Cary Student Wins State Department Scholarship

Cary, NC – Lots of kids study abroad, even in high school. But not many get a scholarship from the U.S. State Department to do so. Meet Kira Wegner-Clemens.

Cary Student Wins State Department Scholarship

Kira Wegner-Clemens, a high school student in Cary, has been awarded a National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) scholarship for 2012-2013.

The NSLI-Y scholarship enables Kira to study Russian in Russia for the summer. The scholarship covers all program costs for participants including domestic and international travel, tuition, cultural activities, meals and accommodations.

The program is funded by the U.S. Department of State and provides merit-based scholarships for eligible high school students to learn less commonly-taught languages in summer and academic-year overseas immersion programs.

Promoting the Next Generation of Leaders

Launched as part of a U.S. Government initiative in 2006, NSLI-Y seeks to increase Americans’ capacity to engage with native speakers of critical languages by providing formal and informal language learning and practice and by promoting mutual understanding through educational and cultural activities.

NSLI-Y offers overseas study opportunities to high school students for summer and academic-year language learning in Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Hindi, Korean, Persian (Tajik), Russian, and Turkish.

The goals of the NSLI-Y program include sparking a life-long interest in foreign languages and cultures, and developing a corps of young Americans with the skills necessary to advance international dialogue in the private, academic or government sectors, building upon the foundations developed through person-to-person relationships while abroad.

According to the State Department, “through her participation in the program, Kira will be in the vanguard of international communication and will develop the skills necessary to be a leader in the global community.”

Dosvedanya Tovarich

Cary has only a tenuous connection to Russia. There’s no large emigre community here. We have no Sister City relationships with the former land of the czars.

But now we can say Dosvedanya Tovarich to Kira Wegner-Clemens, which means “see you again, friend.”

Maybe she will send us a few pictures and a story so we can all enjoy her signature accomplishment.