Douglas Frank

It doesn't seem like I've been teaching at The Schilling School for sixteen years, but I have. In fact, I was a part of the school even before it opened its doors in August of 1997, working with Dr. Schilling as she turned her dream of a school for academically gifted young people into the "knowledge unlimited" experience it has become. I am a scientist and an entrepreneur as well as an educator, with a PhD in chemistry and an international reputation as an expert in Auger spectroscopy. My work has been featured in several scientific books and international journals. I write this not to brag about myself but to indicate the caliber of instruction offered at Schilling. I have really found an intellectual home here, both with the faculty and with the students. I have been known to say that my time at Schilling is my "recess," but perhaps a better word is "recreation" or "re-creation," because it is my opportunity to work with talented students who remind me of myself when I was their age. At Schilling I am privileged to teach in a collegial atmosphere where students learn eagerly and my energy is renewed. It is also academically stimulating to work alongside faculty members like Judy Strong, a Yale PhD and research scientist at the University of Cincinnati, and Paul Bowen, who also earned his doctorate at Yale and whose gifts range from philosophy, math and science to mentoring students and writing a novel. I teach advanced science and math courses at Schilling, but every once in a while I sneak into one of the Lower School classrooms, where creative things are always going on, and talk science with the younger children. And believe me, I don't do all the talking! You can't talk about atoms and molecules and why we have tides even to kindergartners at Schilling unless you seriously know your science. Schilling's foreign language teachers bring a true international flavor to the school. Anke Lessing was born and raised in Argentina and brings a cultural understanding and dimension, to her Spanish classes. Atsuko Fatica was born and raised in Japan and Ling Peng was born and raised in China.