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PEACE CORPS

The Peace Corps is an independent federal agency of the United States designed to promote mutual understanding between Americans and the outside world. The Peace Corps was established by executive order in 1961 by President John F. Kennedy and approved by Congress as a permanent agency within the State Department later that year. The program was an outgrowth of the Cold War designed to oppose the Chinese and Soviet challenge to Western influence in the widely open Third World arena of superpower competition. More than 180,000 Americans have served in the Peace Corps since its inception.

Gaddi Vasquez the most recent director, was appointed to a position with the Food and Agriculture Organization in June 2006, and will leave the Peace Corps in early September. Ron Tschetter, who served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the mid 1960's in India, was nominated as Vasquez's replacement in late July by President Bush. The appointment is awaiting Senate confirmation.

Contents

Purpose & function

The program officially has three goals:

  • To help the people of interested countries and areas in meeting their needs for trained workers;
  • To help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served;
  • To help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

The Peace Corps works by first announcing its availability to foreign governments. These governments then determine areas in which the organization can be involved. The organization then matches the requested assignments to its pool of applicants and sends those volunteers with the appropriate skills to the countries that first made the requests.

Background & history

Since the end of the Second World War, various members of the United States Congress had proposed bills to establish volunteer organizations in the Third World. In 1952 Connecticut Senator Brien McMahon-D proposed an "army" of young Americans to act as "missionaries of democracy". Privately funded non-religious organizations had been sending volunteers overseas since the 1950s.

John F. Kennedy first announced his own idea for such an organization during 1960 presidential campaign at a late-night speech at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor on October 14. During a later speech in San Francisco, California on November 1, he dubbed this proposed organization the "Peace Corps". Critics of the program (including Kennedy's opponent, Richard M. Nixon) claimed the program would be nothing but a haven for draft dodgers. Others doubted whether college-aged volunteers had the necessary skills. The idea was popular among college students, however, and Kennedy continued to pursue it, asking respected academics such as Max Millikan and Chester Bowles to help him outline the organization and its goals. During his inaugural address, Kennedy again promised to create the program.


Established & authorized

On March 1, 1961, Kennedy signed an Executive Order which officially started the Peace Corps. Concerned with the growing tide of revolutionary sentiment in the Third World, Kennedy saw the Peace Corps as a means of countering the notions of the "Ugly American" and "Yankee imperialism," especially in the emerging nations of postcolonial Africa and Asia. 1 2

On March 4, Kennedy appointed Sargent Shriver to be the program's first director. Shriver was tasked with fleshing out the organization, which he did with the help of Warren W. Wiggins and others. Shriver and his think tank outlined the three major goals of the Peace Corps and decided the number of volunteers they needed to recruit. The program began recruiting volunteers that following July.

Until about 1967, applicants to the Peace Corps had to pass a placement test that tested "general aptitude" (knowledge of various skills needed for various Peace Corps assignments) and language aptitude. After an address from Kennedy, who was introduced by Rev. Russell Fuller of Memorial Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, on August 28, 1961, the first group of volunteers left for Ghana and Tanzania. The program was formally authorized by Congress on September 22, 1961 and within two years over 7,300 Peace Corps volunteers were serving in 44 countries. This number would jump to 15,000 in June of 1966, the largest number in the organization's history.

Early stumble

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Though the organization was initiated with the noblest of intentions, it experienced major controversy in its first year of operation. On October 13, 1961, a postcard was written by a volunteer named Marjorie Michelmore in Nigeria to a friend in the U.S. She described her situation in Nigeria as "squalor and [of] absolutely primitive living conditions".(New York Times, 16 August 1961, p10 "Postcard to Friend Reporting 'Primitive Living' Leads to Protest by Students") However, this postcard never made it out of the country. A student at the University College at Ibadan found it and made copies to distribute around campus. Nigerian students accused the volunteers of being spies of the U.S. government or agents of imperialism. Soon the international press picked up the story and this led several people in the U.S. administration to question the future of the program as a whole. Nigerian students protested the program, and the American volunteers sequestered themselves and eventually began a hunger strike, documented here. After several days, the Nigerian students agreed to open a dialogue with the Americans.

Independent status

In July 1971, President Nixon brought the Peace Corps under the umbrella agency ACTION. Peace Corps would remain under ACTION until President Jimmy Carter declared it fully autonomous in a 1979 executive order. This independent status would be further secured when Congress passed legislation in 1981 to make the organization an independent federal agency.

Programs diversified

At this time, the Peace Corps began branching out past its traditional concerns of education- and agriculture-related projects. In 1982, President Reagan appointee Director Loret Miller Ruppe initiated several new business-related programs. For the first time, a large number of conservative and Republican volunteers joined the contingent of overseas volunteers, and the organization continued to reflect the evolving political and social conditions in the United States.

Funding cuts during the early 1980s dropped the number of volunteers to 5,380, its lowest level since the organization's early years. Funding began to increase in 1985, and Congress passed an initiative to raise the number of volunteers to 10,000 by 1992.

After the September 11, 2001 attacks alerted the nation to growing anti-U.S. sentiment in the Middle East, President George W. Bush pledged to double the size of the organization within five years as a part of the War on Terrorism. For the 2004 fiscal year, Congress passed a budget increase at $325 million, $30 million above that of 2003 but $30 million below the President's request.

Now, the Peace Corps are trying to double the number of volunteers it sends abroad by 2007. This is in accordance with Bush's request in 2002. According to Joseph Kennedy, "The American reputation has taken a hit in the last couple of years. The need for the Peace Corps couldn't be more urgent. The Peace Corps shows what is best in America, the generosity of spirit." The Peace Corps is trying to get more diverse volunteers of different ages. This is important so that the Peace Corps can look, according to Vasquez, "more like America."

What do Peace Corps Volunteers do?

Peace Corps Volunteers do many things. Examples include counseling teenagers in Belize, launching an Armenian computer center, promoting HIV/AIDS awareness in Malawi, working with poor rice farmers as an agriculture extension agent in Thailand (Jahn 1992), and teaching chemistry in a Ghanaian high school (http://peacecorpsonline.org/messages/messages/467/2013507.html). Peace Corps Volunteers work in a wide variety of areas — and no two days are ever the same.

Think of the Peace Corps and you might imagine teaching in a one-room schoolhouse or farming in a remote area of the world. But while education and agriculture are still an important part of what the Peace Corps does, today's Volunteers are just as likely to be working on HIV/AIDS awareness, helping to establish computer learning centers, or working on small business development.

Peace Corps Volunteers work in the following areas: education, youth outreach, and community development; health and HIV/AIDS; agriculture and environment; business development; and information technology. Within these areas, the specific duties and responsibilities of each Volunteer can vary widely. Ask any Peace Corps Volunteer and he or she will tell you that everybody has a unique experience.

Executive orders

  • 1961 - 10924 - Establishment and administration of the Peace Corps in the Department of State (Kennedy)
  • 1962 - 11041 - Continuance and administration of the Peace Corps in the Department of State (Kennedy)
  • 1971 - 11603 - Assigning additional functions to the Director of ACTION (Nixon)
  • 1979 - 12137 - The Peace Corps (Carter)

Directors of the Peace Corps

Director service dates appointed by notes
1 R. Sargent Shriver 1961–1966 Kennedy Three days after President Kennedy signed an Executive Order establishing the Peace Corps, Shriver became its first director. Deployment was rapid: Volunteers arrived in five countries during 1961. In just under six years, Shriver developed programs in 55 countries with more than 14,500 Volunteers.
2 Jack Vaughn 1966–1969 Johnson Vaughn took steps to improve Peace Corps marketing, programming, and Volunteer support as large numbers of former Volunteers joined the Peace Corps staff. He also promoted volunteer assignments in conservation, natural resource management, and community development.
3 Joseph Blatchford 1969–1971 Nixon Blatchford served as head of the new ACTION agency, which encompassed U.S. domestic and foreign volunteer service programs including the Peace Corps. He created the Office of Returned Volunteers to help Volunteers serve in their communities at home, and initiated New Directions, a program emphasizing Volunteer skills.
4 Kevin O'Donnell 1971–1972 Nixon O'Donnell's appointment was the first for a former Peace Corps country director (Korea, 1966–70). He worked tirelessly to save the Peace Corps from budget cuts, and believed strongly in a non-career Peace Corps. He resigned as director six years after first joining the Peace Corps.
5 Donald Hess 1972–1973 Nixon Hess initiated training of Volunteers in the host country where they would eventually serve. With this came the greater utilization of host country nationals in the training programs. The training provided more realistic preparation, and costs dropped for the agency. Hess also sought to end the down-sizing of the Peace Corps.
6 Nicholas Craw 1973–1974 Nixon Craw sought to increase the number of Volunteers in the field and to stabilize the agency's future. He introduced a goal-setting measurement plan, the Country Management Plan, which gave a firm foundation for increased congressional support and for improved resource allocation across Peace Corps' 69 countries.
7 John Dellenback 1975–1977 Ford Dellenback worked to make the best possible health care available to Volunteers. He also placed great emphasis on recruiting generalists. He believed in taking committed applicants without specific development skills and providing concentrated training to prepare them for service.
8 Carolyn R. Payton 1977–1978 Carter Payton was the first female director and the first African American. As director, she believed strongly in reflecting America's diversity in the corps of Volunteers and worked tirelessly to convince young people that Peace Corps service would enrich their lives.
9 Richard F. Celeste 1979–1981 Carter Celeste focused on the role of women in development and was successful in involving women and minorities in the agency, particularly for staff positions. He invested heavily in training, including the development of a worldwide core curriculum, so that all Volunteers had a common context in which to work.
10 Loret Miller Ruppe 1981–1989 Reagan Ruppe was the longest-serving director and a champion of women in development. She launched the Competitive Enterprise Development program to promote business-oriented projects. She also established the Caribbean Basin Initiative, the Initiative for Central America and the African Food Systems Initiative to help address regional challenges. Ruppe was highly regarded by Volunteers for her tireless energy and enthusiasm.
11 Paul Coverdell 1989–1991 Bush Coverdell established two programs with a domestic focus. World Wise Schools enabled U.S. students to correspond with Volunteers serving overseas in an effort to promote international awareness and cross-cultural understanding. Fellows/USA assisted returned Volunteers in pursuing graduate studies while serving local communities in the U.S.
12 Elaine Chao 1991–1992 Bush Chao was the first Asian American to serve as director. She expanded Peace Corps' presence in Eastern Europe and Central Asia by establishing the first Peace Corps programs in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and other newly independent countries.
13 Carol Bellamy 1993–1995 Clinton Bellamy was the first returned Volunteer (Guatemala 1963–65) to be director.
14 Mark D. Gearan 1995–1999 Clinton Gearan established the Crisis Corps, a program that allows returned Volunteers to help overseas communities recover from natural disasters and humanitarian crises. He supported expanding the corps of Volunteers and opened new Volunteer programs in South Africa, Jordan, Bangladesh and Mozambique.
15 Mark L. Schneider 1999–2001 Clinton Schneider was the second returned Volunteer (El Salvador, 1966–68) to head the agency. He launched an initiative to increase Volunteers' participation in helping prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa, and also sought Volunteers to work on information technology projects to enhance development of overseas communities.
16 Gaddi Vasquez 2002–2006 Bush Gaddi H. Vasquez was the first Hispanic American to serve as director. His focus as director was to revitalize the Peace Corps through a comprehensive outreach and recruitment program focused on attracting a diverse group of Volunteers and staff. FAO.
15 Ron Tschetter Nominated July 2006 Bush Pending Senate confirmation. Former volunteer in India in the mid 1960's.

See also

References

  • Jahn, GC 1992. Entomology with the Peace Corps in Thailand. American Entomologist 38(1):10-11.
  • Dillon Banerjee. 2000. So You Want to Join the Peace Corps: What to Know Before You Go. Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, California.

External links