Sydney Koniak Zippmann graduated from Gillespie High School (GHS) in 2011, earning the Matt and Marge Turcol Memorial Scholarship. The $500 award was deposited with Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) in Belleville, Illinois.

“After Gillespie High School, I went to SWIC from 2011 through 2015,” she recounts. “I majored in Applied Science with a certification in Radiologic Technology (RT)

After a year employed in the medical field, Sydney returned to SWIC to specialize in Computed Tomography (CT).

“I am now certified to perform CTs and work in diagnostic radiology. My title is Radiologic Technologist/X-ray technologist and a CT technologist or RT(R)(CT),” she says.

Sydney, who is married to Cody Zippmann, now works full time at Anderson Hospital in Maryville, Illinois, and part-time at MedExpress in Alton.

“My responsibilities consist of starting IVs for CT exams and drawing lab work to check if the patient is well enough to receive the dye we inject through the IV for certain exams,” she says. “I take patient vitals to monitor patients while they are in my care; perform diagnostic scans and X-rays, including fluoro procedures; and run the C-arm machine in surgery for orthopedic cases.”

Her future plans may include returning to school for training in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

“I believe that post-secondary education is extremely important, especially in this day and age,” says Sydney.

“It is a requirement of most jobs now to have a college education of some kind,” she notes. “A college education is something that you will always have to back you and which will always provide a good income for your family.”

Regarding the role that her Partnership scholarship played, Sydney says: “I understand that college can be expensive, but thanks to all the scholarships out there, like The Partnership award, the overall cost of tuition” can be lowered, she says. “And for that I will always be grateful.”

Sydney is the daughter of Randy and Tammy Koniak of Gillespie.