Peace Corps Seeking a RPCV Portal
There is a newsletter associated with the new website Peace Corps Live. But it has only been available to serving…
The Office of the Third Goal at the agency has requested of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to create a “Portal” that will allow RPCVs to update their contact information, share stories, request official documentation, view their service history, and enroll in outreach and marketing campaigns. The official title will be: Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Portal (RPCV Portal).
They say the general description of collection would be “To build a robust alumni network it is essential that Peace Corps maintains accurate and up-to-date contact information for RPCVs. By logging into the RPCV Portal, RPVCs access their record in the database directly, and are able to make changes and submit requests at their convenience. The updated contact information collected in the RPCV Portal will be used for outreach and support purposes, along with managing subscriptions for Peace Corps newsletters.” (Do we even have a newsletter from the agency?)
RPCVs has 60 days to comment (announced on December 10,2015.) Comments need to be submitted by February 8, 2016.
Reach out to Denora Miller who is a FOIA employee at the agency if you have questions and/or comments.
Her # is 202.692.1236
pcfr@peacecorps.gov
The Peace Corps (by asking for comments) want to know “whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for proper performance of the function of the Peace Corps, including whether the information will have practical use; the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of automated collection techniques, when appropriate, and other form of information technology.” (How’s that for a bureaucratic sentence?)
The parenthetical “How’s that for a bureaucratic sentence?” took the heavy off the middle, making it ok in the end. Cool and groovy. Ed
The “Third Goal of the Peace Corps” was stated in the Peace Corps Act, amended in 1998 was to provide “a better understanding of other peoples on the part of the American people.” I don’t see how this “portal” does that. Over the decades, RPCVs have fulfilled this Goal with their own time and dime. I think now Peace Corps has to do its part, beyond recruiting stories.
Over the years, Peace Corps has realized and been made aware that RPCVs need post-service support. That may mean medical care and career counseling. These are very genuine needs. Peace Corps also has recognized that RPCVs are a powerful force for advocating for Peace Corps. However, the legislation does not specifically fund these efforts. So, I think the Office of the Third Goal as morphed into a RPCV Support Service. I think that Peace Corps should be requesting that a RPCV Support Service be created. I think that the Office of the Third Goal should be refocused to “provide a better understanding of the peoples of the world,”now, more than ever.
There is a newsletter associated with the new website Peace Corps Live. But it has only been available to serving PCVs. There is a plan to allow RPCVs to subscribe. The RPCV portal proposal may be part of the plan.