Announcing Service to School’s new CEO

Service to School (S2S) and its board of directors are pleased to announce that S2S has appointed Sydney Matthes as CEO effective August 11, 2025. A member of the Service to School team for over five years, she most recently served as Chief Programs Officer where she oversaw our admissions counseling functions to include our VetLink Program, which has sent over 500 enlisted veterans to the nation’s most prestigious colleges, and the creation of our most recent program, To and Through.

Sydney has well over a decade of experience in higher education including serving as the Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at George Washington University where she also earned a Masters in Higher Education Administration focusing on veteran support programs and campus resources. Sydney is also the proud spouse of an Army Veteran, who currently serves as a JAG in the Army Reserves. We are so excited for her to continue our organization’s remarkable growth.

Sydney succeeds Alec Emmert, who has led Service to School since 2023 and who will remain dedicated to the organization’s mission by continuing to serve as a volunteer Ambassador for both undergraduate and MBA applicants. He is moving on to focus on high-impact start-ups in the veteran and national security spaces.

"Alec has made an incredible impact during his tenure as CEO. Under his leadership our overall matriculations and those to our prestigious partner schools have grown by about 40%.  He and his team secured transformational grants from the Duchossois Family Foundation and Google which are enabling us to continue to grow our impact.  Additionally he spearheaded the development and improvement of our Annual VetLink Summit, and the To and Through program, which ensures that our alumni achieve end-to-end success when they get to college,” said the Board Chairman, Bob Spieth.

With Alec’s departure, Sydney will assume the role of CEO bringing with her years of experience both in higher education and at Service to School. “After five years of working alongside the Service to School team and championing the success of our nation’s veterans, I’m honored to step into the role of CEO. I’ve seen firsthand the barriers student veterans face in the college admissions process, and I’m committed to expanding our impact so that every veteran has the opportunity to access and thrive in a world-class education.” 

We are so excited to begin this next chapter at Service to School!