Author - Joanne Roll

Tim Mak writes in the Daily Beast’s Politics section, 8.16.14,  a comprehensive review of the continuing conflict between the Peace Corps and the Inspector General of the Peace Corps over the release of records pertaining to sexual assault victims. Mak gives a timeline detailing the attempt to resolve the issues. He also reports on his interviews with both Kathy Buller, the Inspector General of the Peace Corps and also an unnamed spokesperson for the Peace Corps.  Read the complete article at this link: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/08/16/the-peace-corps-awful-secret.html The following is an excerpt from Mak’s article” “The Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act of 2011 includes a process for volunteers to submit a confidential report of sexual assault. Disagreement over this process-the default method by which volunteers may file sexual assault allegations-is at the heart of the dispute between the Peace Corps and its inspector general. The law says that a volunteer can submit a . . .

Here is the link to this continuing story about the evacuation of Peace Corps from Ebola impacted countries. http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/peace-corps-volunteers-reluctant-evacuate-despite-ebola-outbreak-n170006

Nichols Castle, Peace Corps Volunteer, died, February 7, 2013, while serving in China. The New York Times investigated the circumstances surrounding this death and has published a series on this tragedy. The first  article describes these circumstances and includes interviews with Peace Corps Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet, the parents of Nicholas Castle, and Returned Peace Corps Volunteers.  The Inspector General of the Peace Corps, Kathy Butler, has not yet published her report of the death; but the Times article does link to the public documents the reporter obtained for her report. Read the NYTimes story as well as the 467 comments received about the story.   Here is the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/26/world/asia/peace-corps-death-china-medical-missteps.html The Times also published the accounts of Peace Corps Volunteers about their own experiences while serving. These stories include both positive and negative comments. Read the RPCV stories. Here is the link: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/07/25/world/peace-corps-stories.html?partner=rss&emc=rss In addition to the 467 comments received about its . . .

Peace Corps has issued the following press release: WASHINGTON, D.C., July 30, 2014 – The Peace Corps today announced that it is temporarily removing its volunteers from Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea due to the increasing spread of the Ebola virus. The agency has been and will continue to closely monitor the outbreak of the virus in collaboration with leading experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of State. The Peace Corps has enjoyed long partnerships with the government and people of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea and is committed to continuing volunteers’ work there. A determination on when volunteers can return will be made at a later date. In recent months, the Peace Corps has provided volunteers in adjacent areas of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea with guidance to ensure they take the utmost precautions to protect their health. Transmission of Ebola . . .

ABC News is reporting an AP story that Peace Corps has pulled Volunteers from Kenya.  Here is the link: http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/us-pulls-peace-corps-volunteers-kenya-24696220?singlePage=true Here is the AP story:  Please note that there is an error in giving the beginning of the Peace Corps.  It was President Kennedy, not Senator Kennedy, who initiated the Peace Corps on March 1, 1961 by Executive Order. “NAIROBI, Kenya — Jul 24, 2014, 1:05 PM ET By JASON STRAZIUSO Associated Press The Peace Corps is suspending its programs in Kenya because of security concerns and is pulling more than 50 volunteers out of the country until threat levels decrease, the Peace Corps and State Department said Thursday. A statement to The Associated Press from the State Department said that the Peace Corps “has been closely monitoring the security environment in Kenya … and has decided to officially suspend the program in Kenya.” The Peace Corps will monitor the security . . .

Peace Corps Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet continued her campaign to promote the Peace Corps by appearing, today, on C-Span’s Washington Journal. The Director described the new and speedy application process. She answered questions called in live from across the country.  To hear the program, here is the link: http://www.c-span.org/video/?320586-5/washington-journal-future-peace-corps

Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet  made this revelation  in an interview in MORE magazine. During this in-depth interview, the Director talked about the new application process as well as other changes in the Peace Corps. In discussing her own Peace Corps service, she referenced what had happened to her and how important safety and security for Volunteers was to her, now. The interview is made all the more gripping because it was conducted by Beatrice Hogan, RPCV Uzbekistan 92-94,who served as part of the first wave of volunteers sent to the former Soviet Union. Hogan is now Research Chief at MORE. Read the interview. Here is the link: http://www.more.com/news/personalities/carrie-hessler-radelet-peace-corps-director

Peace Corps is suddenly being promoted everywhere. A glamorous Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet appeared on RPCV Chris Matthews “Hardball” TV show. President Obama announces in a new TV commercial “Peace Corps Wants You.”The focus of the attention is the rollout of the new, streamlined application process. Numerous articles are describing and analyzing this new “quick” application process. To begin at the beginning, The Peace Corps Blog, Passport, has the announcement of the new process. Here is the text of the Passport Post: “The notion of going to another country to teach skills and learn about a different culture doesn’t seem out of the ordinary today, but for much of the Peace Corps’ history, we were the only volunteer program that let Americans make a difference and see the world. Over the course of 52 years, Peace Corps has sent 215,000 trained and skilled Americans to work beside people in host countries, . . .

Applications for the traditional Peace Corps, twenty-seven month tour, have been declining. This is happening at the same time that Peace Corps is undergoing a major reorganization. Peace Corps Response, the program of short-term assignments, is now open to qualified applicants who are not Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and appears to be attracting many applicants. Also, in addition to the graduate degree programs Universities are offering to RPCVs, Peace Corps is now in partnership with universities who are combining Peace Corps service with ongoing degree programs.So the questions may be: Are applicants choosing these new programs rather than the traditional programs? I don’t have the answer. But I will share some data on applications for the traditional program and Peace Corps Response that I obtained through Freedom of Information request (FOIA 14-213), as well as information in the Peace Corps Accountability Report of 2013. http://files.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/policies/annrept2013.pdf The numbers for comparison will be . . .

Always the very best way to understand Peace Corps history in a country is to turn to that country for perspective.  There may be conflicting opinions and that may be at the heart of the current controversy.  In 2009, then President Uribe wrote to Acting Peace Corps Director Jody Olson inviting the Peace Corps to return to Colombia.  His letter is a powerful testimony to the value of Peace Corps.  But years earlier, there was a popular movie in Colombia, entitled “El Rey”. The movie’s premise was that Peace Corps Volunteers had brought cocaine production and marketing to Colombia.  Peace Corps Online, published by RPCV Hugh Pickens, described the movie and the controversy. Here is the link to those articles: http://peacecorpsonline.org/messages/messages/467/2024372.html Thanks to RPCV Bob Arias  for a copy of President Uribe’s letter.  Bob’s extraordinary Peace Corps resume includes work with Peace Corps Response over five years in various South and . . .

On Memorial Day, the nation pauses to remember and honor those who died defending this country in War.  President Kennedy honored those not merely by recognizing their sacrifice but by working to make such sacrifices not necessary. In his last summer in his office, he signed the Test Ban Treaty with Russia and toured Europe, making his famous “Ich Bin a Berliner” at the Berlin Wall.Perhaps his most eloquent speech on behalf of peace, is the one he made in Bonn, Germany, heralding the beginning of the German Peace Corps.  I think it is fitting to listen again to him.  The President speaks of the conflict with Communism, a conflict that is now won and done.  But we face new threats and challenges,” including the common enemies of mankind.”  Kennedy’s words still ring true. Here  is this gem: Kennedy speaking about the creation of the German Peace Corps. It is . . .

Baylor  University has received a grant from the Congressional Directed Medical Research Project and administered by the U.S. Department of Defense. to study the potential of chloroquine to reduce the risk of breast cancer. (Corrected: July 2015)Chloroquine was taken to guard against malaria. Aralen is the name I knew for the the drug. This study group at Baylor has partnered with the National Peace Corps Association to locate women who served in the Peace Corps between 1961 and 1990.  This is not an official study of the United States Peace Corps. Here are  the important links to learn more about the study. National Peace Corps Association cancer study page is now live: http://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/2014/05/rpcvs-and-breast-cancer-prevention-study/ National Peace Corps Association  also have a blog post on it: http://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/cancerstudy/ The Baylor study will use an innovative sampling method, Respondent Driven Sampling, that requires each respondent to name and refer more respondents to the study. Here is . . .

First Response Action is the advocacy group created by RPCV Casey Frazee and fellow RPCV women who had been sexually assaulted during their service. These are the brave women whose work resulted in the passage of the Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act of 2011. To read more about the organization, here is the link: http://firstresponseaction.blogspot.com The legislation was designed to provide protocols and procedures to protect serving Volunteers and to ensure that if sexual assault unfortunately occurred, that the Volunteer would receive immediate care, based on best practices. The current  concern is  about how well the Peace Corps agency has fully implemented all the mandates of that law. The Office of the Inspector General for the Peace Corps evaluated  the implementation of the law and issued its current report, signed by all parties on November 13, 2013. The process of preparing such a report and giving the agency time . . .

The Strategic Plan for Peace Corps – Fiscal 2014 -2018 has been published. Here is the link: http://files.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/policies/pc_strategic_plan_2014-2018.pdf Written bureaucratically, it is still worth reading. Although, a translation from the early years would be so helpful. I found the following  goals or steps or bulletin points or targets of particular interest: The goal for applications for 2014 is 22,000. That is more than double the number of applications for 2013 and exceeds any number in the last seven years. The Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act of 2011 is still a goal to be reached, not a law  implemented. There will be two competitive internships to be offered to returning PCVs. Nothing about a policy of hiring RPCVs. There are no plans for a library nor a librarian. There is a statement that  program descriptions and other documents are only available to some carefully screened staff. This is done . . .

This information is copied from the 2013 Peace Corps Annual Performance and Accountability Report, page 21.   Here is the text to link to: http://files.peacecorps.gov/multimedia/pdf/policies/annrept2013.pdf “Reduction in the percentage of Volunteer positions that were filled by applicants for service (Indicator 4.1.1.b): Over the past three years, the agency has experienced difficulties in providing the number of Volunteers that have been requested by overseas posts. The number of Volunteers requested by a post represents the number of funded Volunteer positions that the post can fully support for 27 months of service. When Volunteer requests are not fully met, it represents a missed opportunity for the communities expecting Volunteers and for the talented and motivated Americans who could have served as Volunteers. The primary challenge in providing skilled Volunteers at the levels requested by posts   is the decrease in the number of applications for Peace Corps service over the last few years-from . . .