Karmel Reeves Joins African Flagship Language Initiative to Mozambique
GRAMBLING, La – May 22, 2020 – Grambling State University’s Title III Program Coordinator and graduate student has been awarded the exclusive 2020 National Security Education Program (NSEP) David L. Boren Fellowship in the African Flagship Languages Initiative (AFLI). Reeves will work for the US Government as a foreign liaison studying language and culture in Mozambique.
“We exist to provide opportunities for young adults to grow into their dreams and it’s always rewarding to see our alumni go on to do great things,” said Grambling State President Rick Gallot. “We are proud of Ms. Reeves work with the federal government and especially of this landmark accomplishment.”
This prestigious Federal opportunity invites highly skilled students to move to a designated location overseas as well as intensively study languages deemed critical to the U.S. National Security. Reeves is the first Grambling State graduate student to receive this esteemed opportunity.
“My interest in public service was cultivated by the gross inequity and cyclical poverty in my hometown Detroit, Michigan,” Ms. Reeves said. “Growing up seeing this level of environmental inequity in southeast Michigan motivated me at a young age to become part of the change I wanted to see. It was my love for my community and my pride in my hometown that ignited my passion to pursue this career path,” she said.
About Karmel Reeves
As a teen, Reeves served an international nonprofit organization called Buildon, which runs youth service afterschool programs in United States high schools while building schools in developing countries. She also participated in Detroit’s urban farming initiative whose goal is to turn vacant lots into urban developments for farming. This urban agricultural movement in the city works to promote education, sustainability, and a community effort to empower urban neighborhoods while providing free produce to neighborhood residents, churches, and food pantries.
Her international service began in 2013, when as a volunteer in Manchester Parish, Jamaica her work aided orphanages, homes for the mentally disabled, small farmers, and research facilities. In 2017, Reeves was selected to participate in the Israel Allies Cultural Exchange program, taking her to the border of Syria in the Golan Heights, a Kibbutz community on the border of Gaza, and several Arab-Palestinian villages to learn more about peace conflict initiatives in the Middle East between Israelis and Palestinians.
In 2017, Reeves accepted a two consecutive internship appointment with the U.S. Department of Agriculture working with both the GIPSA and the AMS Civil Rights Departments. She was a founding member of the Inaugural Diversity Month Celebration Committee at the USDA.
Reeves, 2019-2020 Graduate Student Government President, will put her graduate studies at Grambling State on hold to complete the Fellowship. After her training, she will be moving to Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, to work with the U.S. Embassy. She plans to return to complete her Masters in Public Administration, before relocating to Washington D.C. to fulfill her public service requirement at a U.S. agency aiding in National Security efforts.