IOWA CITY, IOWA (April 24, 2019) — Alexander Bare of Walcott, Iowa, has been awarded a US Department of State Critical-Language Scholarship (CLS) to study a critical language during the summer of 2019.
In total, five University of Iowa students were recently awarded Critical-Language Scholarships (CLS): Alexander Bare (to study Arabic in Tangier, Morocco); Eli Bratsch-Prince (to study Arabic in Tangier, Morocco); Abby Rinaldi (to study Mandarin in Dalian, China); Mark Schoen (to study Bahasa in Malang, Indonesia); and Angel Trachta (to study Korean in Gwangju, South Korea).
The Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) program is part of a US-government effort to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering critical foreign-languages. CLS scholars gain critical language and cultural skills that enable them to contribute to US economic-competitiveness and national-security.
CLS provides scholarships to US undergraduate and graduate students to spend eight to ten weeks overseas studying one of 15 critical languages: Arabic, Azerbaijani, Bangla, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Swahili, Turkish, or Urdu. The program includes intensive language-instruction and structured cultural-enrichment experiences designed to promote rapid language-gains. CLS scholars are expected to continue their language-study beyond the scholarship and apply their critical language skills in their future careers.
"Critical" languages are those that are less commonly-taught in US schools, but are essential for America's engagement with the world. CLS plays an important role in preparing US students for the 21st century's globalized workforce, increasing American competitiveness, and contributing to national security. CLS scholars serve as citizen ambassadors, representing the diversity of the United States abroad, and building lasting relationships with people in their host-countries.
CLS participants represent a broad diversity of backgrounds and perspectives. CLS actively recruits in states and regions of the United States that have been historically under-represented in international education.
Since 2006, CLS has awarded scholarships to more than 5,700 American students to learn critical languages around the world. CLS scholars are among the more than 50,000 academic and professional exchange program participants supported annually by the US Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. These exchange programs build respect and positive relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The CLS program is administered by American Councils for International Education.
For further information about the Critical Language Scholarship or other US government-scholarships and programs, visit http://www.clscholarship.org/ and https://studyabroad.state.gov/.
The University of Iowa is one of the nation's premier public-research universities, dedicated to academic excellence, groundbreaking discoveries and creations, commitment to Iowa and the world, and a culture that prizes community, diversity, and opportunity.
The UI is known around the world for its leadership in the arts, sciences, and humanities. It is home to the first and best creative-writing program in the world, a world-class academic medical-center and one of America's top teaching hospitals, and a can-do culture that fosters a campus-wide dedication to student success.
To learn more about the University of Iowa, visit https://uiowa.edu/.
