By Admin1 (admin) (pool-151-196-123-27.balt.east.verizon.net - 151.196.123.27) on Wednesday, March 16, 2005 - 1:47 pm: Edit Post |
One RPCV writes: "I have some serious concerns about the accuracy of this database"
One RPCV writes: "I have some serious concerns about the accuracy of this database"
I have some serious concerns about the accuracy of this database.
Here's an email we received from an RPCV raising concerns about the accuracy of the Directory:
Question:
They had mine (1) completely wrong; not one stich of it was correct, and (2) no place to list my PC/W time at all. Given that many of the 80k RPCVs will not update their record (they might have moved / no forwarding address) and that no PC/W headquarters time will show....I doubt if this directory will be very useful and certainly will not be very accurate. If my record is corrupt my bet is that many others are and will not be updated/corrected."
Response:
You have raised a great point concerning the ongoing challenges faced by membership-driven organizations in maintaining accurate data. Considering the mobility of our Peace Corps Family, NPCA understands the complexities of retaining relevant data on each of our returned Peace Corps volunteers.
This forthcoming NPCA Alumni Directory is our most powerful tool to receive new contact details on our membership-at-large. We have already received more than a 40% response rate, and statistically this is excellent in our international non-profit/volunteer service sector. Hopefully, NPCA’s thorough marketing and outreach campaign in partnership with Harris Publishing will allow us to reach each of you successfully in updating your whereabouts with us.
As the Directory is only published every five years, we now have an opportunity to move forward with more accurate, reliable membership data. If you have any further concerns/questions, please do not hesitate to contact me (Stephanie Jowers) at 202/293-7728x15 or stephanie@rpcv.org.
Thanks for your understanding and willingness to be included in the Directory! Please note that the deadline for inclusion is May 16.
When this story was posted in March 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:Read the stories and leave your comments.
The Peace Corps Library
Peace Corps Online is proud to announce that the Peace Corps Library is now available online. With over 30,000 index entries in over 500 categories, this is the largest collection of Peace Corps related reference material in the world. From Acting to Zucchini, you can use the Main Index to find hundreds of stories about RPCVs who have your same interests, who served in your Country of Service, or who serve in your state.
RPCVs in Congress ask colleagues to support PC
RPCVs Sam Farr, Chris Shays, Thomas Petri, James Walsh, and Mike Honda have asked their colleagues in Congress to add their names to a letter they have written to the House Foreign Operations Subcommittee, asking for full funding of $345 M for the Peace Corps in 2006. As a follow-on to Peace Corps week, please read the letter and call your Representative in Congress and ask him or her to add their name to the letter.
Add your info now to the RPCV Directory
Call Harris Publishing at 800-414-4608 right away to add your name or make changes to your listing in the newest edition of the NPCA's Directory of Peace Corps Volunteers and Former Staff. Then read our story on how you can get access to the book after it is published. The deadline for inclusion is May 16 so call now.
March 12, 2005: RPCV Groups in the News
San Diego RPCVs host reception with Gaddi Vasquez on March 6 4 Mar
Alaska RPCVs speak for dividend 4 Mar
Western North Carolina's RPCVs sponsor Africa Night on March 6 3 Mar
Maryland RPCVs lobby their Senators for Peace Corps 3 Mar
Connecticut RPCVs hold fundraiser on March 5 3 Mar
Charles Baquet speaks at Louisiana PC Breakfast on March 4 28 Feb
RPCVs: Post your stories or press releases here for inclusion next week.
March 1: National Day of Action
Tuesday, March 1, is the NPCA's National Day of Action. Please call your Senators and ask them to support the President's proposed $27 Million budget increase for the Peace Corps for FY2006 and ask them to oppose the elimination of Perkins loans that benefit Peace Corps volunteers from low-income backgrounds. Follow this link for step-by-step information on how to make your calls. Then take our poll and leave feedback on how the calls went.
Make a call for the Peace Corps
PCOL is a strong supporter of the NPCA's National Day of Action and encourages every RPCV to spend ten minutes on Tuesday, March 1 making a call to your Representatives and ask them to support President Bush's budget proposal of $345 Million to expand the Peace Corps. Take our Poll: Click here to take our poll. We'll send out a reminder and have more details early next week.
Peace Corps Calendar: Tempest in a Teapot?
Bulgarian writer Ognyan Georgiev has written a story which has made the front page of the newspaper "Telegraf" criticizing the photo selection for his country in the 2005 "Peace Corps Calendar" published by RPCVs of Madison, Wisconsin. RPCV Betsy Sergeant Snow, who submitted the photograph for the calendar, has published her reply. Read the stories and leave your comments.
WWII participants became RPCVs
Read about two RPCVs who participated in World War II in very different ways long before there was a Peace Corps. Retired Rear Adm. Francis J. Thomas (RPCV Fiji), a decorated hero of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, died Friday, Jan. 21, 2005 at 100. Mary Smeltzer (RPCV Botswana), 89, followed her Japanese students into WWII internment camps. We honor both RPCVs for their service.
Bush's FY06 Budget for the Peace Corps
The White House is proposing $345 Million for the Peace Corps for FY06 - a $27.7 Million (8.7%) increase that would allow at least two new posts and maintain the existing number of volunteers at approximately 7,700. Bush's 2002 proposal to double the Peace Corps to 14,000 volunteers appears to have been forgotten. The proposed budget still needs to be approved by Congress.