WKU student from Glasgow awarded national language scholarship
Vandermolen is a pre-med student majoring in chemistry and Chinese.
GLASGOW, Ky. — A Glasgow student at Western Kentucky University is among seven students awarded prestigious David L. Boren Scholarships to study in Taiwan during the 2026-27 academic year.
Zachary Vandermolen, the son of Yertty and Ronald Vandermolen of Glasgow, received the $25,000 scholarship through WKU’s Chinese Flagship Program.
Vandermolen is a pre-med student majoring in chemistry and Chinese.
The scholarship will fund Vandermolen’s Capstone Year in Taiwan, the final stage of WKU’s intensive Chinese Flagship Program. During the experience, students spend one semester enrolled at a host university in Taiwan before completing a professional internship connected to their academic and career goals.
After completing the program, Vandermolen plans to attend the University of Kentucky College of Medicine.
The David L. Boren Scholarships are part of the National Security Education Program, a federal initiative aimed at expanding the number of Americans with advanced foreign language and international skills. In exchange for funding, recipients agree to work for at least one year in the federal government following graduation.
WKU officials said the Chinese Flagship Program is designed to help students achieve professional-level fluency in Mandarin Chinese, even if they begin college with no prior experience in the language. The program combines language instruction with study abroad opportunities and internships throughout a student’s undergraduate career.
Six other WKU students also received Boren Scholarships this year, including students from Tennessee, Kentucky and Russia-born Mount Vernon resident Elizabeth Mikeworth.
As a group, the recipients credited faculty and staff in WKU’s Chinese Flagship Program and Office of Scholar Development for helping guide them through the competitive application process.
Since 1994, more than 7,400 students nationwide have received Boren Awards, which support study in regions considered critical to U.S. national security interests.
The other recipients were Samantha Gerdes of Hendersonville, Tenn.; Emma Harris; Elizabeth Mikeworth of Mount Vernon; Seren Semrau of Crestwood; and Rowen Wilkinson of Knoxville, Tenn.
