Jones County High School junior Ellie Oulsnam is among a select few high school students nationwide who have received a scholarship to attend a National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) program this summer. She is one of about 500 students selected from over 3,000 applicants. Oulsnam will spend over seven weeks this summer studying Russian in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
NSLI-Y was started in 2006, and is a program of the U.S. Department of State that promotes critical language learning among American youth. Its goals are to improve young Americans’ ability to communicate in select critical languages, advance international dialogue, and contribute to national security by building understanding across cultures. In addition to the Russian program, NSLI-Y offers programs in different locations in Arabic, Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Persian, Mandarin Chinese, and Turkish.
Oulsnam began studying Russian in Fall 2021 through dual enrollment classes at Kennesaw State University. She plans to continue her Russian studies in college and is interested in pursuing a career in international relations. – Contributed
