The University of Chicago in top ranks for Peace Corps volunteers
January 14, 2009
For the second year in a row, the University has produced the most Peace Corps volunteers in the country.
With 35 alumni currently serving as volunteers during 2008, Chicago ranked first among schools with 5,000 students or less.
"More and more of our students are arriving at Chicago with an already-noteworthy interest in community service," said Wallace Goode, Director of the University Community Service Center. "While they are here, they better learn and hone that interest through service, and by the time they depart here and apply to the Peace Corps, they are incredibly competitive and dedicated."
Since the Peace Corps was established in 1961, nearly 700 Chicago alumni have served. Chicago has appeared on the Peace Corps top schools list for the past nine years.
"Students at Chicago have repeatedly proven themselves to be as committed to service as they are committed to academic excellence," said Christine Torres, Peace Corps Public Affairs Specialist.
"Peace Corps applicants from the University have typically volunteered throughout their years of study in the Chicago area and in the Hyde Park community. That previous investment in their communities makes them both more competitive applicants and more productive volunteers."