Texas A&M University System is banking on boosting its dental school enrollment 25 percent with the addition of a new $127 million East Dallas facility. According to the Dallas Morning News, approximately $72 million of the proposed cost came from bond approval that the Texas Legislature gave the Health Science Center during the 2015 session. 

When the 157,756-square-foot, 9-story building opens in the fall of 2019, it will expand dental options for Dallas area residents as well. In addition to housing classrooms, study space, and clinical support areas, the center will contain close to 300 dental chair stations where supervised students will use advanced technology and provide specialized services to treat local patients. 

Rendering courtesy of Texas A&M College of Dentistry

Based in Dallas near Baylor University Medical Center, Texas A&M College of Dentistry is within walking distance of the new center. 

"As one of only three dental schools in the state, the Texas A&M College of Dentistry has an important role in educating dentists to serve the needs of Texans in the future, researching better treatments, and providing excellent dental care today, which align perfectly with our mission to meet the needs of our communities," Chancellor John Sharp said in a statement. "This new facility will enable Texas A&M to continue providing cutting-edge dental care, and [it] promises to be one of the many points of pride for the system." 

About 90 percent of the College of Dentistry graduates remain in Texas to practice dentistry.