By Emily Innes
April 3, 2025
Five Washington and Lee University students have received a Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) for the summer of 2025. The CLS Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and is a fully-funded summer overseas language and cultural immersion program for American college students.
This year’s W&L recipients included:
Berwick and Darby accepted the CLS and will embark on their studies this summer.
“We are so proud of all our Critical Language Scholarship applicants, and we are especially excited for these recipients to pursue further language study abroad,” said Matthew Loar, director of fellowships and student research. “Our students’ continued success with programs like CLS speaks to their commitment to the W&L mission and to their understanding that ‘engaged citizenship in a global and diverse society’ is enriched by language and cultural immersion abroad.”
Nava Berwick ’27
This is Berwick’s second time receiving a CLS to study Indonesian, and she is grateful for the opportunity to further build upon the skills she learned studying the Indonesian language, culture and customs in Malang, Indonesia, during the summer of 2024. Berwick, who currently works for the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta as a virtual research intern focused on Indonesian affairs, aspires to work as a foreign service officer for the U.S. Department of State, and receiving the CLS brings her one step closer to her dream career.
The CLS is also meaningful because Berwick has grown up surrounded by Indonesian culture and has been an Indonesian-style classical dancer since she was 4 years old, performing at the U.S.-Indonesia Society, the Indonesian Embassy, and the Smithsonian and for the Asian-American Chamber of Commerce. At W&L, she performed traditional Javanese dance during Parents and Family Weekend in 2023 and 2024 as part of the Multicultural Fashion and Dance Show.
“Until the Critical Language Scholarship, I was unable to fully communicate with Indonesians, as it is not my first or second language,” said the Falls Church, Virginia native. “Last summer’s CLS experience gave me the language skills to deepen my relationship with Indonesian dance and the community and extended my engagement with Indonesia, giving me closer bonds, personally and professionally.”
At W&L, Berwick is a Japanese major and is minoring in Middle Eastern and South Asia studies. She is the research and editorial assistant in the DeLaney Center for Wendy Castenell, assistant professor of art history, and works as W&L’s sole Japanese language tutor as part of the Harte Center Peer Tutoring program. She also teaches Japanese at local elementary schools through the Languages for Rockbridge program and hopes to start teaching Indonesian, too, following her CLS stint this summer.
The support Berwick has found in W&L’s faculty and staff shaped her academic career and empowered her to pursue opportunities like the CLS. She credits Timothy Lubin, the Jessie Ball duPont Professor of Religion, for helping her realize her academic passion for South and Southeast Asia. Berwick is also grateful to Donald Gaylord, research archaeologist and instructor of anthropology, for deepening her appreciation for history during her Advanced Immersion and Mentoring experience; to Alison Bell, professor of anthropology, for inspiring her enjoyment of writing; to Lena Hill, University Provost, for opening her eyes to African American literature; to Michael Hill, director of the DeLaney Center and program head of Africana studies, for expanding her horizons on the Freedom Ride Leading Edge trip; to Janet Ikeda, associate professor of Japanese, for her warm mentorship and support; and to Loar for helping her navigate the fellowship application process.
Janae Darby ’25
Darby will study Arabic in Jordan, Oman or Morocco, and sees the CLS as an important step on her path to pursue a Ph.D. in labor economics. An economics major with minors in Middle East and South Asia studies and poverty and human capability studies, Darby is particularly interested in researching the labor market structure of the Arabian Gulf and believes her time in the Middle East this summer will help her better understand the economic and labor dynamics of the region.
“Being awarded the Critical Language Scholarship will help me understand Arabic dialects and communicate better with local residents,” said the Stafford, Virginia, native. Darby also received a CLS in 2022 but, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the military conflict in Ukraine, many CLS institutes were offered as virtual programs, which led to less exposure to daily usage of dialect.
Darby is grateful for the support of Anthony Edwards, associate professor of Arabic, and Shikha Silwal, associate professor of economics, who have been instrumental in her growing interest in the Middle East and South Asia regions through their class instruction and mentorship.
On campus, Darby is involved in the Student Environmental Action League, Washington and Lee Student Consulting and the Shepherd Program. She is also a former student appointee for the Community Engagement Service-Learning Board.
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