Main Line Private School Alumnus Appointed US Ambassador

May 5, 2011 - PRLog -- On any given Monday during the spring semester, Devon Prep headmaster Rev. James Shea, Sch.P. and longtime History Teacher Mr. Michael Collins, would be busy teaching and attending to school business.   On a recent Monday, however, they were at the US State Department in Washington witnessing what Collins described as “a very impressive event.”

Both Fr. Shea and Mr. Collins were personally invited to attend the swearing- in of Devon Prep Class of 1980 Alumnus Daniel L. Shields III, a native of Berwyn, as the new US Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam. The Ambassador’s brother Gregory, a 1992 Devon Prep alumnus, and his parents Mr. Daniel L. Shields, Jr. and Mrs. Helen Shields of Berwyn, were also in attendance as was his classmate Mark Pillarella of Center Valley.  Ambassador Shields officially presented his credentials to His Majesty the Sultan of Brunei in early April.

While attending Devon Prep in the late seventies Ambassador Shields was actively involved in student council, as Senior Class President, sports, as a starter on the basketball team, and community service, as a member of the Christian Action Program.  Apparently his destiny was evident even then as his classmates wrote in the 1980 yearbook, “Presently Dan plans to pursue a career in international relations. His membership in the Nature Club and his spatial mind will surely help to reach his goal of independent wealth as an ambassador to American Samoa.”

After graduating from Devon Prep, Ambassador Shields received a B.S. degree from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and an M.S. from the National War College. His career in the Senior Foreign Service began in 1985 as Consular Officer at the Embassy in Manila.

Collins remembers Shields as an excellent history student who was very inquisitive, and had a passion and love for his country.  “His appointment as Ambassador to Brunei does not surprise me,” the history teacher said. “Even as a high school student he was very smart, and organized and personable.  He had all the basic tools you need for that type of appointment.”

According to the Ambassador his years at Devon Prep helped prepare him for his future.  “I am very grateful to Devon Prep for the excellent and internationally minded education that I was able to get there, which helped prepare me for the honor of representing the United States through a career in the U.S. Foreign Service,” he said.  

Ambassador Shields highlighted educational exchanges, military ties, and commercial links among the areas in which he hopes to help further strengthen the relationship between the United States and Brunei Darussalam.

His previous assignment from 2010-2011 was as Director of the Office of Mainland Southeast Asia at the State Department in Washington. From 2007-2010, he served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore. Other assignments included Political Minister Counselor, Embassy Beijing (2004-2007); Political Section Deputy, Embassy Tokyo (2002-2004); Principal Officer, Consulate Nagoya (1996-1999); Political Officer, Embassy Beijing (1991-1993) and Embassy Tokyo (1987-1989); and Consular Officer, Embassy Manila (1985-1987).

Brunei is an independent Islamic sultanate on the northern coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It is bounded to the north by the South China Sea and on all other sides by the East Malaysian state of Sarawak. Brunei achieved independence in 1984, after having been a British protectorate since 1888. Brunei’s economy is almost totally dependent on the exploitation of its vast reserves of petroleum and natural gas. Brunei’s population is nearly 400,000 and its per capita income is one of the highest in Asia.

Devon Prep is a small, private, Catholic, college preparatory school for young men in grades six through 12 conducted by the Piarist Fathers. Located on a 20 acre campus in Devon, Chester County, Devon Prep enrolls nearly 300 students who hail from the five county Philadelphia area. For more information call (610) 688-7337 or visit www.devonprep.com,  or www.facebook.com/devonprep .