Two Illinois students receive Boren Scholarships – News Bureau
Source: https://news.illinois.edu/two-illinois-students-receive-boren-scholarships
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:12
Two Illinois students receive Boren Scholarships – News Bureau
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. —University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign undergraduate students Sameer Abbasi and Lyndon Shi have received
Boren Awards
.
David L. Boren
Scholarships and Fellowships
are funded by the
National Security Education Program
, a federal initiative designed to increase U.S. expertise in languages and cultures in world regions critical to U.S. interests. The awards provide U.S. graduate and undergraduate students with an opportunity for intensive language study and cultural immersion.
“Lyndon and Sameer demonstrate the breadth of subjects regarded as important to U.S. national security and will make informed ambassadors of not just their disciplines, but also of the U. of I. and the country at large,” said David Schug, the director of the National and International Scholarships Program on campus. “This is the 11
th
consecutive year that at least one Illinois student has earned a Boren Scholarship.”
A senior in molecular and cellular biology, Abbasi graduated from Urbana High School. He will study Swahili at the State University of Zanzibar in Tanzania this summer.
Sameer Abbasi. Photo by Illini Union Portrait Lab
Last summer he worked as a program director for a health education program funded by the U.S. Department of State, preparing Tanzanian students for roles as doctors, nurses and community health workers. In that program, he served on-site for three weeks, delivering instructional models on infectious disease, injury and mental health. As a freshman, he traveled to Tigoni, Kenya, with the Global Leaders Program to work with the community-based Friends of Creation.
Closer to home, he conducted collaborative research on health systems in East Africa and South Asia for the Global Health Systems Empowerment Network. Additionally, while serving as membership director for the U. of I. chapter of Partners in Health Engage, a global health advocacy organization, he lobbied for foreign aid funding reform with congressional offices and founded an annual global health impact challenge for undergraduates. He plans to attend medical school and would like to work in a role that bolsters U.S. diplomacy by coordinating health programs and strengthening local health systems.
Shi, a sophomore majoring in history and East Asian languages and cultures, is from Vernon Hills, Illinois, and attended Adlai E. Stevenson High School. He will study Mandarin at National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan this summer, followed by a year at National Taiwan University for additional language study.
Lyndon Shi. Photo by Milind Kumar
Shi’s research on the Qing dynasty has been published in the Undergraduate History Journal at Illinois. He also has worked as a historian for the Illinois Corn Growers Association, with a special interest in developing markets in East Asia. At S.C. Johnson & Son, he was a technology management support intern, organizing collections of prototypes for the research, development and engineering department. At the U. of I., he worked at the Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, digitizing physical files and creating web pages.
His goal is to work as a foreign service officer at the Taiwan Coordination Desk for the U.S. Department of State in order to help the U.S. agricultural industry and develop Taiwanese markets.
NSEP is a federal initiative designed to build a broader and more qualified pool of U.S. citizens with foreign language and international skills. The Boren Awards provide U.S. undergraduate and graduate students with resources and encouragement to acquire language skills and experience in countries critical to the future security and stability of the nation. In exchange for funding, Boren Award recipients agree to work in the federal government for at least one year.
Editor’s note:
For more information about Boren Scholarships for undergraduate students, contact David Schug, the director of the National and International Scholarships Program, at topscholars@illinois.edu.
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MC-426
Champaign, IL 61820
Email:
stratcom@illinois.edu
Phone
(217) 333-5010
Strategic Communications and Marketing
News Bureau
Research News
Arts
Business
Education
Health and Medicine
Humanities
Law and Policy
Library and Information Sciences
Science and Technology
Agriculture
Earth and Environmental Sciences
Engineering
Life Sciences
Physical Sciences
Veterinary Medicine
Social Sciences
Campus News
Announcements
Campus Life
Honors
For Faculty and Staff
For Journalists
About
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. —University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign undergraduate students Sameer Abbasi and Lyndon Shi have received
Boren Awards
.
David L. Boren
Scholarships and Fellowships
are funded by the
National Security Education Program
, a federal initiative designed to increase U.S. expertise in languages and cultures in world regions critical to U.S. interests. The awards provide U.S. graduate and undergraduate students with an opportunity for intensive language study and cultural immersion.
“Lyndon and Sameer demonstrate the breadth of subjects regarded as important to U.S. national security and will make informed ambassadors of not just their disciplines, but also of the U. of I. and the country at large,” said David Schug, the director of the National and International Scholarships Program on campus. “This is the 11
th
consecutive year that at least one Illinois student has earned a Boren Scholarship.”
A senior in molecular and cellular biology, Abbasi graduated from Urbana High School. He will study Swahili at the State University of Zanzibar in Tanzania this summer.
Sameer Abbasi. Photo by Illini Union Portrait Lab
Last summer he worked as a program director for a health education program funded by the U.S. Department of State, preparing Tanzanian students for roles as doctors, nurses and community health workers. In that program, he served on-site for three weeks, delivering instructional models on infectious disease, injury and mental health. As a freshman, he traveled to Tigoni, Kenya, with the Global Leaders Program to work with the community-based Friends of Creation.
Closer to home, he conducted collaborative research on health systems in East Africa and South Asia for the Global Health Systems Empowerment Network. Additionally, while serving as membership director for the U. of I. chapter of Partners in Health Engage, a global health advocacy organization, he lobbied for foreign aid funding reform with congressional offices and founded an annual global health impact challenge for undergraduates. He plans to attend medical school and would like to work in a role that bolsters U.S. diplomacy by coordinating health programs and strengthening local health systems.
Shi, a sophomore majoring in history and East Asian languages and cultures, is from Vernon Hills, Illinois, and attended Adlai E. Stevenson High School. He will study Mandarin at National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan this summer, followed by a year at National Taiwan University for additional language study.
Lyndon Shi. Photo by Milind Kumar
Shi’s research on the Qing dynasty has been published in the Undergraduate History Journal at Illinois. He also has worked as a historian for the Illinois Corn Growers Association, with a special interest in developing markets in East Asia. At S.C. Johnson & Son, he was a technology management support intern, organizing collections of prototypes for the research, development and engineering department. At the U. of I., he worked at the Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, digitizing physical files and creating web pages.
His goal is to work as a foreign service officer at the Taiwan Coordination Desk for the U.S. Department of State in order to help the U.S. agricultural industry and develop Taiwanese markets.
NSEP is a federal initiative designed to build a broader and more qualified pool of U.S. citizens with foreign language and international skills. The Boren Awards provide U.S. undergraduate and graduate students with resources and encouragement to acquire language skills and experience in countries critical to the future security and stability of the nation. In exchange for funding, Boren Award recipients agree to work in the federal government for at least one year.
Editor’s note:
For more information about Boren Scholarships for undergraduate students, contact David Schug, the director of the National and International Scholarships Program, at topscholars@illinois.edu.
Read Next
Honors
Three Illinois faculty elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Three faculty members have been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the oldest honorary societies in the United States.
Humanities
Illinois professor’s book shows how ‘lawful fictions’ are used to manage immigration, citizenship
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — José A. de la Garza Valenzuela, a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign professor of Latina/Latino Studies, looks at the experiences of queer migrants, and at how immigration practices shape particular fictions about them, in his new book “Queer in a Legal Sense: Brown Citizenship and Other Lawful Fictions.” The book combines literary and […]
Health and Medicine
Nature videography replicates the mental health benefits of outdoor activities
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — New research led by a scholar at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign suggests that watching and creating videography of scenic locations cultivates nature-based mindfulness — conveying the same cognitive and emotional benefits as outdoor activities and fostering a deep sense of connection with nature. Yue (Darcy) Lu, an Illinois doctoral student in […]
Strategic Communications and Marketing
News Bureau
507 E. Green St
MC-426
Champaign, IL 61820
Email:
stratcom@illinois.edu
Phone
(217) 333-5010