Bainbridge high-schooler Jared Stahl has been awarded a National Security Language Initiative for Youth scholarship for 2017-18 by the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

He will study Korean in South Korea this summer.

Stahl is one of only about 600 competitively selected students from across the United States who will receive a scholarship to study Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Persian or Russian overseas this coming year. While in South Korea, he’ll receive formal instruction and informal language practice as part of an immersion environment.

The NSLI-Y program is part of a multi-agency U.S. government initiative launched in 2006 to improve Americans’ ability to communicate in select critical languages to advance international dialogue and increase American economic global competitiveness. The goals of the NSLI-Y program include promoting critical language learning among American youth; enhancing cross-cultural understanding and deepening trust; sparking a lifetime of interest in foreign language and culture; and developing the skills to advance international dialogue, compete effectively in the global marketplace, promote mutual understanding, and contribute to a more peaceful world.

Applications for 2018-19 NSLI-Y programs are expected to be available at www.nsliforyouth.org in the early fall.

For information about U.S. Department of State-sponsored exchange programs, visit www.exchanges.state.gov.