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By Laura Cech

Ten Terps will study language and culture abroad this academic year through David L. Boren Scholarships and Fellowships, making UMD a top recipient of the awards.

A federal initiative designed to strengthen the foreign language and international skills of undergraduate and graduate students, Boren Scholarships and Fellowships provide up to $25,000 to study in world regions seen as critical to national security. As part of the program, recipients will work in the federal government for at least one year.

Since the 2008-09 academic year, 118 UMD undergrads have been selected as Boren Scholars, and 37 graduate students have been selected as Boren Fellows. The program is sponsored by the National Security Education Program.

"UMD is a magnet for students passionate about careers in international affairs and public service, and our proximity to Washington DC provides them with outstanding internship experiences in myriad federal, NGO, and other globally-engaged agencies,” said Francis DuVinage, director of UMD’s National Scholarships Office. “Maryland's success in the Boren competitions reflects this and empowers our students to develop professional-level language skills that will enhance their ability to have a positive impact in the world."

Alanna Leshea Anderson ’21, MIM ’25, MCP ’25 will travel to Brazil for a year to take intensive Brazilian Portuguese classes and live with a host family who will give her more practice and a better understanding of life and culture in the country.

“I’ll have the linguistic ability to reach a broader domestic and global audience than I’m currently capable of,” she said. “My goal is to apply my knowledge from this award into a career in my passions: sustainable development and disaster management.”

Meet the other 2024–25 Boren Scholarship/Fellowship awardees:

• Jenna DiMaggio ’26, a College Park Scholar majoring in English, Arabic studies, and Spanish language and literature, will study Arabic in Morocco. She is interested in the diverse literature and culture of borderland communities and plans to attend law school after graduation.
• Evan Finnessy ’25, a College Park Scholar double-majoring in Russian language and literature and Arabic studies, will study Arabic in Morocco. He is an alum of the 2022 Critical Language Scholarship for Russian. Upon the completion of his year abroad, he plans to enter the field of refugee relocation and resettlement.Feriel Friloux ’25, an Arabic studies major, will study Arabic in Morocco. Feriel hopes to work in U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
• Amaya Greenberg ’25, a College Park Scholar majoring in government and politics and Arabic studies, will study Arabic in Morocco. Amaya plans to enter a federal career focused on relations between the U.S. and the Arab world.
• Nicole Ibrahim, a graduate student in marine estuarine and environmental sciences, will study Russian in Kazakhstan and work alongside researchers at Shakpak Ornithological Station.
• Jessica Nguyen, a public policy graduate student, will study Vietnamese in Vietnam.
• Samara Toussaint, a graduate student in behavioral and community health, will study Swahili in Uganda.
• Zachary Wandalowski ’24, a College Park Scholar with a double major in government and politics and economics and a minor in German studies, will study Tagalog in the Philippines.
• Oreet Zimand ’24, an Honors College Design Cultures & Creativity student triple-majoring in government and politics, history, and Russian language and literature, will study Russian in Latvia.

One student declined the scholarship to pursue other opportunities.