Scholarship Recipient JoEllen Marsh, Warren County Native, Visits Rep. Dahlkemper in Washington

Russell, Pa. native and Mercyhurst student won National Security Education Program scholarship to study Arabic in Jordan

Washington—JoEllen Marsh, a student at Mercyhurst College and a native of Russell, Pa. in Warren County, visited Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper in her office in Washington this week. Marsh was awarded the Boren Scholarship from the National Security Education Program to study Arabic in Amann, Jordan for one year. The Mercyhurst junior was in town for a formal award ceremony for the scholarship recipients and paid a visit to her congresswoman, Rep. Dahlkemper.

 "I am so impressed with JoEllen. She is a bright, articulate young woman and is no doubt deserving of this prestigious award," Rep. Dahlkemper said. "We need more Arabic speakers for our national security efforts. Students like JoEllen who are taking the initiative to learn critical languages are our next generation of national security experts. I look forward to hearing about JoEllen's experiences in Jordan when she returns."

Marsh will spend the 2010-2011 academic year studying in Amann, Jordan, where she will live with a local family and learn Arabic. To apply for the $20,000 scholarship, Marsh completed two statements of purpose describing her objectives for studying abroad.

"I'd like to work in the intelligence field after college," Marsh told Dahlkemper. "This will be my first trip abroad and I'm very excited. I'm looking forward to learning Arabic and experiencing Jordanian culture. I also plan to travel in the region, to Syria and elsewhere." At Mercyhurst, Marsh is the editor of "The Merciad" student newspaper, co-president of the Mercyhurst chapter of Amnesty International and has performed with the college's concert choir. This summer, she will work at the Black Family Foundation in Erie.

Marsh's mother, Lucinda Ann Marsh, is a chiropractor in Warren County.

[Ed. Note: In December 2002, JoEllen's mother, Lucinda Ann Marsh, became the first out lesbian and the first out GLBT parent in the region in a 3 part series that WSEE's Randy McIlwain did entitled "Erie's Gay 90's." Read the original article here. JoEllen and her sister, with their mother were also in the first ever Family Portrait taken on the steps of the Erie County Courthouse on October 28, 1995. You can see that photo and read more here. ]

About the Boren Scholarship

Boren Scholarships provide American undergraduate students with the resources and encouragement they need to acquire skills and experiences in areas of the world critical to the future security of our nation, in exchange for their commitment to seek work in the federal government. The maximum scholarship amount is $10,000 for one semester and $20,000 for a full academic year.

Boren Scholarships are awarded with preference for countries, languages, and fields of study critical to U.S. national security. Preference is also given to students who will study abroad for longer periods of time, and who are highly motivated by the opportunity to work in the federal government.