Darts and laurels

Laurels to all the dentists, dental hygienists, assistants and others who participated in Friday’s annual “Give Kids a Smile!” program. During the volunteer program, dental workers perform free exams, treatment and education programs to youngsters across the state. This worthwhile program reaches a lot of youngsters. In February 2011, the program served more than 10,300 needy children, providing more than $703,000 in free dental care. This year, about 2,000 volunteers participated in the program, which is sponsored by several organizations, including the N.C. Dental Society, N.C. Oral Health Section, N.C. Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, N.C. Dental Assistants Association, UNC School of Dentistry, N.C. Community Colleges and local dental societies. More than a matter of a toothache or cosmetic blemishes, children’s oral hygiene is linked to overall health and even academic performance.

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Dart to online dialogues that spiral out of control. Case is point is an exchange that took place between two commenters on a story, ironically enough, about a brutal slaying related to domestic violence. The exchange escalated from name-calling and various invectives until one of the commenters issued this challenge: “How about you meet me somewhere? That way you can tell me to my face instead of sitting behind your computer ... You name the place, date and time, and I will be there.” Perhaps it was all meant in a joking manner, but that’s one of the problems with the anonymity cyberspace. You just never know who’s striking the keys, or on the verge of striking out in other ways.

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Laurels to donors who stepped up to support the North Carolina Governor’s School after it lost state funding. The summer enrichment program for gifted high school students was in jeopardy after the legislature eliminated funding last year. As of this week, supporters of the program have raised more than $500,000, with another $200,000 in sight, according to state school board Chairman Bill Harrison. That should enable the program to serve about 500 students at a five-week summer camp, probably at two locations. While that’s slightly downsized from the 600-student, six-week program formerly in place, the donation level offers concrete evidence of how highly alumni, educators and others value the model program, which has now been copied by several other states.