Category Archives: News

Peace Corps Week 2014

This week marks the Peace Corps’ 53rd birthday.  The annual event commemorates the organization’s accomplishments at home and abroad, while also encouraging Peace Corps community members to renew their commitment to service.  

Whether returned or currently serving, the Peace Corps charges volunteers to increase cultural awareness by sharing their personal experiences and first-hand knowledge with other Americans.  This mission is fulfills the Peace Corps’ Third Goal, which seeks to promote peace through awareness and understanding of the diverse cultures around the world.

You can find more information about events in Peace Corps history by exploring the Interactive Timeline.

Peace Corps Community Archives’ Milestones

The Peace Corps Community Archives (PCCA) began at American University in spring 2013.  During its short existence, more than 12 collections have been added to the Archive.

Included below are a few fun statistics about what you can find in our PCCA collections (Note: Numbers refer to number of individual collections.).

17 Men, 10 Female

A few of the collections document the work of volunteers who served with their spouse.  Most volunteers, however, entered as single, young adults.

Most Common Types of work:

  • education
  • health and sanitation
  • community development

Countries where Volunteers Served:

Colombia- 11
Nigeria- 5
Philippines- 2
India- 2
Paraguay- 1
Belize- 1
Thailand- 1
Fiji- 1
Afghanistan- 1
Antigua- 1
Ukraine- 1
Suriname- 1

Decade of Service:

1960s- 21
1970s- 4
1980s- 0
1990s- 0
2000s- 2
2010s- 1

We are excited about the diverse and interesting collections currently available for the public to use, but we would also love your help to keep the Archive growing.  We are always looking for collections to add to the PCCA.  If you can help fill in the gaps, or are interested in finding a home for your collection of Peace Corps materials, please contact us by email at archives@american.edu or by phone (202) 885-3256.

A Peace Corps Exhibit at Gallaudet University

The webpage for "Making a Difference: Deaf Peace Corps Volunteers," which debuted at The Gallaudet University Museum.

The webpage for “Making a Difference: Deaf Peace Corps Volunteers,” which debuted at The Gallaudet University Museum.

In October 2011, Gallaudet University Museum opened an exhibition centered on the experiences of deaf Peace Corps volunteers.  “Making a Difference: Deaf Peace Corps Volunteers” incorporates photographs and objects to tell the stories of returned deaf volunteers.  Volunteers’ experiences abroad span from 1967 to 2011 and the countries of service include various locations including Ghana, Kenya, Ecuador, Zambia, Nepal, and the Philippines.  Using volunteers’ artifacts and personal experiences, the exhibit discusses issues relevant to society’s perception of the deaf, accessing education, and international relations.

To learn more about the experiences of deaf Peace Corps Volunteers, visit the exhibition located in the Weyerhaeuser Family Gallery and Exhibition Hall of the I. King Jordan Student Academic Center.

Bob Klein: Inspiration for the Peace Corps Community Archive

Bob Klein was among the first Peace Corps volunteers. After teaching in Ghana (1961-1963), he joined the Peace Corps overseas staff.  He served as Ghana Country Director from 1966 until 1968.  Bob was an ardent advocate for the documentation and preservation of the experiences of individual Peace Corps volunteers. He served as organizer for the Returned Peace Corps Archives Project, which collects Peace Corps oral histories in cooperation with the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.  Between 1999 and 2012, Bob interviewed close to 300 Returned Peace Corps Volunteers.  As the fiftieth anniversary of the Peace Corps approached, he increasingly stressed the importance of collecting archival materials.  With the assistance of Joanne Roll and Pat Wand, Bob prepared a concept statement for a Peace Corps Volunteer archive which they shared with the University Librarian at American University in late 2011.  This document became the starting point for a series of discussions which resulted in the inauguration of the Peace Corps Community Archive in March of 2013.

Before Bob Klein passed away unexpectedly in April 2012, he donated his papers to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library.  The collection includes a draft of his book, Being First, correspondence, Peace Corps publications, and circulars & memoranda from the Peace Corps Accra office.

Waging Peace Through a Lifetime of Service: Peace Corps Symposium

The American University Peace Corps symposium, Waging Peace Through a Lifetime of Service, was held on Thursday March 21st in the Abramson Family Founder’s Room in the School of International Service. The symposium featured fourteen returned Peace Corps volunteers (RPCVs), representing every decade of the Peace Corps, as well as every continent on which the Peace Corps has worked.  The volunteers also represented a diverse range of professional sectors, including the fields of education, Foreign Service, peacebuilding, academia, and government.

The RPCVs shared their five-minute Peace Corps story by answering twenty strategic questions.  The format of the presentations allowed the audience to make comparisons across time and place, telling the story not only of the Peace Corps, but also of international travel and international service.

Five friends of the Peace Corps also spoke, each offering their own unique perspective on Peace Corps and service.

For those of you who were not able to attend, you can watch the symposium via UStream.