January 13, 2004 - Orange County Register: Gaddi Vasquez's on- again off-again tenure with the agency is back on again

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Headlines: January 2004 Peace Corps Headlines: January 13, 2004 - Orange County Register: Gaddi Vasquez's on- again off-again tenure with the agency is back on again

By Admin1 (admin) (pool-151-196-19-87.balt.east.verizon.net - 151.196.19.87) on Thursday, January 15, 2004 - 8:14 am: Edit Post

Gaddi Vasquez's on- again off-again tenure with the agency is back on again



Gaddi Vasquez's on- again off-again tenure with the agency is back on again

Vasquez to stay in Peace Corps

He had said four months ago that he would quit as director for family health reasons.


Gaddi Vasquez
By DENA BUNIS
The Orange County Register

WASHINGTON – Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez's on- again off-again tenure with the agency is back on again.

Vasquez, who submitted his resignation to President George W. Bush nearly four months ago, has decided to stay through 2004.

"In light of my continued desire to serve and with the concurrence and support of my family, I intend to remain in my present role as director of the Peace Corps through the end of the current term,'' Vasquez wrote in a letter to Peace Corps staff on Dec. 17.

Vasquez was en route to the Philippines on Monday to meet with volunteers and could not be reached to explain the turnaround on his departure. In his letter, he also said that his initial decision to leave the agency was "one of the most difficult of my professional life."

After he announced his resignation, there was speculation in political circles that Vasquez - who was an official in the administration of former California Gov. George Deukmejian and is a former Orange County supervisor - might join the Schwarzenegger administration in Sacramento. Vasquez was an active supporter of the new governor.

But Vasquez turned aside such questions at the time, saying family health issues were behind his move. Even though Peace Corps headquarters is in Washington, D.C., his wife and son never moved to the nation's capital, staying instead in Orange County.

Vasquez had a rocky start with some former Peace Corps volunteers, who resented the fact that Bush chose someone who hadn't been a volunteer.

But Vasquez has reached out to those past volunteers during his tenure.

"For Gaddi to have another year is important for him to make further progress on a number of the key initiatives - to promote diversity in the Peace Corps and enhance the safety and security of serving volunteers," said Kevin Quigley, president of the National Peace Corps Association and a former volunteer. "He has made progress and has something to contribute there."

Vasquez plans to announce in the coming weeks that the agency will begin actively recruiting at community colleges - including Santa Ana College - as part of its effort to increase the number of volunteers and broaden the diversity of those who serve abroad.

The Peace Corps has been under fire in recent months in the wake of a Dayton (Ohio) Daily News series on volunteer safety. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which oversees the Peace Corps, is planning a hearing soon to explore how the agency trains volunteers to deal with safety issues and how much money will be spent on safety this year.

Had Vasquez decided to leave before this year was out, it could have put the agency in limbo because it was unlikely that the Senate would approve a new director during an election year, and candidates might be reluctant to sign on for a job before knowing if the president will be re-elected.
CONTACT US: (202) 628-6381 or dbunis@ocregister.com




Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.

Story Source: Orange County Register

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Peace Corps Directors - Vasquez

PCOL9642
74

.

By Daniel (0-1pool136-13.nas12.somerville1.ma.us.da.qwest.net - 63.159.136.13) on Friday, January 16, 2004 - 7:20 pm: Edit Post

A more positive contribution Kevin would be for him to recognize finally that in the late eighties and nineties that former volunteers who were victims of violence, rape and threats are still being treated incorrectly and with a heavy hand by the agency even today. You, Kevin, above all should be helping too.

He will have to ansewer for negligence on the part of the agency in the up coming hearings. Its too bad, you, Kevin didn't help us in this process. We have used our own resources to get this accomplished. This is why we haven't been better contributors to the NPCA.


Add a Message


This is a public posting area. Enter your username and password if you have an account. Otherwise, enter your full name as your username and leave the password blank. Your e-mail address is optional.
Username:  
Password:
E-mail: