ODU Student Earns National Scholarship to study in Jordan

May 09, 2014

Jo-Ann Estes Stephanie Flores

Old Dominion University student Jo-Ann Estes will spend a year in Jordan as a recipient of a 2014 Boren Award for International Study while student Stephanie Flores was selected as one of the Washington D.C.-based scholarship program's alternates.

Boren scholarships are highly competitive awards that give U.S.-based undergraduate and graduate students a chance to study a variety of uncommon languages in locations around the world that are generally underrepresented by study abroad programs.

Students can earn up $20,000 to study abroad through the programs offered in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin American and the Middle East through the program.

Out of 868 applicants from across the United States, 165 students were selected for Boren awards with 80 more serving as alternates.

Estes was among the group of selectees earning a one-year scholarship to study in Jordan, while Stephanie Flores earned an alternate spot for one year in Brazil.

Estes, of Norfolk, is a sophomore International Studies major minoring in Middle Eastern Studies. She was also selected for a Critical Languages Scholarship for this summer. The scholarship will provide her an all-expenses-paid trip to the Middle Eastern country of Jordan to learn Arabic.

"The linguistic and cultural immersion will better enable me to pursue a career in foreign diplomacy or humanitarian aid," she said.

Flores is a junior International Business major from Guayaquil, Ecuador. With her primary area of concentration being Latin American studies, she would like to use this scholarship opportunity to tackle global issues in relation to U.S. National Security if selected.

"The first-hand experience of studying in Brazil juxtaposed with the education that I'm getting from ODU, a distinguished Institution which gives the students the resources that they need to succeed, are unparalleled opportunities for me," she said.

For more information about the Boren Awards please visit the Boren Awards for International Study website or contact the ODU Office of International Programs.