From a quick look at our Peace Corps catalog, it becomes apparent that many of our collections are of those who served during the 1960s. To what extent however, are the other decades in which people served represented? The graph below presents our collections in a visual format, indicating trends in Peace Corps activity expressed through our holdings. (Note: Each year corresponds to each Peace Corps volunteer’s year of entry into the two-year program)
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:
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.