We’re kicking off the second week of school and continuing to introduce the newest members of our SkyHawk family. Today, we introduce Andy Schilling.
ANDY SCHILLING – FOREIGN LANGUAGES
Andy Schilling is one of our new foreign language teachers at Skutt Catholic. It is his first year teaching on the high school level, and he brings a wealth of experience to the task of immersing our students in foreign culture and language. This year, he will be teaching all levels of French and German at Skutt Catholic. He will also be a UNO adjunct professor in their GLOBE international business course for undergraduates.
A FEW THINGS:
Andy was a career foreign service officer for the U.S. State Department, 1986-2010. During that time, he served as a public affairs officer at U.S. embassies in Tokyo, Japan; Rome, Italy; Vienna, Austria; Oslo, Norway; and Warsaw, Poland.
Born and raised in New York City on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, Andy says the family adopted Omaha as their home in 1995. They settled in Omaha permanently in 2010 after he retired from the foreign service.
Andy graduated from Regis High School in New York City in 1972. He earned a B.A. in modern languages from the University of Notre Dame in 1976. Following four years in the U.S. Navy as a Surface Warfare Officer and Lieutenant, Andy went on to earn an M.B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1982.
His professional career began at Young & Rubicam New York as an advertising account executive. Andy’s most recent roles were with the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, serving as senior director of International Business Development, and at the U.S. Strategic Command, Offutt as a command speechwriter.
IN HIS OWN WORDS:
“I love learning languages and using them in my professional and personal life. I’ve wanted to share that passion for languages with high school students, in the hope that I will spark a similar interest in foreign languages and international affairs.”
“My goal is to make a positive impression on students at Skutt Catholic and help them to see the value – and the enjoyment – of learning a foreign language. I hope to accentuate that by connecting our students with high school counterparts in Germany and France so they can experience for themselves how useful a foreign language can be in making friends and learning about other societies and cultures.”
FUN FACTS:
Andy met his wife, Tracy, in a French class in my senior year at Notre Dame; this year we celebrated our 39th anniversary.
Their son, Tony, was born in Rome, Italy and baptized in the Vatican.
In August 2020, Andy was appointed by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the Honorary Consul for Japan at Omaha.
Counting English, Andew knows 11 languages:German, French, Italian, Japanese, Polish , Russian, Norwegian (+ reading ability in Danish), Spanish, Latin , and Greek (ancient).
*Tracy and Tony with her parents at the Vatican for Easter Sunday Mass (celebrated by St. John Paul II).
* Andy (pictured left) with Lech Walesa, former president of Poland, at an ambassador reception in Warsaw.
*Andy and Tracy at Mont St. Michel in October 2019.
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