Meet PSU's CLS Recipients
Summer 2024
Macie Harreld - Russian
Macie has a B.A. in Spanish and is a post-bac student at PSU, studying English, linguistics, and Russian. During her undergraduate studies, she was able to volunteer as an English tutor for Spanish speakers, and fell in love with language teaching. After graduation, she began working as an English teacher in St. Petersburg, Russia, where she started learning Russian. She is now in her second year of PSU’s Russian Flagship Program, and is tremendously excited and grateful for the opportunity to continue studying Russian this summer in Tbilisi, Georgia on the CLS program. She intends to pursue a M.A. in TESOL, and eventually use her knowledge of foreign languages and cultures in her career as a language educator.
Summer 2023
Quinn Bicer - Arabic
Quinn Bicer is a junior at PSU in the University Honors College, graduating in Spring 2024. He is working towards graduating with majors in Middle East studies and Arabic, a minor in applied linguistics, and certificates in TESL, Arabic language pedagogy, and intercultural competence for the workplace. Quinn is currently a third year Arabic student, tutors Arabic at the Learning Center, and leads the Arabic Club at PSU.
Before entering PSU, Quinn taught theatre in India for five and a half months, where he discovered his love for language, teaching, and exploring other cultures, but he did not start seriously learning Arabic until he came to PSU, and he developed a passion for the Arabic language through his classes in the Arabic department.
Quinn desires to work in education and research in the future, and his particular interests include folklore, language pedagogy, and world religions and cultures. He is fascinated by how humans create and share meaning in their lives and communities. Outside of school, Quinn enjoys music, reading, art, stage manages theatre productions, and is involved in the local performance scene.
Quinn is thrilled and honored to be going to Meknes, Morocco to study Arabic this summer at the Arab American Language Institute in Morocco through the CLS program. As a first-generation college student from an underprivileged and low income background, Quinn is incredibly grateful for the opportunities that he has had at PSU and elsewhere.
Kayle Desrosiers - Chinese
Kayle Desrosiers is a junior at PSU, currently working towards a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies with a minor in Russian Language. Kayle has taken a number of language courses at PSU and adores languages as a whole. Kayle has been interested in learning Chinese since 2018 and has occasionally and independently made time to study it. Kayle has been selected to participate in the CLS Spark Program's Summer Intensive Chinese course from June to August 2023. During the program, they hope to reach a low-intermediate level of proficiency so that they can have a strong foundation to build off of in the future. This will be Kayle's second virtual study abroad after participating in Kansai Gaidai's home-based Asian Studies Program in Fall 2021.
Elena Garcia Morales - Korean
Elena Garcia Morales is a PSU senior majoring in international and global studies. She was able to study abroad in Seoul, South Korea in the Fall of 2021 and received the Gilman Scholarship to help support that overseas program. She started a program of self-study in Korean in 2018 and didn't start taking formal Korean classes until she transferred to PSU from PCC. During the Summer of 2023, she will be studying in Busan, South Korea, at Pusan National University with a Critical Language Scholarship! Elena says "I am really looking forward to improving my Korean and hope to work at the U.S. embassy in Seoul in the near future."
Summer 2022
Bianca Visekruna - Russian
Bianca is in her final year at the School of Business Honors College and will be graduating in Spring 2023 with a Bachelor’s degree in Management and Leadership. She was a recipient of the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) Russian program in summer 2020 which sparked her passion for studying the Russian language. Through NSLI-Y she discovered the CLS program which led her to apply. This summer Bianca will be continuing her Russian studies in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan at the American University of Central Asia. She serves as the Portland, Oregon alumni representative for NSLI-Y and she hopes to continue doing outreach and encouraging others to apply for NSLI-Y and CLS.
Nicholas Bruno - Hindi
Nicholas (Nico) Bruno is excited to finally have a travel visa to India and a confirmation of being selected for CLS in Summer 2022. Still in shock, Nico can't recall ever receiving an award like this before and is glad to share about the experience--particularly if it offers some hope or context for future applicants. Nico came to PSU after attending community college, where he studied Chinese and Spanish and led to his interest in getting a degree in Spanish and Philosophy. In the long run, he hopes to explore cross-cultural religious and philosophical thought through philology and translation. As a student from a low-income background, he'd also like to help others learn languages, both through teaching and writing. Nico recommends anyone interested in language (or international relations, because of the nature of the program) to apply each year they can, even if they don't think they'll ever get it.
Jaden Gloden - Chinese
Jaden will be graduating in Spring 2023 with a BS in Public Health Studies and a BA in Chinese. Jaden first began to learn Chinese in elementary school as part of an immersion program and decided to continue her studies after transferring to PSU in 2019. Jaden volunteers as an IELP Conversation Partner and works with ISP to lead small group conversations for international students learning English. She had the opportunity to participate in CLS last summer and is excited to further improve her speaking fluency. Jaden will be studying Chinese virtually with the Dalian University of Technology this summer. She hopes to work abroad one day, utilizing both her public health knowledge and Chinese language skills.
Summer 2021
Eva Basile - Korean
Eva will be graduating in Spring 2021 with a B.A. in Global Studies and a minor in Political Science. She began studying Korean at PSU in 2018 and applied for the CLS Program 2021 hoping to continue her study after graduation and improve her speaking fluency. After spending time as an Orientation Leader, International Student Peer Mentor, and IELP Conversation Partner on campus, Eva developed a passion for working with international students in higher education. This inspired her to apply for CLS to be able to relate to the experience of studying abroad and to better communicate with more student populations. Eva will be studying in Gwangju, South Korea this summer at Chonnam University.
Jaden Gloden - Chinese
Jaden is working towards a BS in Public Health Studies and a BA in Chinese. She first began learning Chinese in elementary school through an immersion program. After earning her AA from Clackamas Community College, Jaden decided to continue her education at PSU so that she could further her Chinese studies and fulfill her hopes of studying abroad. She is excited to use this experience to better her speaking skills, knowledge of culture, and to make new connections.
Melissa LeGree - Persian/Farsi
Melissa will be graduating in Spring 2022 with a degree of Master of Taxation, was selected to study Persian/Farsi through American Councils for International Education Dushanbe Language Center. She will be involved in an 8-week program of intensive study from June to August, 2021. She became interested in learning Persian after volunteering with Ascend-Leadership Through Athletics, an international organization with mountaineering programs for young Afghan women. Melissa intends to pursue a Ph.D. to research historical tax policies and social structures in Afghanistan and plans to use her Spanish and Farsi language skills while working in global development with an international organization.
September update! Melissa is delighted to have been selected to participate in the CLS-Refresh program Fall 2021 to continue her Persian studies from the summer. This is a new program offered to CLS alumni this year through which she will receive two hours of individualized instruction a week for eight weeks. Melissa encourages future learners of critical languages to take full advantage of the opportunities available as alumni of CLS! To find out more about the Refresh program, go to: https://clscholarship.org/alumni/cls-refresh
Summer 2020
Although CLS was forced to suspend it's Summer 2020 programs for intensive language programs due to Covid-19, we at PSU wish to congratulate the following selected student. Over 5000 people applied for CLS this year and selection is an honor! (Debra Clemans 4/30/2020)
Sasha Gorda - Turkish
Sasha is a second year student at PSU and will be studying Turkish in Bursa, Turkey in Summer 2020. She plans to graduate 2022 with a BA in Russian and International Studies. She is also part of the Russian Flagship Program at PSU and plans to study abroad in Kazakhstan in her senior year. She was drawn to studying Turkish because of its cultural connection to Central Asia, the rich history of Turkey, as well as Turkey's importance in world politics today.
Summer 2019
Sofia Velasquez - Turkish
Sofia Velasquez graduates Spring 2019 with a B.A in Women’s Studies with a minor in Communication Studies. She grew up speaking Spanish and during her time in college, she realized she had a huge amount of love for the Arabic language and began to study and teach herself. After spending some time working with international families for a non-profit and volunteering with immigrants and refugees through organizations like IRCO, CAUSA and the YWCA of Greater Portland’s Social Justice Program, she realized that the next language she wanted to learn more about was Turkish so she decided to apply to the CLS program and was accepted to study Turkish in Baku, Azerbaijan in 2019. Prior to this, in the year 2017 she received the Gilman Scholarship to study intercultural communications in both Lima and Cusco, Peru. Additionally, with her interests in race, gender and sexuality studies, she received an IIE Generation Study Abroad Travel Grant last summer to Madrid and Barcelona, Spain where she studied LGBTQ representations in Spanish film.
Alyssa Delury - Russian (bio unavailable)
Summer 2018
Mason Hirahara - Chinese (bio unavailable)
Summer 2017
Kelsey Canoy - Russian
Kelsey is a senior getting her B.A. in Arabic and Russian. After some time in the Marine Corps, she developed a desire to finish college and learn a new language. Upon discovering her love for Arabic, she has been fortunate enough to study in Jordan and Oman. She has also studied Russian for the past year and a half. As a recipient of the Critical Language Scholarship, Kelsey will spend the summer of 2017 in Vladimir, Russia where she hopes to learn more about the Russian culture and improve her language skills. She loves to travel, meet new people, and experience different cultures. After graduation, she hopes to live abroad and put her languages to use working with the government.
Ryan Donovan - Russian
Ryan, a political science major and Russian minor, brings a kaleidoscopic array of perspectives and influences that only someone who has traveled to both the Arctic and Iraqi Kurdistan can. After living in Oslo while working for UNICEF Norway he returned to the U.S. with an interest in the former Soviet Union. The focus of his research is on the Russian periphery, particularly the Arctic, Central Asia, and the Sino-Russian relationship. During the summer of 2017 he will be studying on a CLS program in Vladimir, Russia. Ryan currently interns at the World Affairs Council of Oregon and has been accepted to present his research at a number of symposiums. Upon graduation, he hopes to continue his education in either an international relations program or law school, with the goal of pursuing a career in diplomacy and public policy.
Gabriella Hoffman -Russian
Gabriella started studying Russian in 2014 with Kristine Shmakov at Portland Community College and is currently enrolled in the Russian Flagship Program at PSU. She is a post-graduate student, bilingual in English and Hungarian, and working toward becoming trilingual. Her interest in the Russian language began while working as an academic tutor of Russian-speaking immigrant children through the Portland-based Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO). Since then, she has developed a keen interest in the language, culture, society, and history of this vast land and its people. Gabriella has received gold and silver medals for the ACTR National Post-Secondary Russian Essay Contests in 2017 & 2016.
Mina Pournaderi - Swahili
Although Mina wanted to be a linguist when she was younger, she is currently a Social Work major in the BSW program at PSU. Her interest in Swahili began when she enrolled in PSU after transferring from a community college. Already speaking three languages, (English, Farsi, and German), she wanted to try something new and PSU offered it! After enrolling for two years, she was accepted to the CLS Program and will be spending the summer of 2017 in Arusha, Tanzania. Following the CLS Program, Mina has an internship to work with IRCO (Immigrant & Refugee Community Organization) and populations from East Africa. After graduation, Mina wants to work in East Africa surrounding issues of human rights and water resources to help ensure that all people have equal access to clean drinking water.
Tara Mandella -Russian (bio unavailable)
Paolo Menuez -Japanese (bio unavailable)
Summer 2016
Megan Burns - Swahili
Megan is a Community Development major and a Senior in the Honors College going for a BS. She grew up right here in the Pacific Northwest in Vancouver, Washington, and has lived in Portland for the past 9 years. In 2013, she was the first community college recipient of a Boren Award, and that, along with various other scholarships, allowed her to study Swahili in Tanzania. In the summer of 2015 she studied bicycle urbanism in Copenhagen, Denmark funded by several scholarships. As a recipient of the Critical Language Scholarship for Swahili, Megan will spend the summer of 2016 in Arusha, Tanzania studying Swahili and Business and Entrepreneurship at the MT Training Centre for Development Cooperation. She currently works as an Engagement Manager for a public involvement firm in Portland called Design+Culture Lab. After graduation, she intends on utilizing her Swahili language skills, as well as the skills she has gained in her current position, to begin a career in the field of sustainable international development.
Michael Farr - Russian
Michael is a post-baccalaureate student in the PSU Russian Flagship Program. Michael, whose grandmother is Russian, began learning the language on his own and with a private tutor while he was in the Army. After leaving the service in 2014, he moved back to his home state of Oregon and began investigating ways to further his studies. He was drawn to the Flagship program due to its connection to the Department of Defense, its intensive nature and career-oriented focus. Michael will be traveling to Russia in Summer 2016 on a Critical Languages Scholarship to study at the KORA Center for Russian Language Study in Vladimir. He hopes to eventually use his language skills in the national security field or return to his journalism roots to work as a foreign correspondent.
Chase Riegel - Russian
Chase has always been interested in becoming fluent in a foreign language. That combined with a seemingly constant interest in Russia and Russian culture, he chose to learn Russian and it has since become the number one driving force in his life. He started studying Russian with a private tutor during his last few years of high school and started taking Russian courses at PCC after he graduated. From there he was introduced to PSU's Russian Flagship Program and immediately knew that it was for him. Chase studied Russian for two months in Vladimir, Russia on the CLS Program in 2015, and is astonished and delighted to be given another chance to do the same this year. Although his career goals are still developing, Chasee knows he wants a career that will allow him to speak Russian on a daily basis.
Amber Shore - Russian
Amber is earning a double major in Russian and Applied Linguistics at PSU. After earning an AA in her home state of Washington, she spent three years working and saving. When she found the Russian Flagship Program at PSU, she enrolled to pursue her passion for studying language in general and Russian specifically. With hard work and the support of the program faculty, she won the Critical Language Scholarship and will be studying this summer in Vladimir, Russia. After graduation, she is interested in working in diplomacy or with an international NGO.
Summer 2015
Colton Hennick - Russia
Colton began to independently study Russian his sophomore year of high school and moved specifically to Portland to be a part of the Russian Flagship Program at PSU. Colton studied abroad during the summer of 2014 in Tbilisi Georgia on the Critical Language Scholarship. He won the Critical Language Scholarship again in 2015 and will spend this summer in Vladimir, Russia. He will graduate with a B.A. in Russian.
Peter Fodor - Japan
Peter is a PCC alumnus, and soon to graduate from PSU with a major in Applied Linguistics and a minor in Japanese. He has worked in IT and precision machining throughout his tertiary education, and looks forward to attending graduate school soon. His research interests include orthography, literacy, technology in education, conversation analysis, and second language acquisition.
Simon Peters - China
Simon is a recent graduate from the University Honors College, earning his BA with a double major in Applied Linguistics and Chinese, along with a certificate in Asian Studies. Following two years of language study at PSU, Simon first visited China with CLS in 2012. The program kicked-off his year of study abroad, during which he studied Chinese at PSU's sister school in southern Taiwan, followed by coursework and an independent research project at an SIT Study Abroad site in southwestern China. His research examined language attitudes and language shift among Tibetan speakers in an urbanizing tourism hub. His paper was published in Anthós, PSU's undergraduate Honors College research journal, and is accessible through the PDX Scholar portal. Since graduating, he has been working as a conversation partner in PSU's Intensive English Language Program. In the fall, Simon will begin a graduate fellowship in linguistics at UC Santa Barbara, where he will earn his PhD specializing in language documentation.
Lacey Smith - Turkey (bio unavailable)
Summer 2014
Noah Sellers - Morocco
Noah Sellers has been awarded a Critical Language Scholarship to Morocco for the summer of 2014. Noah is a 2006 graduate of PSU's Applied Linguistics and TESOL programs, currently studying in the PSU Arabic program. He has taught English in Thailand, South Korea, Slovakia, and Indonesia.
Karen Lickteig - Morocco
Karen Lickteig grew up in Wichita, Kansas and moved to Portland in 2008 to attend Lewis & Clark College. After her first study abroad experience in 2010-11 as a William Jefferson Clinton Scholar in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, she transferred to PSU and began working at the university's Middle East Studies Center. She has been back to the Middle East four additional times - to Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Kuwait, Lebanon and Turkey. In 2013 she earned her BA in International Studies focusing on the Middle East with minors in Arabic language and Business Administration from Portland State. Karen has also interned for the US-Qatar Business Council and the Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center of the Middle East Institute, both in Washington, D.C. Karen is currently pursuing a Master of Urban Studies at PSU as a Foreign Language & Area Studies fellow, and will continue her Arabic language studies this summer as a Critical Language Scholar in Rabat, Morocco. She is particularly interested in issues surrounding U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, urban design, human rights, sustainable development, and cross-cultural communication.
Dean Leininger - Japan
Dean Leininger, a first generation college student, is studying Japanese language in Summer 2014 in Himeji, Japan through the Critical Language Scholarship. He is very glad to have the opportunity to see the country he's so long waited to visit. He aspires to later study for a Master's degree in translation/interpreting after first spending time teaching for the JET program or at one of Japan's many private language schools as an English teacher, thus giving him more time to improve his Japanese language and culture skills. (Photo not available)
Colton Hennick - Georgia
Colton Hennick grew up in the small, rural town of Placerville, California. During his high school Spanish classes, he realized his love for foreign languages and was eager to learn more. He began to independently study Russian his sophomore year of high school and moved specifically to Portland to be a part of the Russian Flagship Program at PSU. His independent study paid off and allowed him to place into the end of second year Russian at PCC Sylvania after which he transferred to PSU. During the summer of 2014 Colton studied Russian in Tbilisi, Georgia this coming summer. He will graduate with a B.A. in Russian and pursue a career in intelligence with the U.S. government.
Summer 2013
Kelly Greenberg – India
Kelly graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS in Child and Family Studies from PSU in 2010. She is currently a graduate student in the School of Social Work at PSU and pursuing an MSW degree with a focus on community based practice and international policy on child sex trafficking and women’s empowerment. In 2009, she spent three months interning with IE3 Global Internships for two grassroots organizations in India where she worked with women in the Kamathipura Red Light District in Mumbai and their children, many of whom are affected by HIV/AIDS, leading and co-facilitating small educational groups on risk reduction. She also interned at Children’s Future India (CFI), an NGO that sponsors children, particularly females, and their families in their education, health, and nutrition up to 12th grade, and helps develop irrigation systems and other various needs in rural villages. For Summer 2013, she received a Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) from the U.S. Department of State to study Hindi in a two-month intensive language program in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. Her ultimate goal is to work for the UN/UNICEF to help create and change policies around international child welfare and women’s empowerment, particularly in India.
Chris Sarter - Russia