8 students recruited for 2016 YES Program’s

I-Earn – a non-for-profit Liberian organization has completed the recruitment of students for next year’s Kennedy Lugar Youth and Study program in the United States.

Eight young Liberian students are due to leave the country by August next year for the United States of America where they will spend one academic year. The students, all of whom are 10th graders, will participate in a one-year high school study program under the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study.

The program was established by the United States Congress in October 2002 in response to the events of September 11 bomb attack on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington in 2001.

It is meant to allow students from different countries, especially with Muslim background, to visit America to experience the American culture. The eight Liberian students are to live with host families across the United States as they move in separate directions, attend high schools and engage in activities to learn about the American society, culture and values.

The program is funded by the US State Department to provide scholarships for high school students from countries with significant Muslim population. The selection process involved four basic steps – pre-application, a SLEPT test and interview process. SLEPT stands for Secondary Level English Proficiency Test.

Since 2010 I-EARN Liberia has recruited students between the ages of 15-17 who are mainly 10th graders and have a minimum of ‘B’ average to take part in the program. This year’s students were all recruited from schools in Montserrado County.

By Ethel A. Tweh-Edited by George Barpeen