It's one thing to study the French language or European government in a classroom.

It's another to shake French Ambassador Pierre Vimont's hand and listen to him lecture on the European Union, as 15 Pittsburgh Schenley High School students did yesterday at the University of Pittsburgh.

Students said the experience was magnifique. For some, it was the high point of 13 years of language study in the Pittsburgh Public Schools.

"He seemed genuinely happy to meet us," said senior Minrose Straussman, who presented Mr. Vimont with a bouquet of flowers. Other gifts included a Schenley pennant and a T-shirt, which the career diplomat said he would wear on a return visit.

The urbane, soft-spoken Mr. Vimont was invited to Pitt by the university's European Union Center of Excellence and European Studies Center. Schenley teacher Devin Browne arranged for his students -- all juniors and seniors in Schenley's International Baccalaureate program -- to have a brief audience with Mr. Vimont before the ambassador's public lecture on the EU.

Mr. Vimont and the students spoke to one another primarily in French, with no apparent communication difficulties.

"I was really proud of them," Mr. Browne said.

Senior Karen Chrysostome said the ambassador told them it was his first visit to Pittsburgh.

"He seemed like a real down-to-earth person," said Ms. Chrysostome, a native French speaker from Benin, Africa, who said the Pittsburgh Public Schools' foreign language program has helped her improve her grammar.

The students said French may assist them with career plans. Ms. Straussman said she's considering a career with the United Nations or World Bank; Ms. Chrysostome said she wants to become a pharmacist and work with UNICEF, the international aid organization.

Schenley students said the school sometimes arranges outside activities to complement their studies, but meeting Mr. Vimont was a rare opportunity.

"This is someone who has a direct line to Sarkozy," Mr. Browne said.

Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, appointed Mr. Vimont ambassador to the United States last year. He had been chief of staff to the foreign minister before that and France's ambassador to the EU, the 27-nation economic union, from 1999 to 2002.

During his public lecture, Mr. Vimont lauded the EU for bringing economic prosperity and political stability to parts of Europe but said it must strive to become a bigger political player on the world stage.

First Published: September 16, 2008, 8:00 a.m.