Two VCU Students Named NSEP Boren Scholars

By Tom Gresham

Two Virginia Commonwealth University students have been awarded the National Security Education Program David L. Boren Scholarship, a national scholarship that allows students to spend a year abroad studying the languages and cultures of a foreign country.

Benjamin Cohen, a senior majoring in mass communications, and Elisabeth Moore, a sophomore majoring in English, each will use the NSEP Boren Scholarship to study in China during the upcoming academic year. Both students are in the Honors College at VCU.

Cohen, who is from Alexandria and attended T.C. Williams High School, will use the Boren Scholarship to improve his reading, writing and speaking skills in Mandarin Chinese. Moore, who is from Richmond and attended Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School for Government and International Studies, will focus her studies on Chinese literature and popular media and its censorship.

“Benjamin and Elisabeth have earned an exciting opportunity to spend a year immersed in the Chinese language and culture,” said Jeff Wing, national scholarship coordinator in the Honors College at VCU. “We are excited for each of them and pleased that VCU now has nine Boren Scholars in the past four years.”

The NSEP David L. Boren Scholarships are funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and provide up to $20,000 of support for each student. The scholarships are intended to provide support to U.S. undergraduates who will pursue the study of languages and cultures critical to U.S. national security.

This year’s honorees applied for the NSEP Boren Scholarship through the VCU Honors College’s National Scholarship Office, which assists VCU students and alumni who wish to compete for prestigious national and international scholarships.