NEW YORK - The National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLIY) program is offering 550 full scholarships to U.S. high school students to study abroad and learn languages "that most students do not have opportunities to learn, but are rapidly becoming critical to know."Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, NSLIY is designed to increase American citizens' capacity to engage foreign governments and people through the critical languages of Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, Hindi, Korean, Russian and Turkish. The program is administered by a team of organizations, including AFS-USA, American Councils for International Education, Concordia Language Villages and iEARN-USA. Together, they will award U.S. government funding in the form of full scholarships to 550 U.S. high school and just-graduated students (ages 15-18) to participate summer, one-semester, and full-year language programs in different countries. "Recent years have demonstrated how important it is that Americans learn languages of countries that will be prominent in the 21st century," said Lisa Choate, vice president of the American Councils for International Education. "Students in this scholarship program will be well-positioned for careers in a wide range of fields." Programs immerse participants in language acquisition courses throughout their stay in the host country. Students live with a host family, gaining formal and informal language practice. Students will also attend school and interact with international students in person and through online technologies. Applying students must be U.S. citizens, ages 15-18, enrolled in high school, and have a minimum 2.5 GPA. For more information, or to apply online, visit www.nsliforyouth.org. ********** Published: January 2, 2009 - Volume 7 - Issue 37