Full Text of Statement: Ken Hill to step down as NPCA Chair



"To succeed, we must be willing to be controversial, to take calculated risks and to be bold. Our decisions must be timely, based on relevant and reliable information. While new ideas must be explored and new initiatives adopted, we must continue to reject those which divert our focus and dissipate our energies. It is imperative that our activities intentionally unite and strengthen our community and that they support and protect the Peace Corps."

"It has been my privilege to be a Director since June, 2002, and Chair of the Board for the past two years. My term as an NPCA Director will end on September 15 as will my role as Chair of the Board. It has been an honor to serve as a Director and as Chair and I deeply appreciate the opportunity and the support that I have been provided. "

Full Text of Statement: Ken Hill to step down as NPCA Chair

National Peace Corps Association
2006 Annual General Meeting
Report by the Chairman of the Board

September 1, 2006

I am happy to provide this report to the 2006 Annual General Meeting of the National Peace Corps Association. This brief report addresses - as I see them - the broad issues of on-going reforms, the progress that has been made, the challenges that remain and a major opportunity. Reports by the Treasurer and President will detail our financial and operational positions and the plans associated with them.

Finding Our Way…
During the last four years, the NPCA has undergone a strenuous regimen of introspection, analysis and planning. This has resulted in changes to our governance, leadership, management, operating systems and procedures as well as the application of key guiding principles to our activities. The reform process has been encouraged and supported by the membership, the affiliated groups and the general community.

While these changes have resulted in improvements, I believe a robust effort and willingness to reform must continue as NPCA rationalizes its membership policies, updates its by-laws and expands its relationship to the greater Peace Corps community.

Governance and Management
A smaller Board size and simplified committee structure have had positive impacts on the governance of NPCA and placed Directors in appropriate and efficacious roles.

Currently, there are only four Standing Board Committees: Executive, Governance, Finance and Business and Development. The essential process of governance and oversight, policy direction, Board composition, elections, fiscal oversight, development, etc. is conducted through these Committees. Directors are appointed to temporary entities - such as work groups – to handle ad hoc issues.

The operational management of the association and its programs is the responsibility of the President and staff. This is consistent with best practices in the not-for-profit world and makes for a more effective organization.

The Peace Corps
Over the past year, NPCA identified and addressed a significant issue with regards to the independence and integrity of the Peace Corps. Almost inadvertently, the Peace Corps was linked to service in the U.S. Military. (Details are available on the NPCA website.) The Director of the Peace Corps was asked to help NPCA address this matter but disagreed that the linkage posed a problem for Peace Corps. The NPCA Advisory Council – including former Peace Corps Directors – recommended that we strenuously engage this issue. Subsequently, the Board approved a plan outlining our goals and methods for this undertaking. Extensive support was expressed by the Peace Corps community.

Within less than a year, language was introduced in a defense authorization act that extracted Peace Corps from any affiliation with military recruitment. The bill was passed and signed by the President. This success was perhaps the most significant thing that NPCA has ever achieved!

In spite of this disagreement, NPCA and Peace Corps have maintained a productive and cordial relationship. This has included a cooperative agreement which has funded NPCA participation in Peace Corps’ celebration of the 45th anniversary, focusing on recruitment and RPCV support. We are now negotiating the fourth consecutive cooperative agreement for the coming fiscal year.

Changes in the leadership of the Peace Corps bode well for our community. We strongly support the confirmation of Ron Tschetter – RPCV/India, member of the Director’s Circle, former Director and Chair of the Board of the NPCA. Ron and Nancy Tschetter are passionate about the Peace Corps and I am confident that Ron will be an excellent Peace Corps Director. We look forward to a continuing positive and productive relationship with Peace Corps and welcome the continuing leadership of Deputy Director Jody Olsen.

Ensuring a vital and independent Peace Corps is, I believe, the most important role for NPCA. We should expand our role in providing services to more PCVs and RPCVs. Our community should support this critical role through NPCA membership, encouragement, engagement and contributions.

The Future…
In the past few years ambiguity at NPCA has given way to focus. Now we must transition our efforts to strengthening communications and providing services of proven value to more of our community.

There is very limited communication between NPCA and the vast majority of our community, a fact which severely limits the relevance of NPCA. Establishing regular and meaningful contact with the greater community is imperative. This, I believe, is the greatest challenge for NPCA at present.

Service to current Volunteers and to returning Volunteers should be a high priority. NPCA should be the organization which is perceived to act in the interests of the community by providing services and impacting federal policy regarding Peace Corps service.

Peace Corps’ 50th Anniversary
A major opportunity lies just five years ahead! The fiftieth anniversary of the founding of the Peace Corps can be a major event of potentially international proportions. NPCA, the affiliated groups and our community at large should be THE major player in this celebration. The potential is enormous – but so is the task! And, preparation must begin now!

In Sum…
To succeed, we must be willing to be controversial, to take calculated risks and to be bold. Our decisions must be timely, based on relevant and reliable information. While new ideas must be explored and new initiatives adopted, we must continue to reject those which divert our focus and dissipate our energies. It is imperative that our activities intentionally unite and strengthen our community and that they support and protect the Peace Corps.

We seek the participation of our groups, members and community as we strive to realize the improvements necessary to enhance NPCA’s viability and relevance.

Finally…
It has been my privilege to be a Director since June, 2002, and Chair of the Board for the past two years. My term as an NPCA Director will end on September 15 as will my role as Chair of the Board. It has been an honor to serve as a Director and as Chair and I deeply appreciate the opportunity and the support that I have been provided.

Ken Hill, Chairperson
National Peace Corps Association

When this story was posted in September 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

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Chris Shays Shifts to Favor an Iraq Timetable In a policy shift, RPCV Congressman Chris Shays, long a staunch advocate of the Bush administration's position in Iraq, is now proposing a timetable for a withdrawal of American troops. How Mr. Shays came to this change of heart is, he says, a matter of a newfound substantive belief that Iraqis need to be prodded into taking greater control of their own destiny under the country’s newly formed government. As Chairman of the House Government Reform subcommittee on national security, he plans to draft a timetable for a phased withdrawal and then push for its adoption. A conscientious objector during the Vietnam War who said that if drafted he would not serve, Chris Shays has made 14 trips to Iraq and was the first Congressman to enter the country after the war - against the wishes of the Department of Defense.

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The Peace Corps Library The Peace Corps Library is now available online with over 40,000 index entries in 500 categories. Looking for a Returned Volunteer? Check our RPCV Directory or leave a message on our Bulletin Board. New: Sign up to receive our free Monthly Magazine by email, research the History of the Peace Corps, or sign up for a daily news summary of Peace Corps stories. FAQ: Visit our FAQ for more information about PCOL.

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Peace Corps' Screening and Medical Clearance The purpose of Peace Corps' screening and medical clearance process is to ensure safe accommodation for applicants and minimize undue risk exposure for volunteers to allow PCVS to complete their service without compromising their entry health status. To further these goals, PCOL has obtained a copy of the Peace Corps Screening Guidelines Manual through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and has posted it in the "Peace Corps Library." Applicants and Medical Professionals (especially those who have already served as volunteers) are urged to review the guidelines and leave their comments and suggestions. Then read the story of one RPCV's journey through medical screening and his suggestions for changes to the process.

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Gates charity races to spend billions Warren E. Buffett’s gift of $31 billion to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation means that for tax reasons, starting in 2009, the foundation must distribute $3 billion annually, or a little more than twice what it distributed last year. PCOL Comment: The Foundation says that "preventing the spread of HIV is the most durable long-term solution to the AIDS epidemic, and a top priority for the foundation." Peace Corps Volunteers and Returned Volunteers have been doing just that in AIDS Education for the past 15 years. Why not consider a $100M annual contribution to the Peace Corps to put 2,500 additional volunteers in the field to expand AIDS education worldwide?

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RPCV Ron Tschetter to head Peace Corps President Bush has nominated Ron Tschetter to serve as Director of the Peace Corps. Tschetter, 64, is the president of an investment firm based in Montana. He volunteered with his wife to work as family planning advisers in India and is a former Chairman of the National Peace Corps Association. PCOL Comment: Congratulations to the Bush administration for an inspired choice for Peace Corps Director. Ron Tschetter is not only an RPCV but was Chairman of the NPCA. Best wishes to Mr. Tschetter on his future tenure as Director of the Peace Corps. Latest: How Ron Tschetter was selected as Peace Corps Director.

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The Peace Corps is "fashionable" again The LA Times says that "the Peace Corps is booming again and "It's hard to know exactly what's behind the resurgence." PCOL Comment: Since the founding of the Peace Corps 45 years ago, Americans have answered Kennedy's call: "Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." Over 182,000 have served. Another 200,000 have applied and been unable to serve because of lack of Congressional funding. The Peace Corps has never gone out of fashion. It's Congress that hasn't been keeping pace.

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Support the US-Peruvian Trade Pact Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo, the Peace Corps President, has been lobbying both Democratic and Republican legislators to support the US-Peruvian trade pact before July 28, when his term ends and a US congressional recess begins. If President Bush fails to get approval before Congress goes on recess, it will be a case study proving that the United States does not reward its friends. Please call your representatives.

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Changing the Face of Hunger In his new book, Former Congressman Tony Hall (RPCV Thailand) says humanitarian aid is the most potent weapon the United States can deploy against terrorism. An evangelical Christian, he is a big believer in faith-based organizations in the fight against hunger. Members of Congress have recently recommended that Hall be appointed special envoy to Sudan to focus on ending the genocide in Darfur.

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PC will not return to East Timor in 2006 Volunteers serving in East Timor have safely left the country as a result of the recent civil unrest and government instability. Latest: The Peace Corps has informed us that at this time, the Peace Corps has no plans to re-enter the country in 2006. The Peace Corps recently sent a letter offering eligible volunteers the opportunity to reinstate their service in another country.

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Chris Dodd considers run for the White House Senator Chris Dodd plans to spend the next six to eight months raising money and reaching out to Democrats around the country to gauge his viability as a candidate. Just how far Dodd can go depends largely on his ability to reach Democrats looking for an alternative to Hillary Clinton. PCOL Comment: Dodd served as a Volunteer in the Dominican Republic and has been one of the strongest supporters of the Peace Corps in Congress.

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First Amendment Watch Maine Web Report hit with Federal Lawsuit Website wins trademark suit against Jerry Falwell

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Peace Corps stonewalls on FOIA request The Ashland Daily Tidings reports that Peace Corps has blocked their request for information on the Volkart case. "After the Tidings requested information pertaining to why Volkart was denied the position — on March 2 — the newspaper received a letter from the Peace Corps FOIA officer stating the requested information was protected under an exemption of the act." The Dayton Daily News had similar problems with FOIA requests for their award winning series on Volunteer Safety and Security.

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PCOL readership increases 100% Monthly readership on "Peace Corps Online" has increased in the past twelve months to 350,000 visitors - over eleven thousand every day - a 100% increase since this time last year. Thanks again, RPCVs and Friends of the Peace Corps, for making PCOL your source of information for the Peace Corps community. And thanks for supporting the Peace Corps Library and History of the Peace Corps. Stay tuned, the best is yet to come.

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History of the Peace Corps PCOL is proud to announce that Phase One of the "History of the Peace Corps" is now available online. This installment includes over 5,000 pages of primary source documents from the archives of the Peace Corps including every issue of "Peace Corps News," "Peace Corps Times," "Peace Corps Volunteer," "Action Update," and every annual report of the Peace Corps to Congress since 1961. "Ask Not" is an ongoing project. Read how you can help.

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RPCV admits to abuse while in Peace Corps Timothy Ronald Obert has pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a minor in Costa Rica while serving there as a Peace Corps volunteer. "The Peace Corps has a zero tolerance policy for misconduct that violates the law or standards of conduct established by the Peace Corps," said Peace Corps Director Gaddi H. Vasquez. Could inadequate screening have been partly to blame? Mr. Obert's resume, which he had submitted to the Peace Corps in support of his application to become a Peace Corps Volunteer, showed that he had repeatedly sought and obtained positions working with underprivileged children. Read what RPCVs have to say about this case.

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Military Option sparks concerns The U.S. military, struggling to fill its voluntary ranks, is allowing recruits to meet part of their reserve military obligations after active duty by serving in the Peace Corps. Read why there is opposition to the program among RPCVs. Director Vasquez says the agency has a long history of accepting qualified applicants who are in inactive military status. John Coyne says "Not only no, but hell no!" and RPCV Chris Matthews leads the debate on "Hardball." Avi Spiegel says Peace Corps is not the place for soldiers while Coleman McCarthy says to Welcome Soldiers to the Peace Corps. Read our poll results. Latest: Congress passed a bill on December 22 including language to remove Peace Corps from the National Call to Service (NCS) military recruitment program

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