healthy Smiles (CHS) Connecticut
• Connecticut Foundation for Dental Outreach
• Connecticut Oral Health Initiative
• Connecticut Science Center
• Cornell Scott-Hill Health Corporation
• Dental Lifeline Network
• Goodwin University
• Hartford Hospital
• Norwalk Hospital Foundation
• SilverSource, Inc.
• Special Olympics Connecticut
• The University of Connecticut Foundation
• United Community and Family Services
• University of New Haven

“We are proud to stand alongside community organizations that share our commitment to building healthier smiles, which starts by ensuring dental care is accessible to as many people as possible,” said Paul Di Maio, President and CEO of Delta Dental of Connecticut. “Nearly 12,450 people across Connecticut will be able to access dental care services and education because of the support our SMILE grants provide to these dedicated organizations.”

Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation’s grant funding is divided into three tiers—SMILE, SMILE Mini, and SMILE Workforce—all of which seek to expand access to dental care for the un/underinsured Connecticuters through supporting community dental clinics and health centers, dental workforce student scholarships, and dental education programs for children. The Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation has supported dental care and education across the state for nearly 40 years.

The Foundation will award its second inaugural SMILE Workforce grants in January 2026. To date, the Foundation has committed more than $3M to help address the dental assisting and dental hygiene workforce shortage across the state.

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About Delta Dental of Connecticut

In Connecticut, Delta Dental of Connecticut, Inc. is a licensed insurer that writes dental and vision coverage on an insured basis, and Delta Dental of New Jersey administers self-funded dental benefit programs. Delta Dental of New Jersey, Inc. is New Jersey's leading dental benefits company, providing or administering coverage to more than 2.2million people through contracts with groups and individuals in New Jersey and Connecticut.

Offering dental benefits since 1969, Delta Dental’s mission is to promote oral health to the greatest number of people by providing accessible dental benefit programs of the highest quality, service, and value. Through its philanthropic arm, the Delta Dental of New Jersey Foundation, more than $1M in grants is awarded annually to support access to dental care and education for underserved children, seniors, veterans, and those with special needs, as well as funds workforce development programs for dental assisting and dental hygiene.