If you are thinking about service after high school, AmeriCorps would be your best bet, since Peace Corps is usually looking for college graduates or people with advanced skills



If you are thinking about service after high school, AmeriCorps would be your best bet, since Peace Corps is usually looking for college graduates or people with advanced skills

"Ask the White House"

By David Eisner
WhiteHouse.gov
April 18, 2005

Tory, from Pueblo, Colorado--high school writes:

Dear Mr. Eisner,I am a senior in high school and would like to volunteer when I graduate in either the Peace Corps or AmeriCorps. Could you please tell me the benefits of each and which you would recommend? I appreciate you advance.

Thank you, Tory

David Eisner

Tory, first let me thank you for your desire to serve. AmeriCorps and Peace Corps are both terrific service opportunities that will open your eyes, teach you skills, provide an adventure and help you become a leader – all as you gain the satisfaction that comes from helping others. Plunging into an intensive service experience is a big decision, and I urge you to read more at www.americorps.gov or www.peacecorps.gov or talk to a recruiter or alum. If you are thinking about service after high school, AmeriCorps would be your best bet, since Peace Corps is usually looking for college graduates or people with advanced skills. Many young people serve in AmeriCorps during their “gap year” between high school and college and find it incredibly rewarding, both the experience itself, and because it often helps them be more focused when they start college. Good luck!

When this story was posted in April 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:


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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 500 categories, this is the largest collection of Peace Corps related stories in the world. From Acting to Zucchini, you can find hundreds of stories about what RPCVs with your same interests or from your Country of Service are doing today. If you have a web site, support the "Peace Corps Library" and link to it today.

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April 17, 2005: This Week's Top Stories The Coyne Column: A Peace Corps Writer Discovery 17 Apr Chris Van Hollen supports Peace Corps budget 17 Apr Joseph Goldstein founded Forest Refuge 17 Apr Judge Flemming Norcott wins community service award 16 Apr Wangari Maathai meets with Kenya Country Director 15 Apr Simon James says corps' days numbered in Uzbekistan 15 Apr Peace Corps not heard anything about Uzbekistan 15 Apr Novak says Chris Dodd attacking anti-Castro officials 14 Apr Taylor Hackford not pleased with content editing 14 Apr Activist W. Retta Gilliam dies in DC 13 Apr Alberto Ibargüen studying newspaper options 13 Apr Christopher Hill says Korea nuclear talks can work 12 Apr DNA undercuts verdict against Jerry Marks 11 Apr Tom Bissell discusses recent events in Kyrgyzstan 11 Apr Chris Gobrecht named Basketball Coach at Yale 11 Apr Glenn Ivers does "Splash for Cash" in icy waters 11 Apr Chris Shays says Delay should step down 10 Apr

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April 17, 2005: Special RPCV Events RPCV Kent Island Family Weekend on May 6 - 8 Joseph Opala speaks in Rhode Island on April 19 South Carolina RPCVs to see off PCVs on April 18 Terry Deshler speaks in Wyoming on April 18 Cameroon RPCVs selling special Pagne Bush proclaims National Volunteer Week RPCVs: Post your stories or press releases here for inclusion next week.

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RPCVs and Friends remember Pope John Paul II Tony Hall found the pope to be courageous and capable of forgiving the man who shot him in 1981, Mark Gearan said the pope was as dynamic in person as he appears on television, Maria Shriver said he was a beacon of virtue, strength and goodness, and an RPCV who met the pope while serving in the Solomon Islands said he possessed the holiness of a man filled with a deep love and concern for humanity. Leave your thoughts here.

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Friends of the Peace Corps 170,000 strong 170,000 is a very special number for the RPCV community - it's the number of Volunteers who have served in the Peace Corps since 1961. It's also a number that is very special to us because March is the first month since our founding in January, 2001 that our readership has exceeded 170,000. And while we know that not everyone who comes to this site is an RPCV, they are all "Friends of the Peace Corps." Thanks everybody for making PCOL your source of news for the Returned Volunteer community.

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