Second-year College student Dominick Giovanniello is set to study Arabic in Amman, Jordan next year after winning a Boren Scholarship.
The Boren Scholarship is named after former U.S. Senator David Boren, who worked in Congress to create initiatives that encouraged college students to study important foreign languages that are not often taught, such as Arabic, Mandarin Chinese and Hindi.
Giovanniello will be studying in Jordan with CET Academic Programs in a program designed to immerse him in the language and culture of the region. Giovanniello said he originally started learning Arabic out of personal interest and developed a passion for it.
“I took Arabic purely out of interest and initially didn’t have any big plans for it,” Giovanniello said in an email statement. “I fell in love with the language and became really fascinated [with] the Middle East.”
Giovanniello found out about the scholarship online and said he applied because it seemed like an interesting experience. He said his professors and resources at the University were very supportive of him throughout the process of applying.
“The whole Arabic department, as well as the International Studies Office, were really encouraging and helpful,” Giovanniello said.
One of the professors who supported Giovanniello was Mohammed Sawaie, a professor in the Department of Middle Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures who has taught Giovanniello in two classes. Sawaie said Giovanniello applied because he wanted to study in Jordan in particular.
“He wanted to go to further his study of Arabic,” Sawaie said. “He got a year-long scholarship to study Arabic from institutes in Jordan, institutes that are known for the teaching of Arabic to foreigners.”
Sawaie said Giovanniello is very qualified to receive this scholarship because of his hard work ethic and dedication to the language.
“[Giovanniello] is a very enterprising guy,” Sawaie said. “At this level of his learning of the language, he’s very proficient.”
Sawaie said his department is excited for Giovanniello.
“He is ecstatic, he is very excited … [and] we are for him,” Sawaie said. “He is looking forward to being in a region, in Amman, in the place where the language is spoken natively. He will be immersing himself in the culture and will experience it first hand.”
Giovanniello said he is most excited about working on the language and learning about the customs and culture of the Middle East when he is studying abroad.
“I hope to improve my Arabic and be able to speak and read more proficiently,” Giovanniello said. “I also want to experience the Middle East and learn more about the culture.”
Sawaie is in full support of Giovanniello and encourages students to learn foreign languages and study abroad.
“It’s crazy to have a whole year of your academic study to be devoted to language study,” Sawaie said. “I think it’s very profitable, at all levels, [to study] language and culture.”
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