Shpil-AK? Shpil-IHUK?  Shpil-IÜKH?? What about Shplook?

The answer is no to all of the above. It’s pronounced Sh-pi-ly-uk, and she is a tenth grade English teacher here at Watkins Mill. Besides being known as that teacher with the hard-to-pronounce name, she is also very popular for her energetic, fun and crazy personality (and her hair too). But what many might not know about her is that she is from Ukraine and speaks four languages: English, Russian, Ukrainian and some Hebrew.

Sofya (pronounced Sonya) Shpilyuk came to the US at the age of nine in August of 1995, from Kiev, Ukraine. Her family moved because of the religious persecution of Jews going on in the country after the fall of the Soviet Union. Shpilyuk said that she was nervous when they moved. She had absolutely no knowledge of what “America” was or what it would be like, and knew only few words in English.

But that didn’t stop her from being very excited too. “I was a very adventurous child,” Shpilyuk said. She spent her childhood traveling through Europe with her parents and hitchhiking from one country to another, so moving to America didn’t seem too scary. “[My first impression was that] there was so much food!”

Just like many students at Watkins Mill, Shpilyuk went through quite a few challenges in school, like learning English and fitting in. Coming from a very religious school, it was very awkward for her to adapt to her new school, but eventually she got comfortable and was able to accustom herself to the new environment. “Ask for help would be my biggest advice [to students coming from another country]. Do not just sit in the corner and not understand things,” Shpilyuk said.

Though Shpilyuk misses Ukraine, she wouldn’t want to move back if she had the chance to. “Having been raised in America during my teenage years, my world views do not fit the worldview people over there have,” Shpilyuk said. She still makes annual trips to Ukraine to visit her family.         

Shpilyuk switched from teaching at Neelsville Middle School to Watkins Mill last year because she wanted to see and teach her former students again. Junior Ian Nathan is one of the students who had Shpilyuk in sixth grade and later in tenth grade. Nathan said that “[Shpilyuk] is more than a teacher” and that he misses having her classes.

Nathan added that one of his favorite memories with her was doing Homecoming halls with her this year as she is the eleventh grade sponsor. Nathan said that Shpilyuk is a teacher who “helps people get more involved and social.”

“I missed you guys,” Shpilyuk said of her former students who are now at Watkins Mill.  “You were my favorite part of teaching at Neelsville.”