U.S. Department of State
Russian
Walker Winslow Stephenson: Building Bridges from North Carolina to Moldova
Walker was always interested in history, cultures, and politics. Walker notes that, “Growing up in a rural part of eastern North Carolina, NSLI-Y gave me the chance to explore the world, engage with new people, and embrace perspectives that pushed me to think more broadly about politics, place, and purpose.” … Read More
Korean
NSLI-Y Alumna Annalise Burke Showcases Linguistic and Cultural Knowledge in Cybersecurity Career
Originally from a small town in rural Idaho, Annalise was interested in finding ways to expand her worldview. She established a friendship with a pen pal in South Korea which has lasted over a decade, and applied to the NSLI-Y program to learn the Korean language, share about Idaho with… Read More
Arabic
NSLI-Y Alumnus Caden Lucas Pursues Career in Public Service
Growing up in rural Kentucky, Caden had always been eager to explore other parts of the world. Despite his demanding academic course load, he knew he needed to embrace a new challenge- learning a critical language and immersing himself in a different culture- to pursue his career aspirations in international… Read More
Arabic
Bridging Cultures and Careers: Gaby Gerecht’s Journey from NSLI-Y to Global Cybersecurity Diplomacy
Gaby was always interested in living and studying abroad, eager to seek out opportunities to broaden her worldview. She chose to study Arabic in high school, curious to try a non-Romance language, and her Arabic teacher recommended NSLI-Y. After NSLI-Y, Gaby attended McGill University to study International Development and Arabic. Read More
Korean
Alabama & Abroad: Nadia Harden’s Journey to Citizen Diplomacy
Nadia began self-studying Korean in 2018 and became interested in its history and culture. She also began to learn more about careers in diplomacy, and realized that she wanted to take her language learning seriously and needed to immerse herself in the language and culture. Even with several years of self-study,… Read More
Russian
Alumni Spotlight: Kathleen Rouse
As the daughter of a U.S. naval aviator and Cold War veteran, Kathleen grew up with countless stories surrounding U.S.-Russian relations. While following her passion for diplomacy and national security, Kathleen’s pursuit led her to NSLI-Y. The opportunity to communicate effectively with Russian-speaking countries through intensive language immersion was a… Read More
