2006.10.02: October 2, 2006: Headlines: Directors - Tschetter: COS - India: Naples News: Tschetter making plans for the Peace Corps
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2006.10.02: October 2, 2006: Headlines: Directors - Tschetter: COS - India: Naples News: Tschetter making plans for the Peace Corps
Tschetter making plans for the Peace Corps
Tschetter said one of his main challenges is keeping the organization relevant. "We're in the process of making plans," he said. "We need to keep up with technology needs, and stay on top of the HIV and AIDS education and training. The organization has stayed on the cutting edge. We'd like to continue to grow. There's an appetite for it." "The perception (of the organization being out-of-date) is out there," Tschetter said. "It's a low-profile organization. It doesn't operate in dramatic fashion but it does its job and it's very relevant."
Tschetter making plans for the Peace Corps
Peace Corps seeing resurgence, new chief says
Senate confirmed part-time Naples resident Ronald Tschetter to lead organization in September
By Amie Parnes (Contact)
Monday, October 2, 2006
WASHINGTON — To all those who say the Peace Corps is a sleepy, outdated organization with little purpose, Ronald Tschetter has a story for you.
There he was, an idealistic, 25-year-old living in India in the late 1960s, working with a team of social workers on family issues, wondering if the work he was doing was making a dent in the quality of life there. Then, one day, after a surprise knock at the door, Tschetter found himself traveling across the country to deliver medicine to a village suffering from a small pox epidemic.
And there, in the small, nomadic village, he found meaning and purpose in his work.
"Ultimately the village recovered," said Tschetter, now 64, the newly appointed director of the Peace Corps and a part-time Naples resident. "To be able to see it, touch it, smell it. It was the most impressionable experience. It was overwhelming. It still lingers.
"And today," he continued, "small pox is eradicated in the world and it's because of this and thousands of other experiences like it."
His personal experience as a Peace Corps volunteer is one of the main reasons Tschetter believes he was chosen for the post in late July by President George W. Bush.
"I believe so deeply in the purpose and the mission of the Peace Corps," said Tschetter, pronounced "cheddar."
Tschetter
Tschetter
"When I got the call (about the nomination), I was surprised," he added. "It was not anything I was thinking about. But I love the Peace Corps so much it didn't take me long to decide."
Although some may believe the Peace Corps is somewhat obsolete, it has seen a resurgence since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and is currently at a 30-year high, Tschetter said.
The agency currently has 7,810 volunteers serving in 75 countries. Its mission is to train and educate people overseas, typically in underdeveloped or rural areas in need of sanitation, transportation and electricity. Peace Corps volunteers serve as teachers, business advisers, technology consultants and educators on the HIV and AIDS virus.
"The perception (of the organization being out-of-date) is out there," Tschetter said. "It's a low-profile organization. It doesn't operate in dramatic fashion but it does its job and it's very relevant."
Tschetter said one of his main challenges is keeping the organization relevant.
"We're in the process of making plans," he said. "We need to keep up with technology needs, and stay on top of the HIV and AIDS education and training. The organization has stayed on the cutting edge. We'd like to continue to grow. There's an appetite for it."
Before his recent confirmation by the U.S. Senate, Tschetter was president of D.A. Davidson and Co., the largest investment firm in the Northwest. He also was a former chairman of the National Peace Corps Association, something akin to an alumni association.
Those who know Tschetter say he is a perfect fit for the job and will succeed in his role as Peace Corps director.
"He has a great passion for the Peace Corps," said Bill Johnstone, president and CEO of DA Davidson & Co. "He understands it, understands the people."
Another former colleague, Ian Davidson, chairman of DA Davidson & Co., said Tschetter is "returning to the time of his life that he enjoyed in India.
"When he goes to the Peace Corps he is taking a substantial reduction in salary," Davidson said. "He is doing this not for the money but for the joy of providing service."
Before moving to Washington, Tschetter planned a pit stop in Naples, where he owns a home on Pelican Isle.
"We love it there," said Tschetter, whose son, John, also resides in Naples and runs a local car wash.
Tschetter originally decided to purchase a home in Naples because he wanted an escape from the cold Minnesota winters.
"We like the climate in Naples," he said. "A lot of people we know like it for that reason, too."
And he added, "Naples has great golf courses."
Chris Moody of Scripps Howard News Service contributed to this report.
When this story was posted in October 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
 | Chris Dodd's Vision for the Peace Corps Senator Chris Dodd (RPCV Dominican Republic) spoke at the ceremony for this year's Shriver Award and elaborated on issues he raised at Ron Tschetter's hearings. Dodd plans to introduce legislation that may include: setting aside a portion of Peace Corps' budget as seed money for demonstration projects and third goal activities (after adjusting the annual budget upward to accommodate the added expense), more volunteer input into Peace Corps operations, removing medical, healthcare and tax impediments that discourage older volunteers, providing more transparency in the medical screening and appeals process, a more comprehensive health safety net for recently-returned volunteers, and authorizing volunteers to accept, under certain circumstances, private donations to support their development projects. He plans to circulate draft legislation for review to members of the Peace Corps community and welcomes RPCV comments. |
 | He served with honor One year ago, Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul (RPCV Kenya) carried on an ongoing dialog on this website on the military and the peace corps and his role as a member of a Civil Affairs Team in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have just received a report that Sargeant Paul has been killed by a car bomb in Kabul. Words cannot express our feeling of loss for this tremendous injury to the entire RPCV community. Most of us didn't know him personally but we knew him from his words. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends. He was one of ours and he served with honor. |
 | 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. |
 | 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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 | 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. |
 | 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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Story Source: Naples News
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Directors - Tschetter; COS - India
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