Two annual Gurnick-RadNet Scholarships were awarded Thursday, June 18, 2020, at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts’ Sacramento campus. The award, established in 2019, seeks to reward “RadNet employees in good standing, who have demonstrated the desire, commitment, and ability to further their education, said Chris Gordon, VP of Operations for RadNet Organization’s Northern division.
The 2019 Gurnick-RadNet educational scholarship recipient was Christina Sanchez, a Patient Services Representative who has worked with RadNet for over 13 years in the Sacramento office. This year, she enrolled in the Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts’ Associate of Science in Radiologic Technology program and began coursework on July 6 at the Sacramento campus. Sanchez voiced her desire to enroll in the program because she became “fascinated with how the human body works” as part of her radiology fieldwork.
Sanchez loves knowing that the radiographs she produces “help diagnose patients and get them one step closer to recovery.” Of the award, Sanchez remarked, “This opportunity is incredibly life-changing for me. It allows me to further my education and build a future with my husband. I am so lucky to have RadNet supporting me, as they have throughout the years, and lucky to have been selected.”
The 2020 Gurnick-RadNet educational scholarship recipient was Kelli Oberto, a Patient Services Representative and Mammography Tech Aide. She has worked for over two years in RadNet’s Valley Radiology Samaritan office. Oberto was nominated for the scholarship and enrolled in the Concord campus’s Associate of Science in Radiologic Technology program. Oberto stated she wanted to go into the program because she has “always been interested in the medical field and the human body” and loves to “take pictures.” As “an X-Ray tech, I will be able to be involved in both daily.”
Oberto’s overall dream is to help her community stay healthy and happy. She said of the award, “I was on the waiting list at a local community college for over seven years when my manager pulled me into the office [and] asked how I felt about going to Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts. I began crying when she said she nominated me. It was honestly a dream come true for me. I am in my second quarter of the program and love it. I can’t wait to be a licensed tech working in the field. Furthermore, I wake up each morning excited to learn more and take X-rays at my clinical site.”
“This is a mutually rewarding partnership,” said Gordon of the award. The scholarship provides deserving individuals with an all-expense-paid experience, covering tuition, books, and fees upon full acceptance. The Associate of Science in Radiologic Technology Program, a two-year curriculum, costs about $59,412 as of November 4, 2020.
Burke Malin, Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts’ Chief Operating Officer and award facilitator, noted, “More than 60 percent of students are offered and accept full-time employment at their residential clinical sites.” According to Malin, work-study partnerships, such as this scholarship offered exclusively to RadNet employees, promote the students and healthcare facilities that host them.
The student gains experience and access to positions formerly not available. The clinical facility has a chance to review the student externs’ skill sets and work ethics. The clinical site streamlines future hiring by replicating an informal onboarding process by tacking on HR, operations, and other facets of their business.
The need for the scholarship was born four to five years ago as Malin was accessing clinical partnerships. Believing this is a template for collaboration with additional partners, the Gurnick-RadNet scholarship offering makes clinical training more efficient and cost-effective for Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts students, said Malin.
When the concept came to fruition, Malin was more than happy to help confer the two scholarships with the partnership of Chris Gordon, RadNet VP for Operations, and Norman Hames, RadNet West Coast Division President and COO. Presenting the awards to the scholarship winners were Maria Thornton, RadNet Northern California DOP; Melanie Santiago, RadNet DOP; and Christy Foster Bollman, Executive Director of the A.S. in Radiologic Technology Program at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts.
“Through these relationships, we plan to explore similar partnership opportunities, as the opportunities present themselves, opening up additional, high-quality training sites for our students,” summarized Malin.
Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts’ mission is to offer quality, allied-health programs, including nursing and imaging-based education, that integrate professional skills, career-focused training, and hands-on, practical experiences by empowering students to develop and achieve their personal and career goals.
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