Whiz Kid: Bloomfield Hills Teen Learns Arabic in Jordan This Summer

Each week, Bloomfield Patch features students doing amazing things in their schools and in their communities. This week's Whiz Kid is studying in the Middle East on a federal government scholarship.

Sarah Blume

• Age: 16
• School: Groves High (Beverly Hills)
• Achievement: This ambitious teen from Bloomfield Hills received a Security Language Initiative for Youth Scholarship from the U.S. State Department for immersion training in languages not typically taught in high school. She'll study Arabic in Amman, Jordan, before returning home for senior year as a forensic team co-captain. The elite scholarships let 650 teens study one of seven languages "through formal and informal education and daily interaction with host country families and communities," as the government describes it. Trip preparations include studying the Arabic alphabet, counting and basic phrases, Blume says.
• Key to Awesomeness: Participation during the past two summers at Global Youth Village, a "peace-building program" in Virginia for 25 Iraqi teens and 25 young Americans, introduced her to introductory Arabic lessons and Middle Eastern culture. A campmate later went to Egypt on the State Department scholarship and recommended that opportunity. "I looked into it, applied and got in," says Blume, interviewed by email. "I've never been to the Middle East. What's exciting about going is the opportunity be immersed in the society and break down stereotypes people have of the Middle Eastern culture because I'll be seeing it first-hand."
  She earned recognition as a sophomore for language skills – in English – at a state Forensics Retreat and Tournament, reaching the elimination round and helping Groves finish second. "I don't know what college I want to go to yet, but I'm interested in incorporating a global aspect into whatever I plan to study," adds Blume.

Do you know our next Whiz Kid?

Bloomfield Patch welcomes suggestions for students, youth groups and even sports teams who wow us with their accomplishments. We want to hear about these amazing children and teens and select one each week as Whiz Kid. Submit your nomination in our comment box below or email the information to editor Art.Aisner@patch.com. Please include all these details:

• Nominator's name
• Whiz Kid's name and age
• Whiz Kid's school
• Whiz Kid's accomplishment
• What makes him or her successful