NSLI-Y is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It is part of a U.S. government initiative that prepares American citizens to be leaders in a global world. Now more than ever, it is important that Americans have the necessary linguistic skills and cultural knowledge to promote international dialogues, support American engagement abroad, and attain better understanding of global cultures and issues.

NSLI-Y encourages a lifetime of language study and cultural understanding by providing approximately 600 fully funded merit-based scholarships to American high school students.