Page 47 - Stuff Made and Built in Delaware 2020

JAZABEL REINHOLD
Because she grew up always insecure of her teeth, Jazabel
Reinhold knew a career in dental care was her calling: “I [want] to help people fix their teeth and make them feel better about themselves.”
The newly graduated Reinhold took part in the Dental Services and Technology program at Sussex Tech. Here, she would take different dental classes and eventually secured work at a dental office her senior year.
At the dental office, Reinhold worked as a dental assistant, where she learned “chairside with the doctor.”
“When I went to work, I learned the hands-on stuff; I learned dental procedures like restorative silver fillings and crowns,” she says.
Reinhold loved learning in class and during work as “the education coursework gives me a foundation, while hands-on gives me more experience.” At her job, Reinhold made around $9.25 per hour when she first started, but then received a raise to $10.50 because of her work ethic. (The average salary for a fully qualified dental hygienist ranges from $29.45 an hour at the entry level to $38.19 for more experienced workers, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.)
Reinhold says the dental program at her tech school gave her a more realistic lens on the future: “When I was learning [through] the textbook, I was like ‘Oh, maybe I want to be a dentist or orthodontist,’ but working in an actual office made me change my mind because I could see what a hygienist does,” says Reinhold.
Because of what she learned in high school, Reinhold now plans on attending Delaware Technical Community College, which will enable her to learn more skills and get more certification (specifically, she hopes to obtain a dental hygienist license). Reinhold says the office manager at the dental office where she worked told her they will “always have a spot open for me,” and would cater to her fall schedule.
For anyone worrying over whether college is right for them and whether a decision to skip college will potentially hinder their career, Reinhold tries to ease those fears: “College isn’t everything. People get really great jobs right out of high school.”
S6 STUFF | DelawareBusinessTimes.com
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