Alaska Dental Society (ADS)

Your guide to organized dentistry in Alaska: membership, the annual meeting, local component societies, the state dental board, and CE/license-renewal requirements.

Visit ADS AI for Alaska Practices
Headquarters
Anchorage
Component Societies
6
CE Required
32 contact hours for dentists (all of which may be completed by home study) · Biennial (every two years)

About the Alaska Dental Society

The Alaska Dental Society (ADS) is the American Dental Association's constituent (state-level) organization for Alaska. It operates within the ADA's classic "tripartite" structure, in which a dentist's single membership links them simultaneously to a local component society, the state society (ADS), and the national ADA. ADS describes its purpose as helping dentists succeed through "education, technology, and community," connecting Alaska's geographically dispersed practitioners to national ADA resources while addressing distinctly local needs.

Alaska's defining challenge is geography: a vast, sparsely populated state where many communities are off the road system and accessible only by air or water. ADS responds by organizing dentists into seven regional component societies rather than a single metro chapter, so that practitioners in Southeast Alaska, the Interior, the Kenai Peninsula, the Mat-Su Valley, and Anchorage all have a local affiliation. The Society also engages in state-level advocacy on dental practice regulation, Medicaid dental coverage, workforce issues, and oral-health funding, and it republishes ADA federal-advocacy alerts to its membership.

ADS is a registered Alaska nonprofit (EIN 92-0064057) headquartered in Anchorage, the state's largest population center. As an ADA constituent it follows the standard governance model of a house of delegates / board of trustees drawn from the component societies.

Note on oral-health workforce policy: Alaska is nationally significant as the birthplace of the U.S. dental therapist movement — the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium's Dental Health Aide Therapist (DHAT) program, which trains mid-level providers to serve remote Alaska Native villages. This is a tribal-health workforce model distinct from ADS membership, but it shapes the state's oral-health landscape.

Annual Meeting: Alaska Dental Society Annual Meeting

Spring (May); the 2026 Annual Meeting is scheduled for Friday, May 22 and Saturday, May 23, 2026, at Seward Windsong Lodge in Seward, Alaska. Locations rotate around the state

The Annual Meeting combines continuing-education programming, networking events, and ADS business sessions (the governance meetings of the Society).

Component & Local Dental Societies

Joining the ADS typically also enrolls a dentist in their local component society.Alaska has 6 component societies:

Anchorage Dental Society (AnchDS)

Anchorage area including Girdwood and Eagle River

www.anchds.org/

Matanuska-Susitna Dental Society (MSDS)

Mat-Su Valley: Palmer, Wasilla, Talkeetna, Valdez

www.matsuds.org/

Juneau Dental Society (JDS)

Northern Southeast Alaska: Juneau, Haines, Skagway

www.juneauds.org/

Kenai-Kodiak Dental Society (KKDS)

Kenai Peninsula and Kodiak Island: Homer, Kenai, Kodiak, Seward, Soldotna

www.kenaikodiakds.org/

Southeast Alaska Dental Society

Southern Southeast Alaska: Craig, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Sitka, Wrangell

North Central (Interior) Dental Society

Fairbanks / Interior region

Licensing Board

Alaska Board of Dental Examiners (within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development)

The board licenses and regulates dentists — distinct from the ADS, which is a voluntary membership and advocacy body.

www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/ProfessionalLicensing/BoardofDentalExaminers.aspx

CE & License Renewal

  • Hours: 32 contact hours for dentists (all of which may be completed by home study)
  • Cycle: Biennial (every two years)
  • Mandatory topics: CPR certification required (no more than 4 hours of CPR training may count toward the CE total); licensees who hold a valid federal DEA registration must complete 2 hours in pain management and opioid use/misuse and abuse

Always verify current requirements with the Alaska Board of Dental Examiners (within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development) before renewal.

Alaska Dental Market Snapshot

  • Roughly 500–600 active dentists statewide (derived from high per-capita density on a ~735,000 population).
  • Major metros: Anchorage (by far the largest, ~40% of the state population), Fairbanks (Interior), Juneau (capital, Southeast), Wasilla/Palmer (Mat-Su), Kenai/Soldotna (Peninsula). Many practices are small, owner-operated, and serve communities off the road system.
  • DSO presence is limited compared to the Lower 48; the market skews toward independent and tribal/community-health-center dentistry, plus Alaska Native tribal health organizations (e.g., SEARHC, Tanana Chiefs Conference, ANTHC) that run their own dental clinics.
  • English-dominant; meaningful Alaska Native populations (Yup'ik, Iñupiaq, Tlingit and other languages) especially in rural/tribal settings. Distance, weather, and travel-dependent appointments make reliable phone scheduling and reminders unusually important.

AI Front Desk for Alaska Practices

Alaska's dentists are spread across enormous distances with small front-office teams, so a missed call can mean a patient flies hours for nothing or simply gives up. An AI dental receptionist that answers every call, books and confirms appointments around weather and travel logistics, and handles after-hours overflow fits the independent, geographically isolated practices that make up most Alaska Dental Society membership. Positioning ties naturally to the seven component societies (Anchorage, Mat-Su, Kenai-Kodiak, Juneau, Southeast, Interior) where solo and small-group practices dominate.

Book a Demo AI Dental Receptionist in Alaska

Alaska Dental Association FAQ

How many CE hours do Alaska dentists need to renew a license?

Alaska dentists must complete 32 contact hours for dentists (all of which may be completed by home study), biennial (every two years). Mandatory topics include CPR certification required (no more than 4 hours of CPR training may count toward the CE total); licensees who hold a valid federal DEA registration must complete 2 hours in pain management and opioid use/misuse and abuse. Always confirm current rules with the Alaska Board of Dental Examiners (within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development).

What is the difference between the ADS and the Alaska Board of Dental Examiners (within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development)?

The Alaska Dental Society is a voluntary membership and advocacy organization for dentists. The Alaska Board of Dental Examiners (within the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing, Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development) is the government body that licenses dentists and enforces regulations. Membership in the association is optional; licensure through the board is mandatory to practice.

Sources

Explore dental associations in all 50 states, or see how the TensorLinks AI dental receptionist works.

Book Demo
Need help?