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DANA GUEST

FOUNDER AND TEACHER

My name is Dana. I am a Polish/American native speaker. I was born in Poland but moved to Canada when I was 18 where I completed high school and went on to complete my undergraduate degree in marketing and finance. Later on, I moved to the United States where I completed my post-graduate degree in school leadership and management. I have more than 25 years of cross-cultural and international experience in teaching, school leadership, curriculum development, and business development, which I gained through studying, living, and working in the USA, Canada, Indonesia, and India. I am a certified teacher and a certified Principal in the state of Oregon, Washington, and Georgia. I used to teach business courses at high school and university levels and led various national and international schools. I have been employed as an Adjunct Instructor in Portland State University’s School of Business Administration. I was also honored to be nominated for the Teacher of the Year award in the USA in 2014.

Although I was born in Poland, I am a citizen of three countries: Poland, USA and Canada, and my DNA results show that I am 40% Balkan, 30% Baltic, 22% Scandinavian and 8% Eastern European. That’s probably why I love Balkan wines and the Polish sea. 🙂 I also know what it takes to learn another language. Although I was surrounded by English 24/7 while in Canada, it took me two years to break the language barrier.

My decision to return to Poland came as a surprise. On my way back from India back to the United States in 2019, I decided to visit Gdańsk for the first time. Being impressed by its rich culture and vibrant history, I decided to stay here. And because of the Tricity’s dynamic development of technology, international business, and tourism, I selected Gdańsk for The American Academy’s location. I’ve always been passionate about learning and teaching. Creating conducive learning environments has always been of uttermost importance to me. Hence, our clients, have been significantly improving their English language skills since 2019. Join us for fun and meaningful learning. Hope to see you soon.

Dominick Simon

Co-founder and Teacher

Even though Dominick was born and raised in the United States, he proudly considers himself Polish. He is a native speaker of English and possesses a basic knowledge of Polish. He currently studies Electronic and Computer Engineering at the University of Science and Technology in Wrocław. During his free time, Dominick likes cooking, skiing, and spending time outdoors with his friends. One of his favorite memories is the trip to the Himalayas.
As a teenager, Dominick traveled through the American, European, and Asian continents. He finished high school in the United States, but he attended an international high school in Indonesia in his 3rd year. Because of his international experience, Dominick finds it easy to communicate with a diverse group of people. As of November 2019, Dominick lives in Poland, and he chose Wrocław as his hometown.

Ronald D. Waugh

Program Advisor

Ronald Waugh, who has an MBA from Harvard University (finance), is currently employed as an Adjunct Instructor in Portland State University’s School of Business Administration and a business teacher at Lincoln High School in Portland, Oregon (USA). His curriculum development efforts at Lincoln High School have led to a 50% increase in enrollment in the business program over a four-year period and the successful expansion of the course offering to include International Baccalaureate (IB) courses, a Portland State dual credit course and a robust entrepreneurship course. He is Secretary of the Oregon Business Education Association.
For many years, Ron was a senior executive with Cargill’s (formerly W.R. Grace & Co.’s) billion-dollar industrial cocoa and chocolate business in the Netherlands, responsible for Business Development, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Strategic Planning. He has significant experience with organizational change and organizational culture and was part of an executive team that successfully led the company through a global reorganization, a change of shareholder, and then through a major acquisition. Subsequently, as a Partner with the Miami-based consulting firm, LIM Leadership in Motion, Ron was responsible for (co-)designing and leading leadership and team development programs throughout the world, bringing a combination of interpersonal, intercultural, and business skills to the firm’s clients. Ron has broad cultural experience. Born and raised in the United States, he has lived most of his life in Europe and Latin America and speaks several languages fluently.

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American Language School in Gdańsk

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