by Julia Gardner
The Fries Center for Global Studies is proud to announce that five Wesleyan students will be participating in Critical Language Scholarship programs this summer!
The Critical Language Scholarship is a competitive, fully-funded program that offers immersive instruction in thirteen different languages considered critical to the U.S.’s global engagement. CLS programs cover the equivalent of a full year of language study in eight weeks, and offer both virtual and in-country instruction options.
This summer, Nate Kianovsky and Liev Shpitalnik will be studying Russian in Kyrgyzstan; Maryam Badr will be studying Arabic in Jordan; Malik Booker will be studying Korean in South Korea; and Ava Yuanshun Guralnick will be studying Korean virtually through the CLS Spark program. Three Wesleyan students were also selected as alternates for the program, two for advanced Arabic and one for Intermediate Russian.
Applications for the next program cycle will be due in Mid-November. For students interested in applying to CLS, Nate advises getting started with the application as soon as possible; in addition to the resources offered through the Wesleyan Office of Fellowships, CLS itself provides a lot of information on Youtube about what they want out of an application.
Weighing in on the content of the essays themselves, Malik Booker advises future applicants to be real about their experience with the language:
“Talk about actual moments when you’ve studied or learned this language, or even times you’ve learned other languages. Don’t oversell yourself; being humble is key. What really matters is showing that you’re committed not just to learning the language but also to understanding the culture, both while you’re abroad and in how you interact with peers in all environments. Every time you mention a skill or experience, give a real example using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result). The selection committee wants to see how you’ve grown and applied yourself, not just hear broad wordy claims. At the end of the day, they’re looking for people who want to build connections and take what they learn back to their communities, and to use the target language in the future at work or home.”
More information about the CLS program and application process can be found on the CLS webpage, as well as on the Office of Fellowships CLS profile page.
Meet Wesleyan’s Newest CLS Scholars
Liev Shpitalnik ‘26 is majoring in Psychology, with minors in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies (REES) and Education Studies. He’s originally from Branford, CT, but his father’s side of the family is from Russia. Growing up, he spoke Russian with my father and grandparents, but never reached full fluency. He applied to CLS to take the next step in immersing himself in the language, deepening his proficiency, and reconnecting with his cultural roots.
He is incredibly excited to embark on this journey to Kyrgyzstan and experience learning Russian in a completely new environment. For future applicants, his biggest advice is to be genuine in your writing. Liev was honest about not knowing exactly what career path he wants to take, but he shared how this opportunity could help him explore his interests and grow personally. He’s looking forward to bringing a piece of Kyrgyz culture back with him and sharing it with others.
Nate Kianovsky ‘25 , is majoring in Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian Studies and minoring in Middle Eastern Studies. Nate grew up in New Jersey but now lives in New York. He is currently writing a thesis on polyphony, or “many-voicedness,” in the works of Anton Pavlovich Chekhov. In his free time, Nate sings in two a cappella groups,The Mazel Tones and Slender James. He loves to cook and read, especially when he can do it while walking around (the reading, not the cooking).
His advice to future CLS applicants is to get started with the application as soon as possible; in addition to the resources offered through the Wesleyan Office of Fellowships, CLS itself provides a lot of information on Youtube about what they want out of an application.
Maryam Badr ‘25, double majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior and East Asian Studies, is interested in how vulnerable populations engage with healthcare and medicine. On campus, Maryam served as the Co-President of the Wesleyan Refugee Project, a student group that provides free English tutoring, fundraising, and resettlement services to displaced people abroad and resettled refugees in Connecticut. Maryam was also a former Resource Center Race, Ethnicity, and Nationality Intern and the Director of the People’s Free Grocery Program—a food-access program supporting low-income families in Middletown, Connecticut. Maryam is also a Co-founder of the Arab Student Association, a student group that works to provide a safe and welcoming space for all Arab-identifying students on campus. In this role, she facilitated Wesleyan’s first ever Arab-American heritage Month Events, focused on uplifting the diversity of Arab identity and culture.
Through the CLS Arabic program, Maryam aims to further develop her language skills and, in the future, contribute to a system that delivers compassionate, culturally-informed healthcare to vulnerable communities.
Malik Booker ‘25 is majoring in East Asian Studies. Originally from Racine, Wisconsin, he is a Posse Foundation Veteran Scholar with a deep passion for language learning, cultural exchange, and East Asian media. Malik was recently awarded the prestigious Critical Language Scholarship and will be traveling to Gwangju, South Korea, to participate in an intensive Korean language and cultural immersion program.
On campus, he actively engages in initiatives that support veteran scholars and promote cross-cultural understanding. As a senior, Malik is currently writing a capstone project titled “Love in Fantasy: The Impact of BL Drama on the LGBT Community,” which is being completed entirely in Korean and explores the intersection of media, fantasy, and LGBTQ+ representation. Outside of academics, he enjoys going to the gym, studying new languages, watching Thai and Korean dramas, and discovering new desserts. Malik aspires to combine his interests in media, language, and global affairs to work in a field that bridges cultural understanding and advocacy.
Ava Yuanshun Guralnick (she/they) ‘25 grew up on Lenapehoking land, current day Woodstock and Kingston, New York. Ava is a double major in American Studies with a concentration in Asian American Studies and English on the Creative writing track. She is currently completing a creative writing thesis at the intersections of Transnational Adoption Studies, Korean War Studies, and memoir.
Congratulations to all of our recipients on their hard work during the application process and on this amazing opportunity, and we wish them all the best on their language-learning adventures!