The Most Enduring Impact - National Peace Corps Association

$4.95THE MAGAZINE OF THE NATIONAL PEACE CORPS ASSOCIATIONWORLDVIEW$4.99Summer 2010 worldviewmagazine.com Vol. 23, No. 2BRINGING THE EXPERIENCEHOME

A magazine of news and comment about the Peace Corps worldSummerWORLDVIEW2010 Volume 23 Number 2published by the National Peace Corps AssociationDepartmentsPRESIDENT’S LETTERReinvigorating Peace Corpsby Kevin F. F. Quigley 5AROUND THE NPCARPCV Mentoring:Help for coming home so we can bring the world homeby Erin Madsen 6Group News Highlights 8LETTERS FROM...Letter from Lesotho: Compassion in Actionby Kaye Thompson 36Letter from Gambia: Unfailing Light, Part IIby Doug Ricket 38PROFILES IN SERVICEPigs for Peaceby Jennifer Walker 40GIVING BACKThe Peace Corps Community Making a Differenceby JoAnna Haugen 41COMMUNITY NEWSEdited by JoAnna Haugen 42ADVERTISER INDEX 45www.worldviewmagazine.comDoug Ricket Kaye ThompsonMitima RemyTHE PUBLISHERThe publisher of WorldView magazine is theNational Peace Corps Association, a nationalnetwork of returned Peace Corps volunteers,former staff and friends. The NPCA is a notfor-profit501(c)(3) educational and serviceorganization which is independent of thefederal agency, the Peace Corps.ADVISORYCOUNCILTom BarclayFounder, PresidentDevelopment Practitioner’s ForumCarol BellamyPresident and CEOWorld LearningRon BoringFormer Vice PresidentVodafone JapanNicholas CrawPresident, AutomobileCompetition Committeefor the U.S.Sam FarrCongressman, U.S. Houseof Representatives, CaliforniaJohn GaramendiCongressman, U.S. Houseof Representatives, CaliforniaMark GearanPresidentHobart & William Smith CollegesTony HallFormer Member of U.S. Houseof Representatives, OhioFormer U.S. Ambassador to Foodand Agriculture OrganizationSandra JaffeeFormer Executive Vice PresidentCitigroupWilliam E. JamesChairmanThe Rockport GroupRoland JohnsonFormer Executive DirectorThe Grundy FoundationJohn Y. KefferChairmanAtlantic Fund AdministrationVirginia KirkwoodOwner/DirectorShawnee Holdings, Inc.Richard M. KriegPresident and CEOThe Horizon FoundationJonathan LashPresidentWorld Resources InstituteKenneth LehmanChairman EmeritusWinning WorkplacesC. Payne LucasSenior AdvisorAllAfrica FoundationKevin O’DonnellManaging DirectorO’Donnell &AssociatesGordon RadleyFormer PresidentLucasfilmsJohn E. RigganChairman EmeritusTCC GroupMark SchneiderSenior Vice President, SpecialAdviser on Latin AmericaInternational Crisis GroupDonna ShalalaPresident, University of MiamiPaul SlawsonFormer CEO, InterPacific Co.Joan TimoneyDirector for Advocacy andExternal RelationsWomen’s Refugee CommissionHarris WoffordFormer U.S. Senator,PennsylvaniaBOARD OFdiRectoRSJan GuifarroChairMike PeterVice ChairSharon StashSecretaryKevin F. F. QuigleyPresident, ex officioMichael K. BaldwinHarris Bostic IIJill M. FoxPriscilla GoldfarbJames GoreRobert GraulichJanet GreigJoseph HindmanDarryl N. JohnsonHope JohnsonDavid MagnaniBruce McNamerPaul MurphyJensy Patterson RichardsKate SchachterGary SchulzeSusan SolomonPatricia A. WandDonald J. DakinCounselStaffKevin F. F. QuigleyPresidentAnne BakerVice PresidentEmily BelloCoordinator of MemberServices & OperationsErica BurmanCommunications DirectorErin MadsenGlobal EducationProgram AssistantMolly MattessichManager of Online InitiativesJonathan PearsonAdvocacy CoordinatorKhalisa JacobsDirector of DevelopmentLissan AnfuneAfrica Rural ConnectProject AssistantConsultantsLollie CommodoreFinanceJoAnna HaugenAlumni News EditorInternsAmrita JollyJillian KlarmanRhiannon LandesbergSarah LyonSarah McIlvriedMicaela McNultyEmily PrimackMarisa Shannon Summer 2010

From the PresidentTHE THIRD GOAL IS OUR FIRST GOALNow is the Time to Finally Bring the World Back Homeby Kevin F. F. QuigleyPresident JohnF. Kennedyarticulated theenduring vision for what isknown as the Peace Corps’Third Goal* when hesuggested that, “The logicof the Peace Corps is thatsomeday we are going tobring it home to America.”So far, we have not reallydone that. The agency’sThird Goal effort has neverreflected this powerful initialvision or its importance tothe Peace Corps’ long-termviability. During its first fivedecades, the overwhelmingfocus of the Peace Corps hasbeen volunteer recruitment,training, placement, andvolunteer support. TheThird Goal has never beenfully embraced as centralto the Peace Corps, andconsequently the Third Goalhas received scant attention and resources.At his July 2009 confirmation hearing,Director Williams spoke compellinglyabout creating a robust Third Goalprogram. His attention to this presents aunique opportunity for the Peace Corpscommunity to bring the world home inways that raise the Peace Corps’ profile,assist with recruitment efforts, andfinally fully realize one of the agency’sthree foundational goals.Now, on the eve of the goldenanniversary of the Peace Corps, we thinkthat the time is especially ripe to createa comprehensive and innovative set ofactivities that finally bring the worldhome. Here are a few initial steps:First, we should begin not calling itthe Third Goal. To many, this suggeststhat these efforts are not of primaryor secondary priority, but tertiary. Inaddition, the term “Third Goal” hasbeen largely meaningless beyond theimmediate Peace Corps community.Second, the requirement to bring theworld back home needs to be clearlyand consistently expressed throughoutevery stage of the recruitment, training,volunteer, and after-service processes.This should also include a voluntarynine-month period when returningvolunteers are expected to complete a setof these activities, report back on them,and receive a modest financial incentivefor doing so.Third, new activities including asmall grants program should be created.New audiences should be reached. Thecurrent activities primarily connectserving and Returned Volunteers withclassrooms and involve group projectsin communities at home or abroad.These current programs are anecessary first step, but thereare many more steps requiredto create a comprehensiveand innovative programbuilding on new technologies,engaging new audiences andadvancing the Peace Corps’mission.All of these efforts need toreceive much greater publicattention. Each Volunteershould be expected toregularly communicateabout her/his experiencesduring and after service usingtraditional and new media.Without a much morerobust effort to Bring theWorld Back Home, I fearthat the recent increases infunding that the Peace Corpshas received and is projectedto continue to receive willnot be forthcoming—especially in today’s verychallenging fiscal environment.I welcome your comments andsuggestions regarding how we can realizethis yet unfulfilled vision to bring ourPeace Corps experience back to Americain the compelling way that PresidentKennedy expressed.With thanks and best wishes,Kevin F. F. Quigley* “to help promote … a betterunderstanding of other peoples onthe part of the American people.”Kevin F. F. Quigley is President ofthe National Peace Corps Association.He served in Thailand, 1976 to 1979.Please send your comments topresident@peacecorpconnect.org.WorldView

Around the NPCARPCV MentoringHelp for coming home so we can bring the world homeby Erin MadsenReturning home from PeaceCorps service is rarely aneasy process. The thoughtof “What now?” is often a dauntingone, and is frequently exacerbatedby reverse culture shock that can bemore difficult to navigate than theculture shock experienced at thestart of one’s service. What was oncefamiliar now seems foreign, making itall the more challenging for a newlyreturnedVolunteer to re-establishhim or herself.This situation is one with whichthat nearly every Returned PeaceWhat IsYourNext Step?Continue your journey withLoma Linda UniversitySchool of Public HealthMaster’s International &Fellows-USA ProgramHear stories fromour Fellows at:www.llu.edu/public-health/peacecorpsCorps Volunteer (RPCV) can identify.However, today’s Volunteers arereturning to one of the harshesteconomical environments in decades,further complicating their transition.When considering these issues inrelation to the Bringing the WorldHome goal, a significant questionemerges: How can recently returnedVolunteers bring the world homewhen they’re having enough troublegetting though the process of simplycoming home?Back in 2007, NPCA sought todevelop a solution to address thisquestion. Through a cooperativeagreement with Peace Corps, theylaunched the RPCV MentoringProgram in three US pilot cities:Chicago, Miami, and Portland.NPCA’s member groups in thoseareas matched mentors and menteesand also provided orientations, gettogethersand opportunities for ThirdGoal activities for the mentoring pairs.Today, the program has expandedto 35 participating NPCA membergroups (which now includes bothgeographic and country of servicegroups), and nearly 1,000 mentorsand mentees have participated.Although there are instances wherethere are no mentors located near amentee and vice-versa, participantsare utilizing both traditional (phone,email) and new communicationmedia such as Skype to connect.Mentee Anne Varnell (Jamaica 03-06) maintains that “I have only goodthings to say because I was veryisolated and just having someonereach out to me even though theywere not living in my area, helpedme through some very hard times.Though your loved ones want tohelp, having the ability to reach outto a RPCV mentor provides a safeenvironment to ask for guidanceor to voice frustration, fear, andconfusion.”While there have been manysuccesses in the four years that theRPCV mentoring program hasbeen active, there is always roomfor improvement. Recognizingthis, NPCA will soon launch a newmentoring site that will allow thematching process to become botheasier and more user-driven. Menteeswho register will be able to searchfor a mentor themselves, and seekassistance from both NPCA and theparticipating member groups shouldthey need help finding a match.The site will also feature a socialnetworkingspace where mentors andmentees can share ideas and resourceson a wide range of topics related tothe mentoring process, includingcareers, education, networking, andtransitional guidance.When thinking about bringing theworld home, we must also considerthe process of coming home itself.The RPCV Mentoring Programprovides both support for Volunteerswho are grappling with this process,as well as guidance on how to beginto achieve the Bringing the WorldHome goal—so that its messageof understanding continues to bemanifested in the future.If you are interested in becomingeither a mentor or a mentee or wantmore information about the RPCVMentoring Program, please visit www.rpcvmentoring.org.Erin Madsen is the Global EducationProgram Assistant at the National PeaceCorps Association. Summer 2010

WorldView

Around the NPCAGROUP NEWS HIGHLIGHTSA look at what NPCA member groups are up toby Erica BurmanLearning about the Peace Corps.RPCVs of ColoradoThe RPCVs of Colorado and theDallas Peace Corps recruiting officerecently hosted an Invitee/Nomineebrunch. Over 50 RPCVs were onhand to answer questions and quellthe fears of the 100 Invitees/Nomineesand their family members who alsoattended. Also participating werea group of local RPCV Rotarianswho are working diligently tocreate a formal Memorandum ofUnderstanding between RotaryInternational and Peace Corps. Theypresented the resources available toserving Volunteers (connecting toan existing Rotary project in theircommunities, connecting to a localRotary club before departing forfinancial and technical support whilein country) and to RPCVs (connectingto Rotary projects that may be takingplace in their country of service).Group president Arianne Burgerhopes RPCV groups around the worldcan replicate this pilot partnership.“Rotary and Peace Corps are a naturalfit for one another!”www.rpcvcolorado.org/Friends of the DominicanRepublicThe Friends of the DominicanRepublic (FDR) are planningan in-country celebration of 50years of continuous service in theDominican Republic in 2012. Theproposed dates are February 9-12,2012. Since 1997, reunions havebeen celebrated every five years, withthe lead rotating between FDR andthe Fondo Quisqueya Foundation, asmall non-profit founded by RPCVsthat provides low income Dominicansin the Dominican Republic withscholarships and grants for educationaland training purposes.www.fotdr.org/Friends of FijiOver 120 friends attended the May15Friends of Fiji Gala Fundraiser, abiennial celebration of the warmReturned Fiji Volunteers watch dinner cooking in the lovo.relationship between the Peace Corpsand the island nation of Fiji. Pork,chicken, fish, palusami, dalo and otherdelicacies were cooked beforehandin a lovo (earth oven) at an areapark, then safely transported to thefundraiser site, the National RuralElectric Cooperative Association inArlington, Va. The festive eveningfeatured dancing, bounteous Fijianand Indian cuisine, a silent auctionof items by indigenous artisans, anda raffle for roundtrip airfare/holidayin Fiji. Winston Thompson, theFiji Ambassador to the U.S. madeintroductory remarks and formerAmbassador Jesoni Vitusagavulu gavethe Fijian blessing.http://fofiji.orgFor a listing of NPCA member groups,visit www.peacecorpsconnect.org/member-groups.Jim Reierson Summer 2010

Where will yourmaster’s degreetake you?Where do you want to be two years from today?Halfway to a Ph.D., or halfway around the world?Making it to the weekend or making a difference?Located on California’s spectacular Central Coast,the Monterey Institute’s intimate campus and 11degree programs attract students from more than50 countries every year.Choose the degree that will get you to your destination.PracticalProfessionalTrainingGlobal AlumniNetworkInternationalStudent BodyImmersiveEducationalExperiencesComprehensiveAcademic &Career AdvisingBe the Solution • www.miis.eduPeace Corps Responseprovides returned PeaceCorps Volunteers theopportunity to serveagain in rewarding, shorttermassignments.Bring your skills andexperience to projects inplaces where you areneeded most.For a list of open positions orto submit your resume, go topeacecorps.gov/responseTalk to a recruiter at800.424. 8580 ext. 2250Once in a lifetimecan happen more than once.090929 WorldView Ad_2.indd 1 11/5/09 11:19 AMWorldView

Bringing the Experience HomeTHE THIRD GOAL: YES, NO, AND MAYBEReconsidering “the roads not taken”by Harris WoffordRemember the Peace Corps’Third Goal and give itrenewed emphasis? Yes!Separate it out for specialCongressional appropriations? Maybe.These activities need to receive fargreater funding, whether from theprivate sector or the government,but beware of government restraintson what can be done and said usinggovernment money—the piper may tryto control the tune.Forget the Third Goal’s integralpart in the founding formula—aninseparable three-in-one propositionthat set the Peace Corps on the path togreatness? No.Here’s a little history.In the “President’s Task Force” thatSargent Shriver assembled right afterhe was given the assignment duringPresident Kennedy’s inaugural parade,we explored ways to present the PeaceCorps to the President and Congress.After day-and-night probing, proposingand arguing, we agreed on what wecalled the “three propositions”:• It can contribute to thedevelopment of critical countriesand regions.• It can promote internationalcooperation and goodwill towardthis country.• It can also contribute to theeducation of America and to moreintelligent American participationin the world.Shriver’s report to the President wasdelivered on February 28, 1961, abouta month after we started. It outlinedthe proposed Peace Corps, stated thosethree aims, and urged “its immediateestablishment” by executive order,pending authorization by Congressas a permanent agency. Many of thequestions about it, the report said,“will only be finally answered inHarris Woffordaction, by trial and error.”On March lst, the President issuedthe executive order, sent a messageto Congress urging legislation toestablish a Peace Corps in line withShriver’s recommendations, andannounced Shriver’s appointment asDirector. In his message to Congress,Kennedy concluded with a furtheraim: “Although this is an AmericanPeace Corps, the problem of worlddevelopment is not just an Americanproblem. Let us hope that othernations will mobilize the spirit andenergies and skill of their people insome form of Peace Corps—makingour own effort only one step in amajor international effort to increasethe welfare of all men and improveunderstanding among all nations.”Some members of the task forceand many others later urged Shriverand the President to choose a singlepurpose or at least settle for a mainone. Shriver firmly disagreed. He foundthe competing purposes creative, andPeace Corpsthought they should always be there intension. Promoting Peace was the overarchingpurpose, but the process ofpromoting it was necessarily complex,so the Peace Corps should learn to livewith the complexity.In terms of sequence, the work tobe done by Peace Corps Volunteers tocontribute to the development of hostcountries came first. As Volunteers didthe work and lived in the communitieswhere they served, the people inthose communities would get a betterunderstanding of the Americanpeople, thus promoting internationalcooperation and goodwill towardour country. And last, as an everlargernumber of Volunteers returnedhome to America, their stories andtheir work in American communitieswould “contribute to the educationof America and to more intelligentAmerican participation in the world.”I don’t recall anyone thinkingthat the three goals would becomebudgeting divisions with specialappropriations. But although the thirdgoal was the last, it was not at all theleast. As Shriver and the Presidentpresented it, “The Peace Corps is infact a great venture in the education ofAmericans and of people in the newlydeveloping nations.”In an approach that has beenlargely forgotten, Shriver’s reportrecommended another way the PeaceCorps would contribute directly to theeducation of America, not just throughthe work of Volunteers. “Whereverfeasible”, the report urged, the overseasprojects should be administeredthrough contracts or grants withcolleges and universities, and othereducational institutions. Suchinvolvement would help Americaneducation expand its horizon—itsresearch and its curriculum—to the10 Summer 2010

world. “The Peace Corps will helpthem with this transformation,”Shriver’s report stated. “As a higheducation venture, the Peace Corps’proper carriers are our traditionalinstitutions of higher education. Itis time for American universities tobecome truly world universities.”We also had in mind the largeresources of those universities andcolleges, including students, facultiesand alumni. We hoped that by deepand direct involvement with the PeaceCorps, those constituencies could bemobilized in support of the Corps’development and expansion.The report added two other ways forthe work of Peace Corps Volunteersto be administered overseas: throughgrants to non-government agencieswith successful experience ininternational service such as CARE,the Experiment in InternationalLiving, and the American FriendsService Committee; and throughUnited Nations agencies engagedin international education anddevelopment and able to utilize theVolunteers.Then, the Shriver report added,there would be “some projects of a sizeor complexity or novelty or urgencywhich cannot be carried out, or carriedout well, through any of the abovechannels.” These would need to beadministered by the Peace Corps staff.Given the tendency of governmentbureaucracies, we should haveguessed that direct Peace Corps staffadministration overseas, as well asat home, would become dominant.Notre Dame was the only universityto seek direct administration,which its great president FatherHesburgh accomplished through theIndiana Association of Colleges andUniversities, and for some years thatwas the main form of Peace Corpsoperation in Chile. And CARE mayhave been the only private agency todirectly administer an overseas project.As Director, Shriver did not pressthe idea of such diverse ways ofoverseas administration because hebelieved the Peace Corps, as in aparachute jump, had just one jump—one launching which had to succeed inthose first years. So he felt he had to beresponsible for the whole operation.In Barack Obama’s message to PeaceCorps Volunteers in the fall 2008WorldView, he called for “a bigger,better, bolder” 21st century PeaceCorps. In planning for such a Corps,in its 50th year, I hope the outstandingnew leaders of the Peace Corps, and thePresident and Congress, will considerthose roads not taken in the 1960s.Direct administration of many ofthe overseas projects by experienceduniversities and colleges or by nongovernmentorganizations engagedin overseas service with proven trackrecords may be the best and fastest wayto achieve Obama’s aim of doublingthe Peace Corps and moving towardKennedy’s hope for a Corps of 100,000volunteers a year.When Kennedy lifted our sights toWorldView 11

that expansive vision he had just sentforth a large Peace Corps contingentfrom the White House lawn. Heturned to several of us helping that dayand said this Peace Corps will be reallyserious when in each decade thereare a million former Volunteers withfirst-hand experience in Asia, Africaand Latin America. Then, he said, forthe first time America will have a largeconstituency for a good foreign policy.He may have said “for an intelligentforeign policy.” But his intent wasclear: it was the powerful potentialof Goal Three, writ large. By 1962,the success of the first Volunteers andanticipation of a bright future hadcaused Kennedy to joke that when heasked Shriver to undertake the PeaceCorps assignment, he thought it mightturn out to be a lemon. But Sarge hadturned it into lemonade.Now as we approach the PeaceCorps’ 50th anniversary, we canbe proud of what some 200,000Volunteers and thousands of staffhave done, overseas and back home.But none of the three goals havebeen achieved on the scale intended.Perhaps most disappointing iswhat the Third Goal might havemeant to “the education of Americaand to more intelligent Americanparticipation in the world” if ournumbers had been ten times larger.When Shriver and others of us inat the beginning left in 1966, therewere 16,000 Volunteers overseas or intraining. As the Vietnam War drainedresources to support the War Corps,the Peace Corps dwindled to about5,000 a year. After calls for expansionby Presidents Carter, Clinton andGeorge Bush, the numbers have beennotched up to about 8,000. Doublingwould only bring us back to aboutwhere we were on the 5th anniversary,when planning was underway to growto 50,000.I think I know what Sargent Shriverwould say to all of us supporting thePeace Corps, and to the President andCongress. We turned his name intoa very active verb: To “Shriverize”meant to do it faster and bolder, biggerand better. The watchwords todaywould be: To do our duty to make thebigger and better Peace Corps of ourdreams come true, we must be moreinventive—and be fast and bold.Harris Wofford (Special Assistant toPresident Kennedy 1961-62, Peace CorpsRepresentative to Africa and directorfor Ethiopia/Eritrea 1962-64; AssociatePeace Corps Director 1964-66) servedas a Democratic U.S. Senator fromPennsylvania from 1991 to 1995, CEOof the Corporation for National andCommunity Service, 1995-2001 andas president of Bryn Mawr College. Hisbooks include Of Kennedys and Kings:Making Sense of the Sixties. He is amember of the National Peace CorpsAssociation’s Advisory Council.the Peace corPs changed your life.we want to hear your story.your experience was life changing. and it could enrich your life even more—by $2,500!Submit a video—1 to 2 minutes in length—telling the worldhow your life was changed by the Peace Corps or by a currentor Returned Peace Corps Volunteer.Grand prize: $2,500 | Second prize: $1,000 | Third prize: $500Submissions must be madebetween July 1, 2010 andSeptember 30, 2010.To enter, visit PeaceCorpsConnect.org/VideoContest12 Summer 2010

Bringing the Experience HomePEACE CORPS PROSEA promoter of Peace Corps writing reflects on the role of storyby John CoyneWhen I first came back fromthe Peace Corps and wasliving and working (andwriting) in New York, I invited a youngbook editor out for dinner and she said,“I’ll go to dinner with you, John, but Iwon’t read your Peace Corps novel.”Well, we have been married 30 plusyears now and she still hasn’t read myPeace Corps novel!It has always been difficult to findanyone to read a book about the PeaceCorps.The Peace Corps is not war. We donot fly into the face of danger. If aPeace Corps Volunteer (PCV) writeris lucky, or perhaps unlucky, he or shewill get caught up in a coup in theirhost country and have somethingexciting to write home about ashappened to Tony D’Souza (Coted’Ivoire 00-02; Madagascar 02-03). Heturned the Cote d’Ivoire coup into hisfirst novel Whiteman. Or Jan Worth(Tonga 76-78) who used the murderof a PCV in Tonga as part of the plotfor her first novel, Night Blind.Most of us lived ordinary lives inthe developing world, and it is onlythe gifted writer, like George Packer(Toga 80-82) in Village in Waiting orEllen Urbani (Guatemala 91-93) inher memoir When I was Elena who cantake the ordinary Peace Corps tourand turn it into memorable prose.When I first started to track “PeaceCorps writers,” in 1987, and beganto publish the newsletter Peace CorpsWriters & Readers with Marian HaleyBeil (Ethiopia 62-64), I thought thepublishing world had had enoughPeace Corps first-person-experiencesand no RPCV would ever publishanother account. I am continuallysurprised that year after year veryimportant and well-written memoriesof Peace Corps life are published, findan audience, and are critically wellreceived. Just this last year we hadG31856When Things Get Dark: A MongolianWinter’s Tale by Matthew DavisG W ’ s G R A D UAT E S C H O O L O F E D U C AT I O NA N D H U M A N D E V E LO P M E N TContinue YourJourneyGW invites returning Peace CorpsVolunteers to earn an advanceddegree in:• Education Policy• International Education• Counseling• Elementary Education• Secondary Education• Special EducationTuition support options available.www.gwu.edu/gradinfoTHE GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION INSTITUTION.Ranked among the Top 35graduate schools ofeducation nationwide byU.S. News & World Report.Learn more atgsehd.gwu.edu/Prospective+StudentsOr call866-653-5035Now accepting applicationsfor Fall 2010WorldView 13

(Mongolia 00-02). Memories of theVolunteer experience are still findingpublishers nearly 50 years after it allbegan.Our Peace Corps footprint in thepublishing world is small. We havemanaged to place only a few of ourbooks on any literary shelf. Whileapproximately 200 RPCVs havepublished books about their tours,the majority of them have beenself-published, print-on-demandpublications that have found limitedreadership.Nevertheless, it is the 210,000former Volunteers and staff in thePeace Corps and the teaching andwriting that they do, who will educateothers about the developing world. Itis through books written by RPCVsthat the majority of Americans willlearn of the societies and cultures thatare distant and distinct from whomwe are in America. It is the hope andpurpose of all Peace Corps writersthat our prose and poetry will fulfillthe Third Goal of the Peace Corpsand educate Americans about theworlds where we have spent two yearsof our lives.Today, many Volunteers have email,Internet blogs, cell phones, Twitter,Facebook, and what have you, thatkeep them linked back home in wayswe never thought about in the dayswhen it took a week or two for a thinaerogram to reach the U.S. from anyPeace Corps country in the world.But while aerograms and emails aregreat for assuring Mom you are stillalive, they do not move the needlewhen it comes to 1) creating literature;2) enlightening Americans of newcultures and modes of being in theThird World.More than one PCV has in the 50years of our history packed an OlivettiLettera 32, or today an iPad, intocarry-on luggage in the hopes andplans of banging out a memoir overthe next two years. And some haveaccomplished that.We kept journals—at least fora while. Bob Shacochis (EasternCaribbean 75-76) kept his for nearly aweek, he remembers, and then stoppedwriting, but he still came home toWriting—and reading—have always been a part of the Peace Corps experience.write Easy in the Islands, a collectionof stories published in 1986 that wonthe National Book Award for Fiction.Mark Brazaitis (Guatemala 91-93) wasafraid when he left Latin America thathe would forget what his life was likeas a PCV, but when he sat down towrite his award-winning collection ofstories, The River of Lost Voices, his daysin Guatemala, he said, came rushingback to him.What must be remembered isthat what we do overseas as PCVs isonly our first draft in life, as well asthe literature we write. It takes timeand distance and much reflection tocarve with insight and perceptionthat intense two-year experience intomeaningful prose. If a PCV wants towrite about the Peace Corps the wayto do it is not by tweeting. The PCVhas to live the life of a Volunteer,be immersed in this new world, itslanguage and culture. The PCV needsto cut the electric cords that keep oneforever tied to the world back home.And then with time, and distance fromthe host country, the Peace Corpswriter will have more to say than justthe obvious.And the Peace Corps writerwill also find that he or she ispart of a larger Peace Corpscommunity of writers, and thatwith the Internet and emails, andPeaceCorpsWorldwide.org, RPCVwriters are able to share and shapetheir experience with others. Theywill find that while they might haveserved in different regions of theworld, and in different decades, thecore experience of being an Americanin a foreign land pulls them togetherlike a secret handshake. And in time,I believe, we will produce a genreof literature that will be known toeveryone who studies fine writing,great stories, and insights into othercultures, “Peace Corps Prose.”John Coyne (Ethiopia 62-64) is theeditor of five books of Peace Corpswriting: To Touch the World; (1995);At Home in the World (1996); TheGreat Adventure (1997), all publishedby the Peace Corps, and Going UpCountry: Travel Essays by Peace CorpsWriters (Scribner’s 1994); Living on theEdge: Fiction by Peace Corps Writers(Curbstone Press, 1999).Peace Corps14 Summer 2010

improving the human condition, enhancing human security, advancing human prosperityTHEPOST-BACCALAUREATEPREMEDICAL PROGRAMWant to be a doctor?Make it a reality.The Post-Baccalaureate Premedical Programat Goucher College is a one-year curriculum ofcourses required for medical school admission. 100% medical school acceptance rate Classes separate from undergraduates Comprehensive advising and support Linkage agreements with sevenmedical schoolsVisit goucher.edu/postbac or call800-414-3437 or 410-337-6559for more information.GOUCHER | collegeWorldView 15

Patrick BellBringing the Experience HomeRETURNED PEACE CORPSVOLUNTEERS WHO TEACHPresident John F. Kennedy,speaking to the first group ofPeace Corps volunteers in 1961said, “Come back and educate us.” In1981 Peace Corps Director Dick Celestetold returned Peace Corps volunteers:“There is a third goal and, in many ways,it may be the most important.” He urgeda consistent, determined effort to educateAmericans about the people and culturesof the so-called developing world.Twenty Years of Peace Corps cited figuresof 26 percent of 1960s returnees goinginto teaching and 27 percent in the 1970semployed by educational institutions.Author Gerald T. Rice concluded that“perhaps the most exciting and profoundimpact of returned volunteers has beenin the field of education,” one of theprimary benefits being that sharing theirexperiences took “some of the fear andmystery out of the American view of theThird World.” He also quoted a 1980poll of universities which attempted “toevaluate what effect returned volunteershad. The response was overwhelminglyfavorable,” especially in public health andinternational studies.In the mid-1980s, as a Returned PeaceCorps Volunteer (RPCV) universityteacher educator, I wondered what RPCVteachers themselves thought about ourimpact. So I visited and interviewed 17RPCVs who taught in Illinois, Kentucky,Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, andWashington D.C. and then used theircomments to develop a questionnairewhich garnered responses from 36RPCVs teaching in 23 states, from NewYork to California, Alabama to Alaska.The surveyed teachers responded mostpositively to the statements “I teachthat American culture is not the onlyculture; just because you don’t believe itor understand it doesn’t mean it’s wrong”and “It’s not just knowing a country’sFulfilling the Third Goalby Angene Wilsoneconomics but also a cultural sensitivityto the country’s point of view that’simportant in my teaching.”Bob Leupold, (Indonesia, Thailand63-65), the teacher who stressed thatAmerican culture is not the only culture,explained: “When some student has hisfeet up on the desk pointing toward me,I point out that pointing the sole of yourfoot toward someone is a deep insult insome cultures.” The teacher who madethe second statement, Washington D.C.teacher Billie Day (Sierra Leone 61-63),talked about the African side of explorationand colonization in her classes.Although teaching about one’s PeaceCorps country was not always possible,fourth grade teacher Kurt Liske, who wasin an early Tunisia group before teachingin Ohio, told me: “There isn’t a day goesby that I don’t use my experiences. Todaywe were talking about communicationin a story we were reading and I talkedabout calling my friend Beshear in Tuniswho sounded like he was next door. I alsotell lots of stories. So someone talks aboutoranges and I tell my story of riding on topof an orange truck in Morocco.”Other teachers I visited described howPeace Corps had made them accepting,understanding, and appreciative ofdifferences. A Michigan teacher whosehigh school had a large minority ofHispanic students and also had sixexchange students in his classes said,“I just accept that kids are brought updifferently.” An English as a SecondLanguage teacher in an Illinois elementaryschool tried to attack problems from acultural perspective. She told about ateacher who had diagnosed a student asdyslexic because he was writing from rightto left—he was Arab and Arabic is writtenfrom right to left! Surveyed RPCV teacherswrote about “conferencing with Spanishspeakingstudents in Spanish,” “helpingPatrick Bell (Costa Rica 97-99) teaches Spanishat Sayre School in Lexington, Kentucky. Overthe years he has taken students to Costa Rica,Spain, Argentina and Mexico for educationaltrips into Spanish-speaking culture.Iranian and Afghan students,” and beingmore understanding of both poor andproblem children.In the last six years, for the OralHistory Center at the University ofKentucky, my husband and I haveinterviewed 86 Kentucky-connectedReturned Peace Corps Volunteers from alldecades, a third of whom are educators,not surprisingly since 35 percent ofVolunteers are still in the education.Examples? A county math supervisorwho learned to write curriculum as amath teacher in Ethiopia, an elementaryschool Spanish teacher who learned thelanguage in Ecuador when she was aspecial education Volunteer, an electronicstechnician Volunteer who became ateacher of English on the Internet topeople all over the world because helearned French in Cote d’Ivoire.RPCVs have made their mark incolleges and universities in teaching,research, and service, too. At theUniversity of Kentucky (UK), for instance,historian Bob Olson (Turkey 63-65),retiring as a Middle East specialist, told us:“Being in Peace Corps introduced you tointernational politics, and I got introducednot only to the Turks but also to the Kurdswho subsequently became my academiccareer.” Education professor Kristen Perry(Lesotho 99-01) won an award for herresearch on how culture impacts literacydevelopment, a topic she got interested inpartly because of an old man’s perceptionsabout the relative difficulty of Sesothoand English languages. Theater professorAndrew Kimbrough (Sri Lanka 84-86),found Peace Corps helpful in applyingfor a teaching job. “One of the questions16 Summer 2010

I was asked was ‘How do you thinkyou’d be able to support our efforts withmulticulturalism?’ Well, one of the degreesI earned was with the Peace Corps. I mightbe some middle-class, middle-aged whiteguy, but the Peace Corps puts all of usahead of the curve in that respect.” Andrewteaches a course in Asian theater thatincludes the bharata natyam, an Indiandance form he first became acquaintedwith in Sri Lanka.Another university-connected educatoris Kay Roberts. For Roberts (Ecuador82-84), “bringing the world back homehas been something I’ve worked veryhard at.” As Community Liaison aswell as Kentucky-Ecuador PartnersDirector at UK’s Office of InternationalAffairs, she led a project with KentuckyEducational Television in 91-92 andanother more recent project at publiclibraries around the state, both withRPCVs. The earlier Wavelengths tothe World project, developed for sixthgrade geography teachers, included shortstories and classroom activities writtenby RPCVs. Roberts also organized threetelecasts featuring returned volunteers andinternational students and sent teachersinformation on World Wise Schools andPeace Corps Partnership programs. Sheremembers sixth graders calling in toask questions about guinea worms of areturned health volunteer.In the end, of course, “educating us” isnot just the job of RPCV educators butof all returned Peace Corps Volunteers.We all know that until one has visitedother villages one will think only Mother’scooking is sweet!*You can read and hear the more recentinterviews online at the Center for OralHistory at University of Kentucky.Angene Wilson (Liberia 1962-64) beganbringing the world back home in 1965 bydeveloping a primary source curriculum unitabout Nigeria for a new world studies courseat her alma mater high school in Lakewood,Ohio. She led the secondary social studiesprogram at the University of Kentucky from1975 to 2004 and taught African historyfor three years after she retired. With fellowRPCV Merry Merryfield she wrote SocialStudies and the World: Teaching GlobalPerspectives in 2005.New York isLEADERSHIPTHE NEW SCHOOLis New YorkEARN A MASTER OF SCIENCE ATMILANOMake a difference. Shape the wayorganizations work, communities function,and people live. Milano develops effectiveleaders for the nonprofit, public, and privatesectors using New York City as a laboratory.Whether you are starting out, changing,or advancing your career, Milano can helpyou design a program to meet your goals.Come to Milano—you’ll change the world.MS degreeS in:· Nonprofit Management· Urban Policy Analysis and Management· Organizational Change ManagementWorld-renowned faculty and lifetimecareer servicesFor more information about Milano, contactadmissions at 212.229.5462 or visit us online.www.newschool.edu/milano5The New School is a leading university in New York City offering some of the nation’s mostdistinguished degree, certificate, and continuing education programs in art and design, liberalarts, management and policy, and the performing arts.An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity UniversityWorldView 17

Bringing the Experience Home45 CHANCES A DAY TO CHANGE THE WORLDA look back at the founding of the first Peace Corps Fellows programby Jody K. OlsenIn 1985, around a wooden tablenestled in a small office at TeachersCollege, over sandwiches and sodas,six people discussed the initial ideas forwhat soon became the largest, oldest,most prestigious, and influential Fellows/USA program in the United States: ThePeace Corps Fellows Program at TeachersCollege. Today, with over 40 Fellows/USA programs in graduate schoolsthroughout the country and over 600graduates of Teachers College Fellows/USA program alone, it seems that thepower of that table conversation shouldhave been obvious. But at the time, it wasjust an uncharted idea, backed by a strongadvocate and a great college.Having sat at that table 25 years ago,I would like to share my impressions ofwhere we have come from and how wehave ended up where we are today.Perhaps the most intense energy andpassion behind the idea that eventuallybecame the first Fellows/USA programcame from Beryl Levinson (Colombia67-69), a doctoral student at TeachersCollege at the time. She knew thatTeachers College, Returned Peace CorpsVolunteers (RPCVs), and the New YorkCity school system could bring togetherexperienced and talented teachers forspecial programs and disadvantagedstudents throughout the city.Her passion for the idea convincedthen-Peace Corps Director LoretMiller Ruppe, one of the six attendeeswho sat around the table, that thePeace Corps could embrace the idea,talk to potential donors, and partnerwith Teachers College to create thisFellows program. That same day, inthe multistory, glass headquartersof Xerox Corporation, a new grantwas approved, and the program waslaunched. The enthusiastic first groupof Returned Peace Corps Volunteersentered the Fellows/USA Program atTeachers College in the fall of 1985.The initial program recruited RPCVsas math and science teachers. TheMemorandum of Understanding noted:“The program … has been developedto attract and train a professional poolof Math and Science educators to teachin the inner city schools of the UnitedStates and to upgrade present levels ofinstruction in the fields of Mathematicsand Science.” (1/30/85)Other financial supporters, in additionto Teachers College, soon joined theprogram: the New York City Boardof Education, the Hebrew TechnicalInstitute, the Prudential InsuranceCompany, and Chase Manhattan. Laterthe DeWitt Wallace-Reader’s DigestFund, supplemented by funding from theJohn S. and James L. Knight Foundation,added significant scholarships.As broader needs became evident afew years later, the initial Fellows/USAMath and Science Program at TeachersCollege expanded to bilingual education,special education, and TESOL. ThePeace Corps Fellows Program at TeachersCollege has continued to grow andchange to meet new Fellows’ skills, NewYork City’s education needs, and TeachersCollege own evolving academic assets.Mike McGregorWanda Dingman (Mali 92-94 & PCFP 96-98) with her students from the Marble Hill High School for International Studies, a small collegepreparatory school for students interested in foreign languages and international studies.18 Summer 2010

Culture doesn’t always fit inside a glass case.Rituals. Customs. Stories. Styles.They show who we are and wherewe come from—and they can beamong the most irreplaceablecasualties of globalization.Goucher’s cultural sustainabilitymaster’s degree program empowerstoday’s activists with real-world tacticsfor preserving and enriching theidentity of communities at risk.And Goucher’s unique format allowsyou to study right where you are—so you don’t have to turn your lifeupside-down while you’re out savingthe world. Again.For more information, visit www.goucher.edu/culture.Master of Arts in Cultural Sustainability:::GOUCHER | collegeIs there a better solution tofeeding the hungry in Africa?Your answer could be published in aleading international relations publication.What do you think about African food security policies? How would you do things differently?The National Peace Corps Association and Africa Rural Connect, in conjunction with theWorld Policy Journal, want to hear your insights. Describe—in 800 to 1,200 words—a uniqueinitiative that African governments, private organizations, or individuals in the internationalcommunity can do to improve food security in the rural regions of Africa.The winning essay will be published in the Fall 2010 issue of World Policy Journal, one ofthe top foreign policy publications in the U.S. Even more important than receiving worldwiderecognition, your essay might be the inspiration to improve the lives of countless Africans inneed of food.For more information go to:AfricaRuralConnect.org/EssayContestWorldView 19

This dynamic evolution ensures thatthe program maintains its reputation ofleadership and its service to the New YorkCity School system.This program’s impact is one teacher,one student, one classroom, and oneinstitution at a time. In 1997, a 10thgrade student from the Bronx said,“You’ve been the best teacher we ever had.You’re also the perfect teacher because youdon’t criticize anything and you’re funny.You made humanities fun. You’re also theonly teacher that’s open-minded and whoconcentrates on developing the positiveside of things.”That same year, a Peace CorpsFellow communicated: “Since I arrivedin New York, I have experienced theworst and the best; I have felt painfullynaïve and joyously wise; that I made theworst choice and the best that I couldfor myself. Like an aging and batteredprizefighter, I don’t know when to quit.Maybe this is endemic to most PeaceCorps Fellows. Maybe it’s just me.”Another Fellow noted: “Teachinghumanities in the South Bronx haschanged my life almost as much as myPeace Corps experience had in Lesotho,Africa. My job as a teacher allows meto make very real human connectionseveryday that I couldn’t have withpractically any other job. I’ve always beenaccused of wanting to change the worldPatricia Chang (China 01-02) teaches English at the Bronx International High School..by my family and now I see that I have 45chances a day to change the world: onechance for each student.”Similar sentiments have beendocumented throughout these 25 years.In a meeting that I attended a few yearsago, a senior staff member in the NewYork City Board of Education Officeof Personnel praised the work of PeaceCorps Fellows and talked specificallyabout their language and culturalsensitivity, their commitment to publiceducation, and their flexibility andpassion for their work in classroomsand in schools. One administrator saidthat they look for Peace Corps Fellowsknowing that they can succeed inRachel Blair (Morocco 04-06 & PCFP 07-09) with her students from the Bronx InternationalHigh School, a team-based and community-based school dedicated to serving the academic andthe social needs of recently immigrated youth.Mike McGregorchallenging school environments.Teachers College took a risk 25 yearsago, and like the risk Peace CorpsVolunteers take when boarding a planeto begin two years of service that willchange their lives, Fellows/USA haschanged RPCVs, graduate schools, andmost importantly, the communitieswhere they have served in New YorkCity and beyond.As Deputy Director I saw thesechanges first-hand while visitingFellows and former Fellows at threedifferent schools in New York City.In one neighborhood school with astrong immigrant population from theDominican Republic, the principalpraised a former Fellow, whose PeaceCorps service was in the DominicanRepublic, for her sensitivity to individualstudent needs and tailored ways of gentlyintegrating the students into new culturesand systems.In April of 2009, I spent a morningat the Marble Hill High School forInternational Studies in the Bronxtalking with the founder of the schooland watching current and formerFellows teach at the school. ReturnedVolunteers comprise one-third of thefaculty who teach a student body almostentirely made up of immigrants. Theirteaching programs affirmatively integrateEnglish as a second language with themath, history, and science curriculuminto one strong curriculum. Thestudents spoke proudly about “their”teachers living two years in some of theirown countries of origin, speaking locallanguages, and knowing their own homeMike McGregor20 Summer 2010

traditions and cultures. That trust, builton the foundation of the Peace Corpsexperience, encouraged and allowedthe students to take risks in their ownadjustments to language and culture.The support from donors Elliot andRoslyn Jaffe and Amity Buxton hascontinued to strengthen the program,such as through innovative highqualityservice-learning projects. Thislast year, over 1,000 students engagedin 14 mini-grants projects from HIV/AIDS education to video and websitedevelopment to raise awareness oncrucial social issues. The Fellows atMarble Hill talked of using this grantopportunity to bring students andclassrooms closer to social issues andtheir communities. Innovations inservice learning have also become amajor focus of the Corporation forNational and Community Service, theagency of which the AmeriCorps branchhas become a major partner and funderof the Peace Corps Fellows Program atTeachers College.I am honored to have been oneof those sitting around the table 25years ago, and now to have seen, 25years later, the profound effect thatcommitted educators, a graduate schoolof education, and over 600 RPCVscan have honoring the Peace Corps’third goal, helping to promote a betterunderstanding of other peoples on thepart of Americans, and improving thelives of dozens of thousands of New YorkCity students. I have no doubt that theidea that created the first Fellows/USAprogram in the country will continue toevolve, develop new partnerships, andextend its reach to ever more partnercommunities.Jody K. Olsen, Ph.D. (Tunisia 66-68)served as Deputy Director of Peace Corpsfrom 2002 to 2009 and as Acting Directorfrom January to August 2009. She hasheld numerous positions within PeaceCorps, including Chief of Staff, RegionalDirector (North Africa Near East, Asia,Pacific), and County Director (Togo).Dr. Olsen is currently a visiting professorat the University of Maryland School ofSocial Work. This article first appeared inthe Summer 2009 edition of the TeachersCollege Peace Corps Fellows Times.Online Master ofProfessional StudiesDegreeHumanitarian ServicesAdministration• Humanitarian Response• Disaster Relief• Sustainable DevelopmentFor more informationcontact Donna Campbellphone: 860.486.0184email: donna.campbell@uconn.edumps.uconn.eduBe Part ofSomethingBiggerCenter for Continuing StudiesIt’s not too late tobecome a doctorThe Postbaccalaureate PremedicalProgram at Bryn Mawr CollegeRealize your dream to become a physician at one of the nation’s oldest,strongest, and most respected postbaccalaureate premedical programs.• For women and men changing career direction• Intensive, full-time preparation for medical school in one year• Highly respected by medical schools—many look for Bryn Mawrpostbacs• Over 98 percent acceptance rate into medical school• Early acceptance programs at selected medical schools—more thanany other postbac program• Supportive, individual academic and premedical advising• Ideal size—small enough for personal attention, yet large enough fordiverse perspectives• Wide range of medically related volunteer and job opportunities andprogramsBRYN MAWR COLLEGEPOSTBACCALAUREATE PREMEDICAL PROGRAMCanwyll House | Bryn Mawr, PA 19010610-526-7350 | postbac@brynmawr.eduwww.brynmawr.edu/postbac/WorldView 21

Bringing the Experience HomeBringing Real World Experience to the TableUniversity of Washington becomes newest participant in Peace Corps Fellows/USA Programby Catherine O’DonnellAn agreement signed in Aprilmakes the Evans School ofPublic Affairs at the Universityof Washington (UW) the newestparticipant in the Peace Corps Fellows/USA Program. It’s also the first suchprogram at the UW.As the 52nd participant, the EvansSchool will provide fellowshipsleading to masters degrees in publicadministration. The agreement comesas Evans prepares to celebrate the tenthanniversary of its Peace Corps Master’sInternational (PCMI) program on May13. The degree includes a 27-monthassignment abroad, and the event willinclude a send-off for PCMI studentsleaving on their assignments.Alix Furness, who manages EvansSchool international programs, saidthe new Fellows program grew out ofinquiries from Returned Peace CorpsVolunteers. “We just never had one tooffer them,” she said.As a Peace Corps volunteer herself,Furness taught undergraduateAmerican history, politics and literatureat the University of Constantine thePhilosopher in Nitra, Slovakia from2000 to 2002. She had a degreein English literature from SeattleUniversity but no graduate degree.Members of the English languagedepartment nevertheless welcomedand accepted her as part of theteaching faculty. “I’d never have had anopportunity for that kind of teaching inthe U.S.,” Furness said.She subsequently received a UWmaster of arts in teaching English tospeakers of other languages.“I would have done the Fellowsprogram, but Evans didn’t have it,”Furness said.“We currently have a thriving groupof students and faculty interested ininternational development issues, andreturned Peace Corps volunteers bringa wealth of on-the-ground experiencethat enriches discussions both in andout of the classroom,” said Joe Cook, anassistant professor in the Evans Schoolwho coordinates the Peace CorpsMaster’s International program.University of WashingtonPeace Corpsvolunteers oftenparticipate insecondary projects.As part of helping aMoroccan teachercoordinate a weeklongday camp,Kirsten Rogers taughtAmerican games.24 Summer 2010

Founded in 1985, the PeaceCorps Fellows/USA program hasserved more than 3,000 returnedvolunteers. It promotes better Americanunderstanding of other culturesand brings Peace Corps learning todomestic situations. The programmakes possible certificates and graduatedegrees at 40 institutions in a widerange of disciplines, including law,nursing and education, but accordingto the Peace Corps, no two programsare exactly alike. Along with the EvansSchool program, the UW offers PeaceCorps Master’s International degrees inthe School of Forest Resources and theDepartment of Global Health.In 2009, 14 students entered theEvans PCMI program, the largestgroup in Evans history. For the classthat will enter in September, 20 ofthe 50 who applied were accepted.Applications for the UW Fellowsprogram will be accepted starting inJanuary, with the first class beginningin September 2011.Kirsten Rogers, 27, who recentlyreturned from a Peace Corps stint inMorocco, said that a year of intensiveEvans courses afforded her the practicalinformation in economic developmentshe needed to help women weavers andwool spinners grow their businesses.Rogers learned Arabic along the way,realizing the importance of personalconnections between Americansand people they work with in hostcountries. “I came back thinking howto help family, friends and colleaguesdevelop relationships,” she said.These days, Rogers works withOne World Now, an after-schoollanguage and study-abroad programfor underserved high school students.They’re learning Arabic and MandarinChinese. This summer, Rogers will beprogram manager for a One WorldNow summer language camp.“Volunteering abroad showedme that more high school studentsand more undergraduates need theopportunity to go abroad, to becomemore global citizens,” Rogers said. “Wecan’t afford not to do this.”Catherine O’Donnell is a Public InformationOfficer at the University of Washington.TAKE CHARGE OFYOUR FUTUREPhDs, Master’s, and Graduate CertificatesAnthropology | Economics | Environmental Science and other SciencesEthics, Peace and Global Affairs | Health Promotion | History | InternationalTraining and Education | Language and Foreign Studies | PsychologySociology | Teaching | TESOL | and other disciplines casgrad@american.edu +011-202-885-3620www.american.edu/casGerman Chancellor FellowshipInternational Opportunity for Young ProfessionalsGermany’s Alexander von Humboldt Foundation awards ten German ChancellorFellowships annually to young professionals in the private, public, not-for-profit,cultural and academic sectors who are citizens of the United States. Theprogram, which also includes fellowships for citizens of the Russian Federationand the People’s Republic of China, sponsors individuals who demonstrate thepotential to strengthen ties between Germany and their own country through theirprofession or studies. The fellowship provides for a stay of one year in Germanyfor professional development, study, or research. Prior knowledge of German isnot a prerequisite.The program begins September 1 and lasts twelve months. It is preceded bythree months of intensive language classes in Germany. Must be a U.S., Russianor Chinese citizen. A bachelor’s degree is required. Candidates must havereceived their degree after September 1, 1999. Application deadline for U.S.applicants: October 15, 2010. Applications and information available at:www.humboldt-foundation.deinfo@americanfriends-of-avh.org – (202) 783-1907Economics ● Environmental Affairs ● Finance ● GovernmentJournalism ● Law ● Management ● Public Policyeo/aaWorldView 25

Bringing the Experience HomeCONNECTING WITH CAMEROONElementary students correspond with a Peace Corps Volunteer in the field—and learn of life there first-hand.by Mark MahoneyAs a former Volunteer I wasexcited about following-upon the “bringing the worldhome” goal. And, so it was that Iapproached my son’s fifth-grade teacherat the beginning of the 2005-2006school year to discuss the possibility ofstudents learning more about the PeaceCorps experience. One of the programsof the Peace Corps World Wise Schoolinitiative matches up Peace CorpsVolunteers serving in the field withU.S. classroom teachers. This uniqueprogram known as “CorrespondenceMatch” allows for a vibrant exchangeof ideas, stories, pictures and artifactsthat helps students in the classroomlearn about the people, geography,environment and culture of the worldfrom the direct experience of Volunteersliving in other countries. The idea issimple: Pair the participants and theexchange takes off.After discussing the program andassisting the fifth grade teacher incompleting the application, a match wassubsequently made with Kelly Gillin, 23,a Volunteer from Florida who was servingin the town of Banyo in Cameroon,West Africa. A host of activities wereundertaken during the school yearfocusing on learning about the Cameroonboth through individual in-class research,correspondence with the Volunteer andthrough exchange of letters with schoolchildren in Cameroon.Imagine the excitement when welearned that Kelly’s father (who livesin Orlando) would be traveling toCameroon to visit his daughter fora two-week period. It took littlediscussion to convince him to make apresentation to the fifth-graders uponhis return to Florida.The kids could hardly sit still in theirchairs when Mr. Gillin began to sharehis story, illustrated by numerous slides.His enthusiasm was apparent whenhe told the students that the trip was“simply incredible.” “The generosityof these people with virtually nothingwas absolutely overwhelming,” he said.There is no television, no radio, dirtroads, and the average wage is about$1,200, but these people are contentand appreciative for they do have. It’samazing.”Kelly GillinSchool children inBanyo, Cameroon.26 Summer 2010

Kelly GillinFifth grade students listen the presentation.Following the presentation,students were ready with questions:What does the food tasted like, howdo they keep things cold without arefrigerator, why families don’t havepets, how do Cameroon kids carrybook on their heads?One of the students noted that shewanted to visit Cameroon and be thenext Kelly. ”I want to be an animalrescuer or conservationist,” she said,“that is if I don’t join the Peace Corps.”Another student explained the colorfulbulletin board devoted to Cameroonand pointed out the correspondenceprogram letters. “There are animalsfrom the country…like snakes, gorillasand monkeys and then there are lettersfrom Kelly, the history of the countryand pictures she sent to us over there.”Afterward, Mr. Gillin remarkedthat his classroom visit exceeded hisexpectations. “This is a tremendousexperience for the kids to be exposedto other cultures. We’d all be better offif we do more of it, and these kids aredefinitely on the right track.”If this experience is indicative tothe possibilities of programs likeCorrespondence Match, the PeaceCorps will definitely have a longlife well after the 50th anniversarycelebration in 2011.You’ve made a difference in the lives of others.Let us help make a difference in yours.Learn more details about theCorrespondence Match program at:http://www.peacecorps.gov/wws/correspond/about.cfmMark Mahoney (Ecuador 75-77,Chile78-80) is a Research & TrainingSpecialist for the State of Florida. He hasworked in the field of health promotion/disease prevention for over fifteen yearsincluding three years in worldwideblindness prevention activities with aninternational NGO, Project ORBIS, Inc.Scholarships available for Peace Corps alumni.Apply now for fall 2010. GetaRealMBA.comWorldView 27

Bringing the Experience HomeTHE MOST ENDURING IMPACTBy working with victims of torture, an RPCVby Charlie RoundsWhen I was in highschool, my mothervolunteered with AmnestyInternational—something that oftenleft me scratching my head.I helped my mother translate intoFrench and Spanish letters to dictatorsthroughout the world urging them to stoptorturing and killing prisoners. When Iwas 16, she built a mock-up of a “tigercage,” the infamous cells used to tortureprisoners in Vietnam. The sign postedon it described what was happening inVietnam with our tax dollars.The cage stood there for weeks.Our neighbors and I really wonderedwhat it had to do with us.It was not until my Peace Corpsservice in Cameroon that my mother’swork to stop human rights abusesresonated in a way it never had before.My service molded me to become aboard member of an internationalNGO that treats torture survivorsaround the world.By design, Peace Corps aims toimprove the lives of people aroundthe world and strengthen ties betweenpeople in the Global South andthe developed world using threeapproaches. Public awareness centersprimarily around the first two paths:the invaluable technical assistancethat volunteers provide in developingcountries; and the fact that Peace Corpsvolunteers act as informal ambassadorsof America in those countries.Yet the service that comes after ourtwo (or more) years in the developingworld may be the objective that hasthe most enduring impact. The PeaceCorps changes the way you see theworld. And out of that shift is oftenborne deep compassion and a strongdesire to continue to serve others thatresults in a lifetime of service.As a teenager in suburbanMinneapolis, the concepts of prison,torture, and mass killing were notreadily comprehensible for me. Myworst fears were not being chosen(again and again) to be on a team ingym class or getting invited to the “Agroup” parties.That is where Peace Corps transformsyour view of the world around you.Peace Corps service takes pictures ofglobal poverty and suffering off ofmagazine pages, television monitorsand computer screens and placesthem front and center in your life.Many volunteers have seen hunger,corruption, poisoned water, andgovernment violence firsthand.Like many Returned Peace CorpsVolunteers, when I came back to theU.S., I searched for meaningful waysto stay connected with the country inwhich I volunteered and to continue togive back. Today, unlike in 1978, I can’tsimply pick up and leave the countryfor three years. Like many people,I have a career and family that areimportant to me.But I discovered that my globalservice can continue through anorganization in my own backyard. Asa board member of the Minneapolis-CVTCVTA counseling hut in Sierra Leone.Author Charlie Rounds.28 Summer 2010

ased Center for Victims of Torture(CVT), I support an organization thattreats survivors of politically motivatedtorture who live in the U.S., as well astrains refugees in post-conflict regionsoverseas to provide mental healthcounseling to their communities.My involvement with CVT showedme the devastating consequences oftorture on individuals and societies.Survivors of torture are targetedbecause they are leaders. Their torturersattempted to destroy them, and inso doing, frighten and silence thecommunity. This is how corrupt officialsmaintain power. But healing serviceshelps torture survivors rebuild their lives.And it helps communities break thecycle of fear, silence and apathy.Part of this work is personal—asit directly relates to my Peace Corpsexperience. Cameroon ranks secondas the country of origin of torturesurvivors in Minnesota. For privacyreasons, I can’t talk about thoseindividuals because many have familymembers still in Cameroon. Butbecause of their age, I know that manyof them were likely the students of myfellow Peace Corps volunteers whotaught in Cameroon. Knowing thatthe children with whom we workedin Cameroon have had their livesdisrupted by torture means that Iview these men and women in a verydifferent way than most Americans.Because of my Peace Corps service, Ican play a role in helping Americansfeel connected to individuals fromcountries halfway around the world.There are an estimated 500,000torture survivors living in the U.S.They have fled countries in which manyPeace Corps volunteers serve. Manysurvivors are refugees and even more areasylum seekers. For them, the U.S. isnot only a safe haven from violence andrepression; it is also a place to heal fromthe massive amounts of trauma thatthey endured.During the last 25 years, CVT hastreated more than 18,000 individualsfrom more than 70 countries. Eightyfivepercent of the new clients wetreat in Minnesota are from Africa.Additionally, CVT partners with localtorture survivor rehabilitation centersaround the world to strengthen theirclinical and organizational skills. Wework with centers in Bangladesh,Bulgaria, Cambodia, Cameroon,Ethiopia, Guatemala, India, Kenya,Kosovo, Namibia, Pakistan, Palestine,Peru, Romania, Rwanda, Sierra Leone,South Africa, Sudan, and Uganda.The important thing is to findyour passion and commit to it. I’mcommitted to helping survivors oftorture and war trauma and theirfamilies heal and to ending tortureworldwide. Others have found otherworthwhile causes.Above all, the key is to truly make yourPeace Corps experience transformative,not just for yourself, but for men,women and children from disadvantagedcommunities around the globe. Onemark of Peace Corps’ incredible successis serving as the first step in a lifetime ofservice. I am grateful for that experienceand that I found a way to help peoplewhose needs are extraordinary.Charlie Rounds (Cameroon 78-81) is amember of the board of the Center forVictims of Torture, Minneapolis, Minn.To learn more, visit www.cvt.org.Goodwill ReturnedKara Garbe (Burkina Faso 01-04)hat initially drew”Wme to CVT was theopportunity to use the FrenchI’d learned overseas to work asa befriender with one of CVT’sFrench-speaking clients from Africa.The client … didn’t speak muchEnglish, so I was one of the fewAmericans she could communicatewith. I think former Peace Corpsvolunteers make great befriendersbecause we understand at least onepart of the client’s experience: howdifficult and confusing it can be toadjust to life in a foreign culture.When I was in the Peace Corps, somany people there helped me adjustto life in a new and very differentenvironment. Volunteering at CVT Kara Garbe working…helps me feel like I can return alittle of that goodwill.”CVT… and relaxing in herBurkinabe village.CVTWorldView 29

CommentarySUSTAINABLE THINKING AT THE PEACE CORPSAn renewable energy and climate change initiative holds promise for Latin Americaby Joel RubinThe Obama Administrationis ushering in new debateon the issues that impactthe lives of people in the developingworld like no other administrationin recent memory. Ranging fromthe president’s pledge to doubleinternational aid, to helping farmersin Africa, to empowering women,and to addressing climate change,the administration has challenged theinternational development communityto think big as it grapples with how toadvance global development in concertwith American interests in the 21stcentury.The Peace Corps has joined thismomentum and is now poised toimplement as much innovation inthe field as we are witnessing inWashington.Specifically, on April 17th, Secretaryof State Hillary Clinton announced thecreation of the “Peace Corps RenewableEnergy and Climate Change Initiative”as part of the “Energy and ClimatePartnership of the Americas,” whichis part of the Summit of the Americasmultilateral work.This exciting sustainable developmentinitiative will, according to pressaccounts, provide training to the morethan 2,000 Peace Corps Volunteersserving in the rural areas of theAmericas for work on renewable energyand climate change activities. Thegoal of the program, according to theState Department press release, is to“…address energy poverty by usingsmall grants and local training to buildthe capacity of local communities.”To do this, “…volunteers willintroduce energy-efficient practicesand alternative-energy technologies,including small-scale solar panels, cookstoves, small wind turbines and otherenergy-efficiency solutions.”It is clear that, in true Peace Corpsfashion, the decision to integrate anew, climate-oriented activity intothe Peace Corps is based on a veryrealistic assessment of both the needsof the people in the poor areas ofLatin America and of the longer termchallenges that we face globally.This combined pressure to eradicatepoverty while ensuring environmentalsustainability is at the forefront ofthe discussion about how to advancedevelopment in Latin America.And the development challenges inLatin America are daunting. Accordingto the Inter Press Service, roughly onethirdof all the people living there—182million people—live in extremepoverty. In addition, according to theBrookings Institution, “… between2001 and 2005… climate-relateddisasters had an impact on 7.5 percentof the population in lower-middleincome countries (in Latin America),up from 1.5 percent of the populationin 1976-1980.”What is intriguing about thisinitiative is that it comes at a timewhen there is a vibrant debate bothin Congress and within the ObamaAdministration about how to reformthe U.S. government’s international aidapparatus to more adequately addressthe needs of the developing world inconcert with American priorities.The Peace Corps has clearly pickedup on both the real world challengesin Latin America and the policydebate in Washington to come upwith an innovative way to utilize itsvolunteers. It is showing real savvy,listening to partner governments whilealso demonstrating to Washingtonpolicy makers that it understands thatcreativity and effectiveness is neededin order to advance our country’sinternational development goals.My own personal experience tellsme that now is the right moment forsuch a creative initiative. I servedin Costa Rica in the mid-1990s, at atime when that country was leadingthe charge in Latin America onenvironmental issues, most notablyby protecting nearly a quarter ofits territory for national parks. Yetat the same time that it led on theenvironment, it was also committedto developing itself, so much so thatit had some of the highest literacy, lifeexpectancy, and income rates in theregion.I saw first-hand that real sustainabledevelopment was possible. If CostaRica, a small country without manynatural resources that relies heavily onits own innovation could do it, thenit was—and is—clear that other LatinAmerican countries can do it as well.Much to its credit, the Peace Corpshas demonstrated creativity throughthis bold energy, development, andclimate initiative. It is lending a clearhand to partners in Latin America,making it relevant both on the groundand in Washington through bold,practical, and creative ideas. This typeof sustainable thinking should giveus hope about the future of the PeaceCorps and its relevance in the 21stcentury.Joel Rubin is the Deputy Director andChief Operating Officer of the NationalSecurity Network in Washington, DC,a progressive foreign policy advocacyorganization; the views expressed inthis article are his own and do notnecessarily reflect the National SecurityNetwork. He served in the Peace Corpsin Costa Rica from 1994 – 1996 as anEnvironmental Education volunteer. Youcan follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JoelMartinRubin.30 Summer 2010

CommentaryEMERGENCY LANDINGSApplying Peace Corps experience to humanitarian aidby Patrick MaguireLife is calling.So is SPEA.The airstrip was too short. Waytoo short. From the cockpitwindow, it looked to be barelytwice as long as it was wide, and itwasn’t very wide. Our pilot didn’tcare. He was ex-Kenyan Air Force,his face and neck covered in scarsfrom a previous airplane accident thatnone of us dared ask much about.He simply turned around and asked,“Do you think this is it?” We nodded.It seemed right. There was a smallstream a few miles south of it, andyou could make out the Nile to thewest. This is what we had been told tolook for. We just expected somethingthat resembled an airstrip more thanit did an unleveled dirt football field.We were coming in at what seemedlike a forty-five degree angle. Wewould need every inch of stripavailable, yet tall trees ringing theclearing prevented us from makinga flatter approach. The singleengineCessna, crowded with threepassengers, nearly a ton of medicine,food, and camping gear, was tooheavy. The pilot needed to hit theground as hard as possible to cuthis speed, or he wouldn’t be ableto come to a stop in the 600 yardshe had to work with. I cringed, butmanaged to keep one eye open as theground rushed up to meet us. Afternine months working with DoctorsWithout Borders in Sudan, I was nostranger to nerve-wracking flights,and the doctor and nurse travelingwith me were more experienced still.Tree branches flashed by disturbinglyclose, but the pilot nailed thetouchdown, and after furious brakingwe came to a stop with maybe twentyyards to spare. We had arrived.Sudan wasn’t my first experiencein Africa. Four months aftergraduating from college with adegree in engineering, I joined PeaceCorps Tanzania as a secondaryschoolmath and physics teacher.I spent my two years both in theclassroom and managing variousschool improvement and constructionprojects, and—most importantly—getting the hands-on, grass-rootseducation in community relationsand development that only PeaceCorps can provide. I had neverplanned on getting into humanitarianaid work, but upon returning home Ihappened across the Doctors WithoutBorders website and discovered thatthey need far more than just medicalpersonnel. Despite my only postcollegework experience being withPeace Corps, I met their minimumrequirements and applied for a fieldlogistician position. In January 2009I was off to one of the many remotehospitals they run in southern Sudan.Then, after nine months working atthat hospital, I was chosen to join anemergency outbreak response team.Our flight had brought us to Rom,a small village on the east bank ofthe Nile in southern Sudan. We wereresponding to reports of an outbreakof Kala Azar (Visceral Leishmaniasis),a parasite spread by sand flies that isfatal without proper treatment. Ourteam consisted of a Sudanese doctor, aCameroonian nurse, and myself. Whilethe two medics focused on testing andtreatment, I was responsible for settingup camp, finding food and water,installing solar-powered radio andsatellite communications, managingthe medical supplies, and clearing atleast 300 more yards of airstrip. MyPeace Corps experience was a greathelp for almost every one of thesetasks. I already knew the importanceof having long talks with the villagechiefs and elders, and that they wereKate Slavens MPA ’11RPCV MaliSPEA Peace Corps FellowPeace CorpsFellows• Master of Public Affairs (MPA)• Master of Science inEnvironmental Science (MSES)• Joint MPA-MSESSPEA’s Peace Corps Fellows programuses community placements to enableFellows to share experiences whileenhancing their skill-sets in one of thetop graduate programs.SPEA Fellows receive benefits that includecredit waivers and financial aid.SCHOOL OF PUBLIC ANDENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRSI N D I A NA UN I V E R S I T YContact us for more information:www.spea.indiana.eduspeainfo@indiana.edu800.765.7755WorldView 31

A Doctors Without Borders nurse and doctor walk back to the plane with local residents in Rom, Somalia.Patrick Maguirethe ones who would tell us where to getfood and charcoal and then mobilizethe community to extend the airstrip.After two years’ experience drinkingfrom Lake Victoria I could purifywater in my sleep. When preparingour equipment, I knew what I couldexpect to purchase locally and what wehad to bring with us, freeing up spacefor enough medicines to last us twoweeks without resupply. And perhapsmost importantly, when the sun wentdown, when the mosquitoes came outin swarms, hippos started grunting, andI had nothing to eat but rice and beans,I could still feel completely at ease.The third night of our stay inRom, we had our first death. Theboy was perhaps eight years old, andhad arrived so sick he could barelysit up, let alone walk. He neededa blood transfusion, specializedmedicine, and an intensive care unit.We had none of that. Two days lateranother patient, a girl of the sameage, followed. She had been gettingbetter, but developed complicationsand crashed. In Tanzania I had seenchildren die of preventable diseasessuch as malaria and diarrhea. I can’tsay I learned to accept it, but I didcome to terms with it, and grewto understand that such deathsare inevitable in countries lackingfunctioning health-care and educationsystems. Without that understandingI don’t know that I would’ve beenable to handle the death, suffering,and frustration that confronts reliefworkers on a daily basis.With the incredible devastationcaused by the recent deluge ofpowerful earthquakes combinedwith the ongoing conflicts in Iraq,Afghanistan, and elsewhere consumingthe resources and personnel of all themain relief agencies, the need for new,top-quality humanitarian aid workersis great. These organizations needflexible, resourceful individuals withprior experience in the developingworld, advanced language skills, anda strong desire to help those most inneed. I cannot think of a better wayto describe Returned Peace Corpsvolunteers. While many developmentorganizations require applicants tohave advanced degrees in public healthor international development, reliefagencies often prefer demonstratedtechnical, financial, management,or administrative experience fortheir non-medical personnel. Thisprovides an excellent opportunityfor Volunteers who want to continueworking overseas without havingto return to school. Returned PeaceCorps volunteers already play a crucialpart in governmental and privatedevelopment organizations worldwide.They can make the same contributionin the world of humanitarian aid.Patrick Maguire (Tanzania 05-07) beganworking with Doctors Without Bordersin 2009 as a technical logistician insouth Sudan. He is currently overseeingthe construction of a new emergencyobstetrics hospital in Port-au-Price,Haiti. For more information, visit www.doctorswithoutborders.org.32 Summer 2010

CommentarySPEAKING MY TRUTHHIV positive and serving as a Peace Corps Volunteerby Elizabeth TunkleWhen you join the PeaceCorps, many people askyou “Why?” I never hada very good answer, and in retrospect,I really had no idea what I was gettinginto. I thought two years would goby in a flash and I would come homebetter for having gone so far from homeand for having done such a “noble”thing. Two years did not go by in aflash and I came home changed-but nothow I’d imagined I would.As I was settling in to my village inZambia, I met my future boyfriend. Westarted dating and I asked him if he hadbeen tested for HIV. He told me, “Yes.”The previous year, he told me, he testednegative, and had not had unprotectedsex since. Knowing that, we mutuallydecided it would be safe for us to usebirth control without condoms. Wewere wrong. Despite the factthat I knew all about HIVprevention I had unprotectedsex with him anyway.A few weeks later, Idecided we should gettested. I tried telling myselfthat it couldn’t be me. I wasgoing to be fine. Too manytimes in my life I had playedwith all kinds of fire andsurvived. Not me. I was toonice and honest and funand giving and I practicedyoga and meditation. Weget bonus points in life forbeing good, right?No, I guess we don’t. HIVdoesn’t just choose meanpeople or people who telllies. It turned out it choseme. We found out myboyfriend was positive andthat I was also infected. Asif that news isn’t devastatingenough, the Peace Corpstold me I had to go home and that Iwould not be able to serve as a PeaceCorps Volunteer anymore, anywhere.I was too shocked to fully understandwhat was happening, but I did feelthat Peace Corps was acting contraryto what they teach us: “Fight the virusnot people with it. Treat people withHIV just like you would treat anyoneelse.” Yet, here I was going home.I was shocked and traumatized as Ipacked up my things and said goodbyeto my life in Zambia. I felt like afailure. I had come to teach preventionand here I was infected. I was askingmyself that “Why?” question all overagain. Why did I come to Zambia?Did I come to ruin my life? Who did Ithink I was coming over to Africa to tellpeople how to live? I didn’t even knowthe meaning of my own words.As soon as I arrived home I traveledto Washington, D.C. Peace Corpsheadquarters told me that I wouldbe evaluated and then separated. Iasked my Peace Corps nurse if it waspossible for me to continue to serveand she said, “No.” If I was positive, Iwould have to be separated. However,after I had been home for a month,Peace Corps changed its mind. Why?My friend was digging around onthe Internet and found a story aboutanother Volunteer who had been senthome earlier that year because of anHIV infection. He felt like his rightshad been violated and had askedthe American Civil Liberties Union(ACLU) to intervene. The ACLUinformed the Peace Corps that theirpolicy discriminated against peoplewith HIV and they needed to be moreThe author has some company as she waits for a bus in Mansa, Luapula Province, Zambia, four and a halfhours from her village by bicycle.Paul TunkleWorldView 33

accommodating*. Peace Corps simplytold me they were considering clearingme; everyone seemed to agree that I wasphysically and mentally well enough tocontinue my service.It was suggested that my asthmawas reason enough to keep me fromgoing back to Zambia but I could goto Lesotho if I wanted. It seemed like adifficult decision at the time but I thinkI knew all along that I wanted to finish.Neither this illness nor my shame wasgoing to stop me from returning to dothe work I had set out to do. Maybe Icould even do it better the second timearound. So I said yes.I made the most of my new homeand my new Peace Corps family inLesotho. I started making friendsbutI kept my HIV status to myself.It was a heavy secret, but I felt toovulnerable and I wasn’t sure how Iwould be received. Two months intomy service I attended a Volunteertraining session where Volunteers talkedabout struggling with the emotionaltoll of living in a country where somany people were infected with HIV.I sat there, knowing that no one in theroom knew about me. One Volunteerconfessed, “I found out my counterpartwas positive and I am trying to givehim support and but it is emotionalfor me to know.” They were all beingso honest; I wanted to run out of theroom screaming.After many people spoke, ourdirector said, “One good thing aboutall this is that you have each other. Weare all in the same boat.” At that point Idid leave heading for the medical officeand the only people who did know thetruth. “I am not ‘in their boat’,” I said.I felt even lonelier and more left outthan I had before—something I hadn’tthought possible.After I calmed down a bit, I went to seethe Country Director. I told him I hadbeen thinking and I wanted to share myHIV status with all of the Peace CorpsVolunteers in Lesotho, all 87 of them.We were going to have an All-Volunteerconference in January and I wanted tohave a session in which I would share mystory. I knew I couldn’t keep it a secretand this way I could control how theinformation was revealed.Post med-evac/pre-transfer, the Tunkle visits her village and is surrounded by children. Theyspent all their spare time at her house doing yoga, playing games, and creating art projects.On the day of my talk, I was terrified.I was going to be taking my mostpersonal and private reality and layingit bare for everyone to see. I startedmy talk with a news article about theACLU case against the Peace Corps.Then, I told them my story. I told themI knew better than to have sex withouta condom. I told them I knew all thethings they know that make them feelimmune and I still got infected. In theend I asked them to make good useof me. I was the first infected personin service and I wanted to tell peoplewhat happened to me so that maybethey could learn from my mistake andnot repeat it. That was, after all, why Ireturned to Africa.I am happy to say my fellowVolunteers embraced me—and theystarted using me immediately. I wentto a Diversity Camp in Butha-Buthedistrict where 20 teenagers cametogether to learn to be more accepting ofthe differences around them. I was oneof the key speakers and I asked them tobrainstorm words that came into theirminds when they heard “HIV.” “Don’tcensor yourselves. Just say what evercomes to mind. Good or bad!” They did.I heard words like “prostitute” and “sex,”“anger” and “fear,” “stigma” and “blood.”We made a long list. And then I toldthem my story.I told them everything. They wereteenagers and statistics said they allwere probably having sex already. Theyreally listened, and afterwards askedquestions. One woman asked, “How doyou have so much courage to stand upin front of us and tell us these things?”I just looked back at the list wemade and said, “If I feel too afraid tospeak about this to all of you then Ilet this list define me. I refuse to letthis illness keep me locked up in myown world of shame. And if by sharingmy story with you, maybe one ofyou rethinks having unprotected sex,then I have accomplished something.”For the first time, I felt like I hadn’tbecome infected for nothing. Maybethis happened to me so that I couldshare it with people. Maybe it had apurpose in my life.I did that many more times duringmy time in Lesotho. I went to fourDiversity Camps. I spoke at schoolsand youth centers. I spoke to peereducators, youth groups, and students.I spoke to primary schools andsecondary schools. I even traveled twodays up into the mountains to speakto a HIV-positive support group abouta healthy way to deal with hard anddark emotions. People really heardme. I felt connections with the peopleof Lesotho like I had never felt inPaul Tunkle34 Summer 2010

Zambia. People came and shared theirstories back with me. They asked mequestions and invited me to theirhomes. I felt the force of belonging toa community.I spent my second year of the PeaceCorps speaking my truth over and overagain. The fact is none of that wouldhave been possible if it weren’t for thecourage of other Volunteers who stoodup to the Peace Corps. The Peace Corpsdid something they had never donebefore and let me, an HIV-positiveVolunteer serve out my time in Africa.I received more from sharing my storythan I could have ever given to thepeople of Lesotho.I think the Peace Corps is like that.We go to faraway lands to give ofourselves, to help, to make somethingbetter but it is the people who houseus and love us and work beside us thattruly give to us. They gave me a senseof purpose. They made me believethat something good could come outof getting a very scary, chronic illnessdiagnosis. And I believe that it did.I would never have asked to becomeinfected with HIV. But without it, thecommunity of people living with thevirus around the world would be justout of reach, and I want to connect. Iwant to cross over the line that separatesand make a connection.So here I find myself. My serviceis complete. I am back in America. Iserved my country. I told my story.Somehow I think I answered my“Why.” The work I did as a volunteerin Zambia was forever on the outsidelooking in. Later, infected in Lesotho, Ifelt as though I had stepped through aninvisible barrier and was welcomed withopen arms.*See the August 2008 issue of theLesbian, Gay, Bisexual ReturnedPeace Corps Volunteers newsletterfor information about the JeremiahJohnson case and changing Peace Corpspolicy related to PCVs with HIV.(http://www.lgbrpcv.org/articles/08_08_johnsoncase.html)Master of New Professional Studies:Peace OperationsStudy the theory and practice of peace operations, internationalcivilian police operations, nongovernmental organizations,elections, refugees/internally displaced persons, andgovernance with world-renowned scholars and practitionersat one of the nation’s leading schools of public policy.• Small classes taught by world-renowned faculty• Conveniently located in the metropolitanWashington, D.C., area• Full-time or part-time study• Affordable costTo find out more, please contact Graduate Admissionsat the School of Public Policy at George Mason Universityat spp@gmu.edu or 703-993-8099.Q. What drives real sustainable development?A. Products, Services, Jobs ... BusinessThe MBA for WorldchangersGlobal Social and Sustainable Enterprisewww.csugsse.orgElizabeth Tunkle (Zambia 07-08,Lesotho 08-09) can be contacted atelizabethtunkle@yahoo.comWorldView 35

Letters From LesothoCOMPASSION IN ACTIONOpen hearts in Lesothoby Kaye ThompsonHere in Lesotho, Africa’sMountain kingdom whereI serve as a Peace CorpsVolunteer, I often have the goodfortune to observe subtle and quietacts of kindness. They are simple yetbreath-taking.A Masotho friend, ‘M’e Mobola(‘M’e serves for “Mrs.”) invited me toher graduation party at her home in anearby village. Many friends, familyand neighbors attended the eventthat included a feast, speeches, livemusic and lots of joale (homemadebeer). When the speeches began,my friend’s adult son, Thepe, whowas already overflowing with drink,took center stage to talk about hismother. Thepe’s words were slurred,he kept breaking down in tears, andhe didn’t seem to know when to quit.View of the Peka area near St.Rose Mission, in Lesotho.After a reasonable amount of time,Ntate (Mr.) Mobula went up to hisson, put his arm around him and satdown with him, effectively quietinghim without any shame or blame.Everyone applauded and the speechesproceeded. I was impressed with thegentleness and generosity in whichthis was handled by the father and bythe guests.‘M’e Mobula’s family is known fortheir open-heartedness to those inneed and therefore often have a fewof the poorest showing up on theirdoorstep. They gather food for thevillage orphans and do small acts tosupport the homeless and disabled.One of the individuals they regularlyfeed is Teboho, a developmentallydisabled man who is given food andtreated kindly when he stops by.Teboho wandered into the gatheringwhile the speeches were going on.He had only his tattered blanket, histoeless shoes and a smile. He stoodin front of the tent in a prominentspot and waited. Within minutes,Ntate Mobula approached Tebohoand ushered him into the tent whereeveryone was sitting. Ntate gavehim a seat alongside other familymembers and he became a part ofthe group. Again, I was struck by thespontaneous, quiet kindness of thisaction by father of the family.Soon after, another village regular,Thato, came into the gathering. Thatois a teenage orphan who is mute,mentally disabled, and wanders thevillage half-clothed. This child isthe essence of “vulnerable” with noguardian, no communication skills, andlittle ability to care for himself.He is completely at the mercyof the good will—or badwill—of those around him.This day was warm, soThato had no desire forclothing. He came into thegathering and stood behindthe speaker, naked andoblivious. The speech wenton and people acted as if theydidn’t see anything unusual.I, on the other hand, wasshocked, uncomfortable, andfascinated. I kept lookingaround to see if anyone wastaking notice besides me.Finally, a Masotho woman,looking a bit flustered, wentto the young man and ledhim away, back onto theroad outside the party. Butboth ‘M’e and Ntate Mobulajumped up from the table andbrought the young man backinto their compound.Kaye Thompson36 Summer 2010

Kaye ThompsonPut YourPASSIONInto PracticeGrandmothers and their grandchildren gather at St. Rose Primary to receive donated food fororphans.While the speeches went on,the family bustled around behindthe scenes looking for some spareclothing. They found a pair of sweatpants, assisted the young man indressing, and brought him a plate offood. The speeches continued, thehosts rejoined the gathering, and Ibreathed a sigh of relief.To me these are the ultimateexamples of compassion in action.This is the true spirit of all religions.Compassion is the simplest ofactions, yet it takes us to the deepestpart of our values. Much is saidabout the breakdown of the familysupport system in Lesotho due topoverty and the high AIDS infectionrate. But this couple displayed suchspontaneous and authentic care notonly to their own, but to whoeverwandered into their sphere. Theyoffer a fine example of what “walkingthe talk” looks like, what the GoldenRule suggests.I now carry within me theirexample of what compassion canlook like. I will remember throughtheir actions that humankind, evenin its most impoverished state,has enough to feed and clothe theneediest of us. And I see that thecore values of Basotho people arestill living and breathing. Afterthe basic needs for food and waterare met, there comes our need forcontact, our need to be seen.We are surrounded both by needsand by opportunities to addressthese needs. Compassion is theopening of our own hearts to theOther. We may only be able to giveothers a moment, some eye contact,a greeting, a sympathetic murmur.But perhaps that is enough for bothus and the other to feel that there isa connection, that caring exists, andthat there is hope. Although we mayfeel helpless and at a loss to address somany overwhelming needs of others,we always have our compassion tooffer. In that we are offering thebest of ourselves, the truest part ofourselves, the part of us that will liveon in Lesotho long after our bodiesand our project monies have left.Kaye Thompson is a Peace CorpsVolunteer in Lesotho. In a prior life,Kaye worked as a psychiatric socialworker in Sacramento, Ca. for 25 years.For more of her experience in Lesotho,visit http://kayeinlesotho.blogspot.com.Master’s Degree Programsn Sustainable Developmentn Conflict Transformationn International Educationn Intercultural Relationsn Nonprofit and NGOManagementn TESOL“SIT provides the internationalenvironment that Peace CorpsVolunteers seek.”—Mary StrabalaRPCV, Costa Rica 1991–1993SIT MA in Teaching alumnaRPCV Scholarships AvailableStill accepting applicationsfor Fall 2010www.sit.edu/graduate1-800-336-1616WorldView 37

Letters From Gambia – DlightUNFAILING LIGHT, PART IIAn RPCV brings D.light to West Africaby Doug RicketDecember 19, 2009, 9:00pm, SancheNdaxar village, SenegalDarkness hangs over the villagelike a heavy black felt curtain,occasionally yanked aside aspeople burst into my hut with a wad ofmoney in their hands.“I’ll take two!” says the tall Wollofman in the long kaftan, and there’s aflurry of activity for the next minuteas we count dozens of ragged bills andpull out a couple of brand new D.lightKiran solar lamp boxes. This nocturnalbustle carries on for some time, withpeople coming and discussing, goinghome, coming back with money, andlistening to us explain how you onlyneed to put the lamp in the sunlight allday, and at night it will provide lightfor your house.This frenzied session began earlierthat day, when my wife, Jennifer, at herWollof lesson, correctly understood ourhost-uncle’s comment “Seerut! Seerut!”(“It’s not expensive”) and we decided tooffer the lamps for sale.My story here began in 2003when I came to The Gambia as aPeace Corps Volunteer and left withthe idea that business is vital tosustainable development. I taughthigh school and university classeshere for two years, which gave me aconcrete day job insulated from whatI came to see as the dependencybreedingeffects of foreign aid andcharity running wild in The Gambia.When I left Peace Corps, my mindwas spinning with the idea of startinga business, something that wouldcreate local jobs. A chance at successfor those willing to pursue it.I returned to my roots in SiliconValley, working at Google for fouryears, but twice visiting the Gambia,unable to erase from the corner of myThe D.light / Gambia team on a road show.mind that still throbbed with memoriesof my host family .In December 2008, my wife Jenniferand I caught up with a close friendwho had co-founded D.light, acompany with the mission of bringingaffordable light to the world’s poor.Something clicked. Jennifer and Istayed up late that night, discussingthe possibility of abandoning our easyCalifornia lifestyles and throwingour lot in with D.light in Africa. Wedecided that, worst case, we couldsurvive on our savings for a couple ofyears, and come right back to wherewe had started. We were in.After two weeks in the village lastDecember, we came back to thecapital, Banjul, and began cutting ourway through the red tape of businessand residency registration. One earlysurprise was the $1,500 fee for a workpermit; the endless waiting in line andshuttling from bureaucratic office tooffice across the city in the dust andthe heat was expected. Driving was anew experience—I didn’t drive in thePeace Corps—and it came with plentyof lessons on how to deal with police;in the US, I’m most on the lookoutfor a speeding ticket—here, I’ve beenstopped repeatedly for a dusty car,among other offences.In March I drove to the port everyday for a week to clear my first shippingcontainer. I was satisfied with the result,but I did notice that my forms had anextra digit in the tax column comparedto everyone else’s—something to workon for next time.Doug Ricket38 Summer 2010

Despite the occasional bumps, andalthough my focus is distribution, it’sbeen a fantastic adventure being part ofD.light’s development process:1. Understand: Go into the poorestparts of the world, sit down withthe locals, observe and listen to theirproblems.2. Design: Brainstorm solutionson the whiteboard using the mostadvanced technology.3. Manufacture: Produce the highestqualityproducts for the lowest price.4. Distribute: Get the products to thepeople who need them at a price theycan afford.I believe this cycle, which itselfis inspired by Peace Corps’ grassrootsethos, is a core strategicapproach that will let D.light bringmany useful products to millionsworldwide. I also have faith that ifI sell a product to a customer, andthat customer comes back again orbrings a friend to buy, it means wehave found a win-win situation forprogress and growth.Another adventure has been comanagingthe business with my wife.The best part is that I get to spendall day with the woman I love, ratherthan just seeing each other aroundthe borders of a 9-to-5 workday.And of course the hardest part isthat we spend all day together, sosome limits have been set, e.g. noThe D.light table at a weekly market.Alieu and Doug unloading D.light lamps.business meetings at 11:00 p.m. inthe bedroom. We’ve each found ourhobbies: my gardening, her cats. Iwouldn’t trade it for anything else.Last month I accepted the invitationof a village shopkeeper, who hadbought several lights, to introduce meto other merchants in the large townin his area. After giving our sales pitchat various market stalls, one merchantagreed to place the biggest order wehad seen yet! But the real surprise cameat the next stall when that merchantstarted explaining and demonstratingthe lights to a third potential customeras I sat silently. I felt a wave of awewash over me at how people can lookat these products and see their inherentgoodness, bringing light to thosewho live in the dark; I felt hopeful,seeing other people take up the ideaand promote it, from conversation toconversation, handshake to handshake,beyond what I could accomplish iflimited to just myself; and I felt joy thatI can be a part of this network, neitherthe first link nor the last in the chain,but part of something bigger.“Why are you helping me like this?”I asked the village shopkeeper as wewalked out.He turned to me and replied, “I’mdoing this to help my people.”Doug Ricket (Gambia 03-05) isManaging Partner at Silicon ValleyTechnology Partners, a distributor forD.light in West Africa. “UnfailingLight,” a profile of D.light founder andRPCV Sam Goldman, appeared In theSeptember 2007 issue of WorldView andcan be read at http://peacecorpsconnect.org/unfailing-light. To learn more, visitwww.dlightdesign.com or contact Doug atdoug@svtechpartners.com.WorldView 39

Profiles In ServicePIGS FOR PEACEWith the help of pigs, Nancy Glass gives Congolese women economic securityby Jennifer WalkerHow can Nancy Glass, Ph.D,MPH, RN, help Congolesewomen recover from theviolence, rape, and displacement fromtheir homes and families that theyhave endured during their country’scivil war? She wants to start by givingthem hope, empowerment, economicsecurity—and a pig.Glass first began working with theCongolese as a young Peace Corpsvolunteer in a rural hospital in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo (thenZaire) from 1990-1991. The experienceinspired her career. “The reason I becamea nurse is because I worked with nursesthere,” she says. “I realized all the thingsthat nurses could do.”She read about the Johns HopkinsUniversity School of Nursing’sAccelerated Baccalaureate program—a13-month curriculum for students whoalready have bachelor’s degrees—inWorldView. Glass returned to the U.S.,enrolled and went on to receive master’sdegrees in both nursing and public healthfrom Johns Hopkins and a doctorate innursing from the University of Maryland,Baltimore.Her Peace Corps experience informsher work daily. As an Associate Professorin the Department of CommunityHealth at the Johns Hopkins UniversitySchool of Nursing, Glass teaches a globalhealth elective to undergraduate nursingstudents, many of whom are ReturnedPeace Corps Volunteers. She is also anAssociate Director of the Johns HopkinsCenter for Global Health, an agency thataddresses international health challengeslike malnutrition and HIV/AIDS.Glass’ work in the U.S. has focused onvictims of violence so it’s no surprise thatshe feels a pull to help Congolese women.After spending two years talking to thecountry’s rape victims, Glass and hercolleagues learned that they just wantedDr. Glass with a child survivor of the violencethat spread throughout the Congoto rebuild their lives. “Everyone said that,over and over again… [But] they neededthe economic resources to do that,” Glasssays. “Raped women in any society areisolated. But when they have wealth, therape becomes less important. They’re aproductive member of the community.”To provide those economic resources,Glass started the microfinance programPigs for Peace in 2008 with the nonprofitGreat Lakes Restoration, an organizationfounded by local Congolese MatthiasCinyabuguma, Ph.D. “We work withwomen who are in their villages andwant to stay in their villages,” saysGlass. “[And] in rural Africa, survival isagriculture and your animals.”Enter the pig. Pigs for Peace beganby loaning four pigs to four Congolesefamilies. The pigs breed twice a year andthe piglets can be used for meat or soldfor about $40 at the market per animal—a good return for the average Congolesewoman who makes $89 a year. “They usethe money to get their kids back in schooland buy clothing,” Glass explains. “OneMitima Remywoman built a house; another woman isgoing to start a business selling shoes inthe market. They become very creative inhow they use their pigs for the future.”Unlike traditional microfinanceprograms, Pigs for Peace does not requirecash as repayment for a pig. Instead, thefirst four families gave two piglets backto the program, one from each of theirfirst two litters. The piglets were loanedto other women in the village, who alsorepaid their loans with two piglets. Thissystem has helped Pigs for Peace growexponentially – to date, 110 families havereceived pigs.Pigs for Peace also recently loaned fivepigs to a nun who runs an orphanage for30 Congolese children, many of whomare rape victims. The money she receivesfrom the pigs will be used to pay thechildren’s school fees and to buy fooduntil they are reintegrated into theirfamilies. “It will also be an educationfor the kids,” says Glass. “They’ll have askill and know about pigs and how toraise them.”40 Summer 2010

But why did Glass choose pigsinstead of other animals common to theCongolese culture, like cows and goats?Glass explains that these animals aretypically associated with wealth and,thus, controlled by men. “[But] womencan be the proprietors of the pig,” shesays. “They’ve been raising pigs forgenerations.” Pigs are also relatively easyto manage: they live on a small area ofland, they eat everything, and women cantake care of them with limited training.But there is a downside: women haveto wait several months before theirpig has its first litter. “In that time, thewoman has to be able to feed and managethe pig,” says Glass. “That’s not easy forfamilies who are struggling.”To provide additional support in thebeginning, as well as throughout theprocess, each village has an association—“kind of like a solidarity group,” Glass says.Women learn practicalities like how tobuild a pig pen and what to feed their pigs,but they also share advice with each otherabout raising and managing their animals.Although the program has had asuccessful first year, Pigs for Peace stillneeds to grow tremendously to providepigs for the 700 families on its waitlist,and for Glass to implement her plans toexpand the program. (She wants to opena butchery where women can make andsell sausage in the region’s largest city.)The good news is that it doesn’t takemuch money to purchase a pig: with a$50 donation, Pigs for Peace can loanone pig to a family, and provide a pen,veterinary care, some food, and educationabout pig farming. “One pig in sixmonths is going to be six piglets,” saysGlass. “That $50 has an impact.”It will also help build a programthat has a lasting effect. “People say‘Oh, you’re not serving 10,000 peoplelike other organizations’ and that’strue…but we’re building projects that aresustainable,” Glass says. “We’re trying todo it village by village and then we let thevillage take over.”To learn more about Pigs for Peace or todonate a pig, please visit http://www.glrbtp.org/projects_p4p.html.Jennifer Walker has long been fascinatedwith healthcare thanks to the stories sheheard from her mother, a urology operatingroom nurse at Johns Hopkins Hospital.A native Baltimorean, her work has alsoappeared in Baltimore magazine and TheBaltimore Sun, and she maintains a websiteat www.jenniferlwalker.com.Giving BackTHE PEACE CORPS COMMUNITY MAKING A DIFFERENCEby JoAnna HaugenPROMOTINGSELF-SUFFICIENCYIN ROMANIAWhen her Peace Corps service cameto an end, Leslie Hawke (Romania00-02) stayed in the country andfounded The Alex Fund, whosemission is “to promote self-sufficiencyamong marginalized peoplethrough education, job training andcommunity empowerment.” One ofthe organization’s recent initiatives isEvery Child in School, a 15-year planto put every Romanian child on a paththat can lead to high school graduation.It hopes to eradicate illiteracy andprimary school abandonment byproviding at-risk children with skillsets that will help them succeed andcomplete school, which will then leadto increased career opportunities andimproved living conditions.http://www.alexfund.org/BETTER HEALTH AND PRE-SERVED RESOURCESIN TANZANIATo address the high rates ofdeforestation and respiratory diseasesthat are caused by using wood asa source of fuel in Tanzania, SolarCircle is distributing low-cost solarovens in the country. Villagers inTanzania are not just given solarovens; rather, they have donated theirtime by digging latrines, buildinghomes and providing care for thosewho are HIV-positive in exchangefor the ovens. Board member JudyMartin (Tanzania) helped introducesolar cooking in the Masasi Districtin 2001. Approximately 1,100 solarovens have been distributed since theprogram began.http://solar-circle.org/WORKING AT THE NEXUS OFHEALTH, EDUCATION ANDENTERPRISE IN KENYATARA works with impoverishedcommunities to help improve the qualityof life through the exchange of ideas andresources. The organization’s flagshipcommunity, a town called Kojwach, iswhere director of project developmentAlyssa Lowe (Kenya 04-06) served in thePeace Corps. Creation of a communitycenter is at the core of TARA’s focus.By creating a dynamic, safe space in thecommunity, local people have a tangiblerepresentation of community ownershiparound which economic-, health- andeducation-based projects can be created.One of TARA’s first major initiatives wasa girls’ education project that providedresources and skills training for girlson how to manufacture, market anddistribute sanitary napkins from locallyavailable resources.http://www.taraproject.org/WorldView 41

Community NewsRECENT ACHIEVEMENTS OF OUR COMMUNITYby JoAnna HaugenBENINMonique Schmidt accepted a positionas the director of the Akilah Institute forWomen in Rwanda last November, andthe school has been open since February2010. The school is free of charge foryoung women who are accepted intothe program. The school was founded togive Rwandan women orphaned by thegenocide a chance to receive an educationand learn skills needed in Rwanda’sgrowing tourism industry. It offers atwo-year-degree program that teachesEnglish, hospitality skills, leadership andempowerment. As director, Schmidtessentially built the school from nothing;even so, the Akilah Institute for Womenis already proving to be a success.Prior to this position, Schmidt was anadjunct professor at Topkins CortlandCommunity College. She is the author ofLast Moon Dancing, which was publishedin 2005.CAMEROONThree years ago Brian and Diane Murphy(88-90) posed a challenge to a group ofboys involved in a local Cub Scouts troop.In order to expand their horizons, theyasked the boys if they’d be willing to raisemoney to assist kids in other parts of theworld. Since then, the boys in Webelos2(the group the Murphys created) haveraised $750 for Ryan’s Well project, anorganization dedicated to funding a cleanwater drinking well in Malawi; $350 forthe KIVA Loans Program; and $550 forthe Nothing but Nets organization.Thomas S. Lewis (87-89) was recentlyappointed as Johns Hopkins University’svice president for government andcommunity affairs. He will also bethe vice president of Johns HopkinsMedicine. Prior to this appointment,Lewis served as director of state affairsof the university and was a part ofMaryland’s state government for morethan 17 years. Lewis earned his bachelor’sdegree from the University of Maryland,College Park; his law degree from theUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore; andhis master’s degree from the AmericanGraduate School of InternationalManagement.Cameroon RPCVs are continuing tomake a difference—this time in Iraq.While at a Provincial ReconstructionTeam leaders conference in Baghdadearlier this year, several RPCVs had thechance to meet and catch up, presumablydiscussing where it was possible to findfufu in Iraq.Pictured (l-r) are: Andy Snow (75-78), PatrickMurphy (85-88), U.S. Ambassador to IraqChristopher R. Hill (74-77), John Underriner(82-84), Ron Verdonk (80-83). Not picturedbut also in Iraq: Charlie Russell (81-84) andJim Dobson (PC Country Director)CONGOSteve Smith (84-86), an expert inrenewable energy and conflict resolution,was instrumental in guiding the UnitedNations, USAID and many other nongovernmentalorganizations in dealingwith the genocide in Rwanda, whichbegan in 1994 and has had residualaffects in the region. He originally led ateam of former Peace Corps volunteersand conflict resolution specialists to assiston the ground in Rwanda. Today Smithhas turned his expertise to Sudan, wherehe is currently on assignment as the earlyrecovery adviser for Darfur with the U.N.Development Program’s Bureau of CrisisPrevention and Recovery.COTE D’IVOIREFourteen years ago, Jan Schilling (62-64) decided to dedicate her savings to ascholarship program that awards $5,000a year, renewable for four years, to alow-income, black, female student atKennedy High in El Cerrito, California.Her ongoing gift has allowed manyyoung women to attend college atuniversities around the country wherethey have pursued a variety of careers.Schilling is currently the executivedirector at Weigh of Life, a nonprofitthat helps families improve their livesthrough better eating habits, regularphysical activity and social support.EASTERN CARIBBEANAmy Dreves (84-87) is a research andextension entomologist at Oregon StateUniversity, where she is an integratedpest management specialist working withmany crops including hops, grapes, berries,stone fruits, grasses grown for seed andvegetables. Her interest in entomology hastaken her to Mali, Nepal, Alaska, SouthAmerica and Morocco with governmentagencies and private companies. Dreveshas master’s and doctorate degrees fromOregon State University.ETHIOPIARep. John Garamendi (66-68) recentlybecame a member of the U.S. Congresswhen former representative EllenTauscher became an Undersecretary ofState. Prior to this position, Garamendiwas a state legislator in California for16 years. He also served two terms asCalifornia’s Insurance Commissioner, oneterm as California’s Lieutenant Governorand three years in the U.S. Departmentof the Interior under President Clinton.42 Summer 2010

GAMBiARobert Leoni (02-03) is an investmentadvisor at OnPath LLC, where he focuseson socially responsible investing as itrelates to issues such as the environment,human rights, weapons production,gambling and corporate responsibility.Leoni has worked in the financial field forfive years. After his Peace Corps service heheld a leadership role with Church WorldService / CROP Walk.GHANANearly 50 years ago Ford Tucker Johnson,Jr., was the successful plaintiff in two casesbefore the Supreme Court: An appeal of a1960 conviction for trespassing at a lunchcounter and a 1962 contempt convictionin a traffic court. Both cases helped leadto the desegregation of courtrooms andother public facilities. Upon return fromhis Peace Corps service, Johnson wentto Harvard Law School. He is currentlythe president of the Koba Institute,which provides services for children withemotional and behavioral problems inSilver Spring, Maryland.HAITIPaula Egan-Wright (85-87) recentlyreturned from Haiti, where she spent10 days translating for doctors, dentistsand patients at a clinic in Port-au-Prince.Since returning to the United States,Egan-Wright has undertaken a numberof initiatives to help raise money andcollect supplies for the country. She andher students are participating in a walkfor water in conjunction with WorldWater Day; the funds they raise will gotoward a well for Maissade, Haiti. Egan-Wright is also helping an orphanage inLes Cayes by developing a secure websitefor the organization, working on securingscholarships at a local community collegefor three young men from Haiti whoseschools were destroyed by the earthquakeand creating medical kits, which willaccompany a physician’s assistant on afuture trip to the country. She is alsodesigning a calendar made of her sketchesthat she plans to sell to raise money.JAMAICANow nearing retirement, David Adams(66-68) is looking forward to spendingmore time and energy on fish pondprojects. Over the past eight years, Adamshas helped finance almost 20 pondsaround the world. In order to financemore ponds, he is loaning money forcommunity growth through Kiva.KOREAAfter serving as MetLife Korea’s CEOfor nearly a decade, Stu Solomon (71-73), now MetLife Korea’s chairman,will be able to devote more time to hisrole as chairman of the MetLife KoreaFoundation. Solomon has served aschairman of the Foundation since itsinception in 2005. In this position,Solomon has the opportunity to leadmany projects that help underprivilegedmembers of society. He has a particularinterest in supporting projects forchildren with disabilities. In additionto providing financial support, theFoundation evaluates its recipientorganizations, holds workshops forsocial workers and offers expert feedbackthrough advising professors. Morerecently, it has been focusing on theelderly and the many issues facing thisgrowing segment of Korean society.Solomon received his degree fromSyracuse University.Stuart SolomonLESOTHOCatherine Zandonella (90-92)recently wrote Green Guide Families:The Complete Reference for Eco-FriendlyParents, which serves as a go-toreference for parents who want to makeeco-friendly and healthy choices forCatherine Zandonellatheir families. Zandonella is a sciencejournalist and has published numerousarticles in New Scientist, Nature andother publications. She has also been thescience editor of National GeographicGreen Guide since 2002 and is amember of the National Associationof Science Writers, the Society ofEnvironmental Journalists and theAuthor’s Guild. Zandonella received herbachelor’s degree from the Universityof California, Santa Barbara, and hermaster’s degree from the University ofCalifornia, Berkeley.LIBERIAAs a Peace Corps volunteer, BillHolland relied upon his copy of TheJames Beard Cookbook. More than40 years later, he is revisiting his lovefor cookbooks with the launch of anonline cookbook store called CookbookBazaar. Holland worked as a journalistfor Billboard Magazine until it foldedits Washington, D.C., office in 2005.Today he spends his time hunting forcookbooks at thrift stores and estate salestwo or three times a week.MALIMai-Lan Tomsen Bukovec (94-95)is currently the product unit managerfor Internet information services atMicrosoft, where she runs a team of50 engineers who work across test,development and program management.She earned her degree from theUniversity of California at San Diego.WorldView 43

MOROCCOThe Wikimedia Foundation recentlyhired Danese Cooper (81-82) as its chieftechnical officer. In her new position,Cooper will oversee the foundation’stechnical strategy and tech team, whichincludes Wikipedia. She is the only femaleCTO in the top 10 websites, a memberof the Apache Software Foundation andserves on the board of the Open SourceInitiative. Prior to joining WikimediaFoundation, Cooper worked at Intel, SunMicrosystems and REvolution.NEPALDoug Biggs is the executive director ofAlameda Point Collaborative, a homelessservices center in the Bay Area that has200 housing units for 500 residents.Biggs previously worked for CAREInternational, San Francisco ConservationCorps (where he taught job skills toinner-city youth) and Sojourn to thePast, a nonprofit that takes children tosites from the civil rights movement. Inaddition to his work with Alameda PointCollaborative, Biggs also serves on the city’sSocial Services Human Relations Board.NICARAGUAFour days after the earthquake in Haiti,Myk Manon (70-73) and two otherpower specialists from the National RuralElectric Cooperative Association were inthe country to help restore electricity. Allfour power plants serving Port-au-Princewere offline and power lines were strewneverywhere, but Manon and his colleagueshad the first of the four plants runningwithin 10 days of the earthquake. Twoof the four plants are now back onlineand service has since been restored to25 percent of the country’s customers,including to critical areas such as theUniversity Hospital.The School Administrators Association ofNew York State (SAANYS) has selectedRuth G. King, the principal of the HomerElementary School, as the 2010 New YorkState Elementary School Principal of theYear. She has been an elementary-leveladministrator for 20 years, 18 of whichhave been in her current position. Kingis an active member of SAANYS and theNational Association of Elementary SchoolPrincipals. She is also a member of PhiDelta Kappa and Seven Valleys ReadingCouncil. King received her bachelor’sdegree from Kean University and a master’sdegree and certificate of advanced studyfrom SUNY Cortland.NIGERKim Arth (99-01) is the director ofArizona State University’s Deer ValleyRock Art Center, which has more than1,500 Native American petroglyphs madebetween 800 and 5,000 years ago. It wasthe first public education and curationfacility established by the U.S. Army Corpsof Engineers. Arth has her master’s degreein anthropology with an emphasis inmuseum education.William V. Timmons’ (65-67) bookBecker’s Farm has been picked up for amovie and is currently in pre-production.The book is about a German POW ona Nebraska farm. After his Peace Corpsservice, Timmons became a special adviserto the president of Niger and then spent10 years as an educational missionary inthe Philippines. He most recently workedas an adjunct art professor at CaliforniaBaptist University.Shannon Honeybloom, a blogger andactress, recently authored a book calledMaking a Family Home. The book is a guidefor families on how to create a consciousrichexistence focused on basic things likebeing together, paying attention and stayingattuned to the needs of loved ones. In thebook, Honeybloom also shares her storyon how her family was introduced to slowliving. The book grew out of her master’sthesis in early childhood education fromSunbridge College in Chestnut Ridge, NY.She also has a bachelor’s degree from theUniversity of Florida and a master’s degreefrom New York University.PARAGUAYJulie Connor (91-93) is the programdirector for Groundwork Denver, anonprofit organization that providessustained improvement of the physicalenvironment and promotes health andwell-being through community-basedpartnerships and action. It is currentlyfocused on green jobs for youth, leadbasedpaint poisoning prevention andgreenhouse gas emissions reduction.Conner trains volunteers to go door-todoor,educating residents on the thingsthey can do to retrofit their older homesfor energy conservation.SAMOAJohn C. Dean (69-71) is Central PacificBank’s newly appointed executivechairman of the board. He has spent29 years as a financial services industryexecutive and is currently managingpartner of Startup Capital Ventures. Forbescalled Dean one of the 50 most powerfuldealmakers and Business Week calledhim one of Silicon Valley’s top 25 moversand shakers. He is co-founder and chairemeritus of the Entrepreneur’s Foundationof Hawaii, and he endows a facultyposition at the University of Hawaii’sShidler College of Business.SIERRA LEONE;WASHINGTON, DCBillie Ann Day (Sierra Leone 61-63, 64-66, Washington, D.C. 66-68) is beinginducted into the Southwestern CollegeLeaders in Service Hall of Fame for thesocial sciences. She taught with the UrbanTeacher Corps and inaugurated the globalperspectives course at Banneker HighSchool. Day also served as an internationalelection observer in Bosnia and SierraLeone and volunteered with as a CrisisCorps Volunteer in Mississippi afterHurricane Katrina. She has been presidentof social studies associations, Peace Corpsalumni groups and the World HungerEducation Service; Day is currently thepresident of the District of ColumbiaLeague of Women Voters. Day has alsoserved on the boards of the NationalCouncil for the Social Studies and theNational Peace Corps Association. Shehas earned the Daniel Roselle LectureAward and Fulbright Scholarships to theNetherlands and Brazil.SIERRA LEONEAllen Mondell (63-65) for the last 40years has been a documentary filmmakerworking in both commercial and publictelevision although for the past 30 years,with his wife Cynthia, they have workedas independent filmmakers producing anddistributing documentary and educationalfilms (www.mediaprojects.org). He isnow working on a documentary about44 Summer 2010

Allen Mondellthe Peace Corps experience, telling thestory of PCVs through letters, diaries andjournals written while overseas. His goal isto complete the film during the celebrationof our 50th anniversary. To contributephotographs, drawings, and any footageshot on both film and videotape, you cancontact him at allen@mediaprojects.org.SURINAMEJeff Follett (02-04) has been working as theSouth America program officer for Treesfor the Future since 2008. The organizationteams up with Peace Corps volunteers toprovide resources for reforestation andagroforestry projects; Brazil is currently thecornerstone of the South America program.Follett received his bachelor’s degree fromthe University of Minnesota and graduatedegrees from American University and theUniversity for Peace.SWAZILANDSteve Kallaugher helped organize andwill be driving the support vehicle fora 200-mile bike trek fundraiser acrossSwaziland. The fundraiser is for YoungHeroes Foundation, an organizationKallaugher founded four years ago to helpchildren orphaned by the AIDS epidemicin Swaziland. He hopes the trip, which willtake place from May 3-May 10, will raise$10,000 in sponsorships.THAILANDBekah Douglass recently returned fromher Peace Corps service, where she workedas an English teacher. The experiencewas so meaningful to her she plans toreturn to Thailand and continue teachingEnglish for up to four more years. Sheis also working on creating a nonprofitorganization, which would help Thaistudents afford a college education.TOGOThe National Association of WomenBusiness Owners of Cleveland recentlyselected Victoria Tifft (08-10) as aTop Ten Woman Business Ownerof Northeast Ohio for 2010. Tifft ispresident and CEO of Clinical ResearchManagement, which is a full-servicecontract research organization thatsupports the development of FDAregulatedvaccines, pharmaceuticals andmedical devices for both government andcommercial customers.TONGAUniversity of Washington is honoringepidemiology professor Laura Koutsky(76-77) with the 2010 Grace HopperAward for Outstanding Achievementby the Seattle Girls’ School. Koutsky iscredited with developing the world’s firsthuman papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinealong with Dr. Kathrin Jansen.UGANDAKathryn Quinones (66-68), who splitsher time between Brookings, SouthDakota, and New York City, is currentlyin the production of And Then ThereWere None at the Brookings CommunityTheatre. She earned her bachelor’s degreefrom South Dakota State University anda master’s degree from the University ofSouth Dakota.UKRAINEHeather Sarkissian (99-00) is the CEOof mp3Car.com, a mobile computingtechnology company. She also co-organizesIgnite Baltimore, which lets a variety ofspeakers share their creative passions, and isthe founder of BmoreSmart, which bringstogether Baltimore social entrepreneurs todiscuss potential growth in the city andcollaborative program ideas.UZBEKISTANBob Lee and Ann Walker (04-05) met inthe Peace Corps and have been involved inADVERTISER INDEXAlexander von Humboldt Foundation, 25American University, College of Art & Sciences, 25American University, School of Public Affairs, 11Brandeis University, Heller School, 7Bryn Mawr, 21Colorado State University, College of Business, 35Columbia University, Mailman School, 7George Mason University, 35George Washington University, 13Goucher College, Cultural Sustainability, 19Goucher College, PostBacc PreMed, 15Indiana University, SPEA, 31Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Cover 2 - 1Loma Linda University, 6Monterey Institute of Int’l Studies, 9The New School University, Milano, 17Peace Corps, 22 -23Peace Corps Response, 9Tufts University, Fletcher School, 2University of Connecticut, 21University of Denver, 15Western Illinois University, 27Willamette University, 27World Learning SIT, 37volunteer work ever since. They work withthe American Red Cross, where they’vedone a variety of jobs including workingin shelters and conducting disasterassessments. They also teach disasterclasses, and every ten weeks they are oncall as part of the local Red Cross DisasterAction Team, which assists people afterfires. Lee and Walker have also spent timevolunteering in Tanzania and Cameroon.Lee is a volunteer at Carriage TownMinistries and for the Genesse CountyLiteracy Council as well. He is currentlypreparing for a seven-week volunteer tripto Haiti.WorldView 45

the National Peace Corps Associationcordially invites youto save this date:2011Tell A friendAbouT The 50th Andwin A TriP for Two!Update your contact information and sharethe good news about the 50th AnniversaryCelebration with at least three of yourPeace Corps friends. You’ll be automaticallyeligible to win a two-week, all-inclusivevolunteering trip to Central America foryou and a friend, courtesy of GlobalVision International (GVI).The Peace Corps turns 50 next year.You’re an important part of our history,and we’d like you to help us celebrate!We’re planning several events around the world to recognize this landmarkachievement. We want to make sure you don’t miss out on this globalcelebration, but we need to know the best way to keep in touch.You helped make history.Now, be part of the celebration.The 50Th AnniversAry of The PeAce corPs in 2011.Sign up here to receive your save the date:PeaceCorpsConnect.org/50thRSVP