Sydney Michalski (left) with her fellow WVU AAUW members 

From Monongah to president of group empowering women

Sydney Michalski, who attended Monongah Elementary before graduating from Fairmont West, has been elected president of the West Virginia University American Association of University Women. 

Previously, she was community service chairperson at WVU UAAUW, dedicated to empowering women.

Full plate for Sydney Michalski

Sydney explains WVU AAUW:

“We are a group on campus that promotes women empowerment, holding events for youth throughout the community and seminars and programs for adults as well. We also highly value community service and had a very successful drive for children of Monongalia County that had been removed from their homes called the Shoe Box Project where we collected toys, toothbrushes, coloring books and much more for them. 

"I'm very excited for the next year and everything we are going to accomplish. If anyone wants to get involved, we'd love to have you.

“We have executive positions that would look great for resumes and on applications.”

Quality runs deep in this family tree.

Her parents are Marion County Parks and Recreation Comission executive director Tony Michalski, who lives in Fairmont with wife Holly Turkett Michalski. 

(Coincidentally, my late wife was a Turkette, with an “e,” Monnie Elizabeth Turkette Olesky, who grew up in Cinderella, West Virginia, a Sycamore Company coal camp adjacent to Williamson.)

Her grandparents are Mike Michalski, who lives in Monongah with wife Janet Sauro Michalski.  

And Ramona Fullen Michalski and her late husband, Frank Michalski, are her great-grandparents.

At Monongah Elementary, Sydney received the Anna McRight Principal's Award.  A plaque with her name on it is in the entrance hall in the school.

At Fairmont West, Sydney graduated at the top of her class with straight A's all 4 years. She received several scholarships, including the WVU presidential scholarship. She is finishing her sophomore year with an A average.

Not much grass grows under her feet at WVU either.

She’s working on her double major in English and mathematics. She’s also part of WVU’s Uteach program, which will allow her to receive her teaching certificate upon graduation.

She works at the Mountainlair, WVU’s student center, as a building supervisor for night operations.

During her summer’s “off” from WVU, Sydney works at the Dairy Crème Corner in Fairmont as a shift leader. 

And this summer she'll be with NASA’s Verification and Validation research facility in Fairmont to help gain a better understanding of where she’d like to go after graduation.

NASA V/IV, as they call it, is deeply involved in robotic competition.

And then there’s El Syd's pottery-making.

Don’t ask me how she finds the time to do all this. It’s a puzzlement, as Yul Brynner said in “The King and I” movie musical.