A Program of the 
Alumni Development Fund
The CLS Alumni Development Fund (ADF) periodically offers small grants to alumni
of the CLS Program through a competitive application process. The ADF has provided opportunities for alumni to continue their language
learning, pursue career development goals, and participate in community
outreach related to CLS languages and their corresponding world
regions. Particular emphasis is placed on projects with an impact beyond
the individual applicant, reaching students, CLS alumni, or others in
their community.
The ADF is not currently open for applications.
Examples of previous Alumni Development Fund projects can be found below.
Madeline de Figueiredo (Arabic 2016) and Nicholas Posegay (Arabic 2016), 2016 ADF recipients, launched the University of Chicago’s first Arabic-language publication, a literary magazine titled “UChicago Majalla.” The first issue of the magazine was printed in December 2016 as an educational tool and unifying force among Arabic learners at the university. Students from all years and degree program…
Madeline de Figueiredo
Arabic 2016
Arabic 2016
Nicholas Posegay
Arabic 2016
Arabic 2016
Calynn Dowler (Bangla 2016), Sarah Dodamead (Bangla 2016), Paige Giarmona (Bangla 2016), Deya Maldas (Bangla 2013, 2016), Marshall McCollum (Bangla 2014), and Ian Reed (Bangla 2014), 2016 ADF recipients, collaborated to create a project focused on youth education, environmental conservation, and the promotion of the Bengali language. The group’s India-based team (Dowler, McCollum, and Reed) took …
Calynn Dowler
Bangla 2016
Bangla 2016
Sarah Dodamead
Bangla 2016
Bangla 2016
Paige Giarmona
Bangla 2016
Bangla 2016
Deya Maldas
Bangla 2013
Bangla 2016
Bangla 2013
Bangla 2016
Marshall McCollum
Bangla 2014
Bangla 2014
Ian Reed
Bangla 2014
Bangla 2014
Kiana Chan (Chinese 2015) collaborated with the Asian Pacific Health Corps at UCLA, which plans and hosts free health fairs for disadvantaged Asian Pacific Islander (API) communities. Her aim was to make health information more accessible to patients in order to empower them to maintain healthy lifestyles. With ADF funds, Kiana created 380 bilingual Mandarin/English health brochures, which were d…
Kiana Chan
Chinese 2015
Chinese 2015
Melissa Brzycki (Chinese 2013) and Stephanie Montgomery (Chinese 2013), 2016 ADF recipients, produced and recorded a podcast (“East Asia for All”) with their grant. So far they have three completed episodes available on iTunes with plans to record more on a monthly basis. They hoped to create nuanced, in-depth discussions about East Asian popular culture and media that are both entertaining and i…
Melissa Brzycki
Chinese 2013
Chinese 2013
Leona Amosah (Russian 2016), a 2016 ADF recipient, hosted an event to increase interest in the Russian department at UNC – Chapel Hill and in Russian studies generally. Leona and a fellow Russian student prepared food for the event and gave presentations on their personal experiences studying and traveling in Russia and invited other students to speak about their motivations to study Russian. Leo…
Leona Amosah
Russian 2016
Russian 2016