For the 10th year in a row, the University has earned a spot as one of the nation's top-ranked schools for producing Peace Corps volunteers.
With 30 College alumni currently serving as volunteers, Chicago ranked eighth on the Peace Corps' annual list of medium-sized schools with more than 5,000 undergraduates.
"It speaks to our commitment to service; it doesn't surprise me," said Wallace Goode, Director of the University of Chicago Community Service Center and Associate Dean of Students in the University. "There's been a huge increase in activism and service on campus."
Since the Peace Corps' inception, 694 Chicago alumni have volunteered. In 2009 and 2008, the University ranked No. 1 on the list for small-sized schools; at the time, undergraduate enrollment was slightly less than 5,000 students.
"The University of Chicago's commitment to making community service and international opportunities available to students also creates a solid foundation for inspiring and preparing them for Peace Corps service," said Christine Torres, Public Affairs Specialist for the Peace Corps' Chicago regional office. "This university has students and supportive faculty who want to make a difference in the world, and they are looking for the means to do so."
Current Peace Corps volunteer Will Cohen (AB '08) said his conversations with returned Peace Corps volunteers and his own experience with the University Community Service Center's Summer Links social justice internship program inspired him to apply.
Cohen, who majored in sociology and English, is teaching at an agricultural secondary school in a small town in Mozambique. Currently he is the school's sole English teacher. Outside the classroom, he organized a local theater club as a part of a national Peace Corps Volunteer-led project, promoting HIV and AIDS prevention and gender equality through the arts. He also teaches computer skills.
Like Cohen, Peace Corps volunteer David Pi (AB '06) is teaching English-in this case, in Romania.
"I think the unique student culture at UChicago definitely encourages activities like the Peace Corps," said Pi, who studied English Language & Literature in the College.
Like Cohen, Pi is deeply involved in projects outside his classroom. In the summer, Pi led students on a Habitat for Humanity building project, and he recently organized a Model United Nations conference that drew 220 students from more than 30 Romanian high schools.
"For three days, students debated topics ranging from human rights to economic and social issues," he said. "This was easily the most intense project I worked on."
Currently, there are 7,671 Peace Corps volunteers serving in 76 host countries around the world. A college degree is not mandatory for service; however, approximately 89 percent of volunteers have at least an undergraduate degree. Relevant skills and experience are required in Peace Corps program areas such as education, English as a Second Language; youth and community development; public health and HIV/AIDS work; environment, agriculture and forestry; and business development and IT.
For more information, visit www.peacecorps.gov or call the Chicago Regional Office at (312) 353-4990.
-Sara Olkon
—Prof. Kunle Odunsi
