U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarships for Intensive Summer Institutes

Critical Language Scholarships for Intensive Summer Institutes is a program of the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is administered by the Council of American Overseas Research Centers and the American Councils for International Education. The Critical Language Scholarships Program was launched in 2006. In its inaugural year, the CLS Program offered intensive overseas study in the critical need foreign languages of Arabic, Bangla/Bengali, Hindi, Punjabi, Turkish and Urdu. In 2012, 631 scholarships were awarded for thirteen languages, including Arabic, Azerbaijani, Bangla/Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Punjabi, Russian, Turkish, and Urdu.

 U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs

Critical Language Scholarships for Intensive Summer Institutes recipients are among the more than 30,000 academic and professional exchange program participants that are overseen annually by the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Other programs the Bureau manages include the Fulbright Program and the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program.

 Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC)

Founded in 1981, the Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC) is a private not-for-profit federation of independent overseas research centers that promote advanced research, particularly in the humanities and social sciences, with focus on the conservation and recording of cultural heritage and the understanding and interpretation of modern societies. American overseas research centers promote international scholarly exchange, primarily through sponsorship of fellowship programs, foreign language study, and collaborative research projects. They facilitate access to research resources, provide a forum for contact and exchange, offer library and technical support and accommodation, and disseminate information to the scholarly and general public through conferences, seminars, exhibitions, and publications. CAORC fosters research projects across national boundaries, encourages collaborative research and programmatic and administrative coherence among member centers, and works to expand their resource base and service capacity.

CAORC member centers maintain a permanent presence in the host countries where they operate-in Europe, Latin America, the Near and Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, and West Africa. The centers are the primary vehicle through which American scholars carry out research vital to our understanding of and intersection with other cultures. Some centers have existed for over a century while others were founded in the decades following World War II in response to American scholarly needs and host country invitations. Nearly four hundred American universities, colleges, and museums hold multiple memberships in the centers which serve their institutional members, individual fellows and members, as well as affiliated scholars through a broad range of research- and teaching-support services. Funding is awarded from sources including the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Smithsonian Institution, as well as from private foundations and individuals.

 American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS

American Councils for International Education advances scholarly research and cross-border learning through the design and implementation of educational programs that are well grounded in key world languages, cultures and regions. We contribute to the creation of new knowledge, broader professional perspectives, and personal and intellectual growth through international training, academic exchange, collaboration in educational development, and public diplomacy. With a presence in the U.S., Russia and Eurasia for nearly four decades, in addition to representation in over thirty countries across Asia, the Middle East and Southeastern Europe, American Councils strives to expand dialog among students, scholars, educators and professionals for the advancement of learning and mutual respect in the diverse communities and societies in which we work.

Founded in 1974 as an association for area and language professionals, American Councils has focused its expertise on academic exchange, professional training, distance learning, curriculum and test development, and research. In its four decades, American Councils has developed into one of the premier American education and international training organizations, offering quality-assured, intensive overseas language study and research programs for U.S. undergraduates, graduate students, teachers and scholars.