Author - Joanne Roll

  Peace Corps has posted the following blog on its official web site. It includes comprehesive information about the Peace Corps Response Program.  Here is the  article: Preparing for your PCR Interview Are you ready to take the next step to become a Peace Corps Response Volunteer? Competitive applicants must complete an interview before moving forward in the application process. Read the blog post below to learn our five recommendations to best prepare for your interview! READ MORE Open Positions The Peace Corps continues to monitor and assess the COVID-19 pandemic domestically and internationally. The locations and timing of returning Volunteers to service will be determined on a country-by-country basis. We are currently actively recruiting for the positions below. English Teaching Advisor requires a bachelor’s degree in English education or a related field, experience in classroom teaching at the secondary level and in planning and implementing projects, and an intermediate . . .

  February 16, 2022 The anniversary will be commemorated during Peace Corps Week from February 27 to March 5 WASHINGTON – The Peace Corps will commemorate its 61st anniversary with a week-long virtual celebration, Peace Corps Week, from February 27 to March 5. This year’s theme is “Meet the Moment,” in recognition of the imperative to come together as a global community to tackle the historic challenges driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. In honor of the anniversary, Chief Executive Officer Carol Spahn will address the Peace Corps network and provide updates at a virtual event, “The Peace Corps Reimagined: A Keynote Address and Forum,” on March 3 from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. (EST). The event will also include three breakout sessions focused on the agency’s efforts to reimagine service, advance equity and deliver quality. Those interested in attending this public event can register here. Recordings of the address and breakout sessions will . . .

 Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Oral History Archive Project  January 2022 Newsletter  Welcome to the inaugural issue of the RPCV Oral History Archive Project (OHAP) newsletter. We plan to use the newsletter to keep you informed on OHAP developments. We will let you know about important ways in which you can help us achieve our mission to preserve Peace Corps experiences through in-depth oral interviews of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs), evacuated volunteers, Peace Corps staff and, we hope soon, host country counterparts.  2021 recap  Our numbers are soaring! As of the end of 2021, OHAP volunteers have conducted over 1300 oral history interviews with RPCVs and Peace Corps staff. Of these, about 800 audio interviews, conducted from 1990 through 2019, are archived at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives and Records Administration.  Since June 2020, more than 550 video interviews have been conducted remotely using a . . .

  Please note: This article was posted on the Peace Corps website on December 2nd.  They are accepting comments until Thursday, December 16th.  Please accept my apology for the late posting. Here is the link: https://www.peacecorps.gov/news/library/peace-corps-seeks-public-input-as-agency-develops-roadmap-to-strengthen-its-sexual-assault-risk-reduction-and-response-program/ Here is the notice: Peace Corps Seeks Public Input as Agency Develops Roadmap to Strengthen its Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Response Program December 2, 2021 Today, the Peace Corps announced the next phase of its work to strengthen the agency’s Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Response (SARRR) program. From December 2 to December 16, the public is invited to submit input and feedback about the Peace Corps’ efforts to enhance systems that support sexual assault risk mitigation and provide care to survivors. Following the release of the 2021 Sexual Assault Advisory Council (SAAC) report in November, Peace Corps leadership is conducting a comprehensive review of the recommendations outlined in the report and preparing . . .

Peace Corps has been working to establish a program in Vietnam since  2004 and today much has been done in anticipation of Peace Corps in Vietnam next year.  Read: “Annual Report July 2020 to July 2021 Building a Foundation” Peace Corps Vietnam From that report: “The Peace Corps opening in Viet Nam represents decades of work involving hundreds of people with a collective vision for promoting closer people-to-people ties between the United States and Viet Nam. In 2004, Le Van Bang Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs formally invited Peace Corps to Vietnam. Two years later, Peace Corps sent a four-person assessment team led by John L. Williams, the then Peace Corps Thailand Country Director, to Viet Nam to conduct a new country assessment. The report concluded that Viet Nam would provide a welcoming environment in which Volunteers would be successful. On May 24, 2016, during President Obama’s only official trip to . . .

Acting Director’s Message Welcome back to Inside Peace Corps, where we share updates on our work, both at headquarters and in the countries where our Volunteers are invited to serve. We have celebrated the legacy of the Peace Corps over the past weeks with anniversaries of the signing of the Peace Corps Act and of 60-year partnerships with Ghana, Tanzania, Colombia, and the Philippines. After attending these events – surrounded by partners, host community members, returned Peace Corps Volunteers, staff, and other supporters – I am in awe of the strength of the Peace Corps network, the values we live by, and the power of service to unite. This network has stepped up in countless, innovative ways to advance the Peace Corps’ mission of promoting world peace and friendship during this historic time. Those efforts have included virtual engagements with host country partners, staff programming outreach, interagency collaborations, and above-and-beyond . . .

  Right Now, We Need to Honor Peace Corps Ideals by Helping in Humanitarian Crises in Afghanistan and Haiti Here is what we’re doing to bolster efforts by the Peace Corps community. By Glenn Blumhorst It should strike us with no small significance that today, August 19, is World Humanitarian Day — a day to advocate for the survival, well-being, and dignity of people affected by crises. In just the past week, a devastating earthquake hit Haiti; thousands have been killed and injured. In Afghanistan, on Sunday the capital of Kabul fell to the Taliban. A chaotic U.S. exit and collapse of the Afghan military has created a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions — and fears of retribution and horrific treatment of women and girls under a new regime. Many of us in the Peace Corps community have deep personal ties to these countries. Volunteers served in both in years past. Many . . .

(Thank you to John Coyne and Marian Haley Beil for their advice and editing) Decades separated the Peace Corps service of Dr. Robert Textor (PC staff 1961-62) and RPCV Jerry Black (Comoros Island 1992-94, DC staff: OIG 2010-21). But they shared a special commitment to Peace Corps Sadly, neither are still with us. But their contribution to Peace Corps endures. Dr. Textor, age 89, died January 3, 2013. Tragically, Jeremiah Black was killed, caught in urban gun violence crossfire, in Washington, DC. June 29, 2021.   Their story begins In February of 2011, the Peace Corps Office of the Inspector General announced it would evaluate “Impacts of the Five-Year Rule on Operations of the Peace Corps.” The Five Year Rule is unique among Federal Agencies because it limits employment with Peace Corps to Five Years, with some critical exceptions. This evaluation was conducted under the direction of Jim O’Keefe, Assistant . . .

  Acting Director’s Message Welcome back to Inside Peace Corps, where we share updates on our work, both at headquarters and in the countries where our Volunteers are invited to serve. Today is International Day of Friendship, a good day to reflect on the power that relationships have to achieve world peace. I am incredibly grateful that the Peace Corps has given us the gift of friendships that span the globe. As a Country Director in Malawi, I heard countless Volunteers share that the relationships they developed with their host community – with local leaders, neighbors, counterparts, and friends – were what they valued most from service. In a similar way, I was frequently approached by Malawians seeking to reconnect with a Volunteer with whom they had worked side-by-side. As we continue to support staff, partners, and communities around the globe and navigate the ongoing complexities of COVID-19, we are . . .

https://www.peacecorps.gov/news/library/peace-corps-takes-steps-return-service-overseas/   “June 30, 2021 Agency will resume inviting volunteers to serve in countries that have met rigorous health, security and safety standards Today, the Peace Corps announced that it is a step closer to returning volunteers to overseas service. The agency will resume inviting volunteers to serve at posts that have met a comprehensive set of health, safety and security criteria. “Following 15 months of global isolation, tireless work by our staff around the world and incredible patience from our applicants and host country partners, the Peace Corps is moving forward in the process of returning to our overseas posts,” said Acting Peace Corps Director Carol Spahn. “The Peace Corps is advancing with an abundance of caution, flexibility and pragmatism, but also with so much hope about all the important work that is ahead of us.” While the COVID-19 pandemic remains a dynamic challenge, the agency has developed a . . .

Appropriations Subcommittee calls for a $430.5 million budget for 2022 – an increase of 5 percent. It points to the first meaningful increase in funding in six years. “By Jonathan Pearson (UPDATE – June 28, 2021, 8:30 PM Eastern Time): On a voice vote, the House Appropriations Subcommittee for State/Foreign Operations approved a $62.2 billion international affairs budget for Fiscal Year 2022. This represents a 12 percent, $6.7 billion increase over the current fiscal year. Included in this budget is $430.5 million for the Peace Corps, a $20 million increase over current funding. In brief remarks, Subcommittee Chairwoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) referenced the Peace Corps as one of several programs that will provide “needed humanitarian assistance” around the world. No amendments to the bill were made, but that could possibly change when the full Appropriations Committee considers this funding package on Thursday morning.”   Here is the earlier Report from the National Peace Corps . . .

  John Turnbull passed away on April 4, 2021 at his home in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  John commented frequently on Peace Corps World Wide, about his Peace Corps experiences in Ghana and Malawi as a geologist in the early days of Peace Corps. Here is one of his commentaries in response to John Coyne’s review of Kallman’s Death of Idealism in the Peace Corps “A great commentary, John ! As you know I have been accused of over-romanticing my experiences as a geologist, in Africa. My conclusion concerning Ms. Kallman’s book, is that there is no single thing we can call “The Peace Corps Experience” There are MANY, and even in Africa, where I worked, the difference in cultural interaction between Ghana in West Africa, and then Nyasaland Protectorate in British Central Africa, was radically different. Even as early as 1967, the Peace Corps itself concluded that the experince in . . .

  Please read the Acting Director’s Message and then the Newsletter. Acting Director’s Message “Welcome to Inside Peace Corps where we share updates and news on our work at headquarters and in the countries where our Volunteers are invited to serve. We are so fortunate to have people around the globe who are invested in the Peace Corps and our mission of world peace and friendship. The aim of this publication is to provide information on issues that our stakeholders care about most. I cannot overstate my appreciation for your ongoing support as we prepare to return Volunteers to service abroad. Thank you for stepping Inside Peace Corps to walk side-by-side with us.” Here is the Link; https://analytics.clickdimensions.com//peacecorpsgov-aflq5/pages/b056c3c9c9c7eb11813a005056af48c9.html The newsletter is wide reaching as these topics indicate: Peace Corps Response Volunteers Sworn in for Three-Month Domestic Deployment  Staff to Complete Unconscious Bias in the Workplace Training by the End of . . .

This is an excellent summary of Peace Corps today.  The RPCV community is discussing the  current status of the Peace Corps and its future. This  is a good review of  Peace Corps today by the reputable Congressional Research Service.  Here is the Introduction and the link to the complete report: https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RS21168.pdf “The Peace Corps: Overview and Issues Updated February 25, 2021 Founded in 1961, the Peace Corps pursues a legislative mandate of promoting world peace and friendship by sending American volunteers to serve at the grassroots level in all corners of the world. In September 2019, there were 7,334 volunteers serving in 61 nations. In March 2020, all volunteers were evacuated and programs suspended as a result of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Data in this report reflect status of the Peace Corps volunteer force prior to its March 2020 evacuation. The agency has announced plans to restart programs . . .