Army Selects 8 Officers for Olmsted Scholarships

By Humans Resources Command Public Affairs OfficeApril 17, 2008

Army Selects 8 Officers for Olmsted Scholarships
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Army Selects 8 Officers for Olmsted Scholarships
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WASHINGTON (Army News Service, April 17, 2008) -- Eight Army officers have been selected for 2009 Olmsted Scholarship to study overseas.

Since 1960, the Olmsted Foundation has sponsored the scholars program to provide broadening opportunities for military officers to live and study at a foreign university.

Assignments for the selected officers next year will include Asia, the Near East, Europe, Africa, and South America.

The officers selected are:

Capt. Christina B. Bembenek, Company A, 319th Military Intelligence Battalion, Ft. Bragg, NC.

Capt. Wilbur W. Hsu, Alpha Battery, 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, HI.

Capt. Joshua D. Kaser, 191st Infantry Brigade, (Training Support Bde), Division West, 1st Army, Ft. Lewis, WA.

Capt. Mark D. Lehenbauer, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Ft. Campbell, KY.

Capt. Eric A. Parthemore, Headquarters & Support Company, 864th Engineer Combat Battalion (Heavy) FOB Sharana, Afghanistan.

Capt. Angela E. Reber, 201st Military Intelligence Battalion, 470th Military Intelligence Brigade, INSCOM, Baghdad, Iraq.

Capt. Joshua A. Taylor, Bravo Troop, 1-73rd Cavalry Regiment (Airborne), 82nd Airborne Division, Ft. Bragg, NC.

Capt. Daniel R. Young, Headquarters Company, Operations Group, Joint Multinational Readiness Center, Hohenfels, Germany.

"It is an exceptional, diverse group of young Army officers," said retired Rear Adm. Larry Marsh, president and CEO of the Olmsted Foundation. "There are more Army selectees this year than ever before, and we are very pleased with the selection."

Major David P. Elsen, Army Olmsted Scholar class of 2006, praised the program as an unbelievable experience.

"I'm going to school full-time, learning another language in another culture, not only getting paid for it, but getting paid to travel on top of it! (My family and I) feel truly blessed, and our memories and experiences from our time in China will last for a lifetime," Elsen said.

The U. S. Army Human Resources Command convenes an Olmsted Scholarship Selection Board annually to select finalists for submission to the Olmsted Scholarship Foundation Board of Directors. The board selects the scholarship recipients and announces their area of study in the spring. The tour of study is an accompanied tour.

Officers interested in an Olmsted Scholarship for 2010 must apply to their career assignment officer at Human Resources Command not later than July 18.

The next HRC board will convene on Sept. 10 and the Olmsted Foundation Board will make the final selection of scholars in March 2009.

Specifics for applying for an Olmsted Scholarship can be found at <a href=https://www.hrc.army.mil/site/protect/Active/opfamacs/FELLOWS07.htm.target=_blank>https://www.hrc.army.mil/site/protect/Active/opfamacs/FELLOWS07.htm.</a>