I grew up in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the Carolinas in the southeastern United States, in Greenville, South Carolina and Brevard, North Carolina. While growing up in the this part of the USA, I enjoyed baseball, basketball, hiking, fishing, and riding my bicycle. Also, I was raised in a musical family (both of my parents were professors of music), and the arts have always been an important part of my life. I completed a bachelor’s degree in art from Furman University; and after graduating, I moved to southern Japan to teach English, to study the Japanese language, and to study Japanese art and crafts. After a wonderful 6 years in Japan, I moved to Hawaii to attend the University of Hawaii at Mānoa, to study in the Department of Second Language Studies. In the spring of 2014, I completed an M.A. in second language studies; and during my 3 years in Hawaii, I taught English for academic purposes at the university’s Hawaii English Language Program. In 2014, I returned to Japan. Presently, I am teaching English at Tokyo International University in Saitama Prefecture.
In total, I have taught English to speakers of other languages for about 18 years.
I enjoy making friends, making music, making art, teaching English, and studying foreign languages. I feel most satisfied when I am surrounded by nature, engrossed in a good book or movie, or traveling somewhere new. I am married and enjoy spending as much time as possible with my wife, Satoko. We have a son named Alex Yūki (優樹) who was born in Japan in 2014. We also have a daughter named Amy Hana (花) who was born in Japan in August in 2016.
I always look forward to meeting my colleagues and students. I care deeply about everyone at my place of work, and I strive to help them to achieve their goals and dreams. I am always available to help my students and colleagues in any way. I am available before class, after class, and even months or years after a term has ended. I am available for questions about a class or questions about life. I am available simply for good conversation.
Passions, Interests, Avocations, and Hobbies:
- International Relations & Diplomacy
[ USDS ; MOFA ; Exchange Programs ; Study Abroad ] - Classical Guitar and Singing
[ Me ; Assad Brothers ; John Williams ; BMC ] - Music Appreciation
[ Opera ; Grand Ole Opry ; Bluegrass ; Hip Hop ; Rock ; Musical Theatre ; Singer-Song Writer ; Jazz ; Heavy Metal ; Blues ; Country Music ; EDM ; Reggae ; Musical Theatre ; Gospel ; World Music ; Folk Music ] - Japanese Archery – 弓道
[ 日本弓道連盟 ] - Baseball & Basketball
[ Atlanta Braves ; NC Tarheels ; Hall of Fame ] - Hiking and Traveling
[ Places I Have Visited ; Appalachian Trail ] - Astronomy & Physics
[ NASA ; JAXA ] - Books and Movies
[ Das Glasperlenspiel ; The Royal Tanenbaums ; 紅の豚 ; etc ] - Japanese Pottery 陶芸 & Calligraphy 書道
[ 唐津焼 ; 有田焼 ; ] - Visual Arts & Graphic Design
[ click here to view some of my work ] - Foreign Language Study
[ Japanese ; Spanish ; Italian ; American Sign Language ; Korean ; French ; Hawai’i Creole; Swahili ; World English Varieties ] - Bed & Breakfasts
[ Celo Inn ; Ireland B&Bs ; New Zealand B&Bs ; South Carolina B&Bs ; Japanese Ryokan ] - Juggling, Origami 折り紙, and Humor
[ Cirque du Soleil ; Dubé ; Akira Yoshizawa ; Saturday Night Live ]
My Family
- Wife
- Satoko Tsuda Schoonmaker
- from Isahaya City, Nagasaki, Japan
- Son
- Alex Yūki Tsuda Schoonmaker
- born in Isahaya City, Nagasaki, Japan
- Daughter
- Amy Hana Tsuda Schoonmaker
- born in Isahaya City, Nagasaki, Japan
- Mother
- Gail Schoonmaker
- from Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
- Father
- Bruce Schoonmaker
- from Charlotte, North Carolina, USA
- Brother
- Noel Schoonmaker
- from Greenville, South Carolina, USA
Richard Schoonmaker 