Patricia L. Sippel, CDA, became a CDA in 1996. She was elected to the Dental Assisting National Board’s (DANB’s) Board of Directors in 2003 and is serving her second three-year term as Certificant-at-Large. Ms. Sippel took general education courses at the Community College of Allegheny County and attended dental courses from the University of Pittsburgh, both located in Pennsylvania. She received her Pennsylvania Radiology Certificate in 1988.
Ms. Sippel promotes Certification by distributing DANB materials at both state and local dental functions and readily discussing the value of credentialing. She feels that her DANB Certification earns the respect of peers and dental professionals and enhances her opportunities to network at various dental functions. It is her conviction that everyone should strive to be the best at what he or she does, and that the DANB credential indicates a standard of knowledge and a level of achievement that is becoming more important in dentistry today.
Ms. Sippel has worked as a dental assistant for 41 years, and has held her current position with Dr. William Ott in Pittsburgh since 1992. She also taught evening dental assisting courses at the Community College of Allegheny County in the capacity of Substitute Instructor (1998) and Assistant Instructor (2000).
From 1998 to 2003, Ms. Sippel served on the Advisory Board for Forbes Vocational Technical School’s dental assisting program. She has also been a member of the Three Rivers Dental Conference Planning Committee since 1998. In 2004, she was asked to become a member of the Advisory Board for the dental assisting program at Beattie Technical School. The Pittsburgh Dental Assistants Society elected her to the positions of Secretary (1993-4), Vice President (1994-5), and President (1995-present). She has served on the Pennsylvania Dental Assistants Association in the capacity of Vice President (1998-99), Membership Chairperson (1999-2000), Co-Chairperson of Scholarship-Student Affairs (1995-97), and Chairperson (1998-99) of Scholarship-Student Affairs. Nationally, Ms. Sippel sat on the American Dental Assistants Association’s (ADAA’s) Task Force on Education & Credentialing of Dental Assistants from 1992-1994. Ms. Sippel has authored articles for The Bulletin (1996 and 2002) and Keystone Mirror (1996). | 
