Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez recently met with two Filipino American leaders
ATTENTION FIL-AMS : U.S. PEACE CORPS NEEDS YOU
Washington, D.C., - Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez recently met with two Filipino American leaders in a roundtable discussion with local Asian American and Pacific Island leaders on the agency's strategy for diversifying its volunteers and staff.
Vasquez, the agency's first Hispanic American director, discussed the Peace Corps' goal to accurately reflect American culture with Violeta Dela Pena, a member and former director of the Maryland Governor's Office of Asian Pacific American Affairs and Eric Lachica, the executive director of the American Coalition for Filipino Veterans.
Vasquez said, in an effort announced by President George W. Bush, the Peace Corps aims to double the number of volunteers over the next five years. The July 26 roundtable was the first of many discussions with ethnic minority leaders about strengthening the Peace Corps' diversity.
Asian American/Pacific Islanders are seen as an important source of potential Peace Corps volunteers. As the numbers currently reflect, ethnic minorities make up only 15 percent of the total volunteers, with Asian American/Pacific Islanders representing four percent. Since 1961, the Peace Corps' actively recruited of people from different ethnic backgrounds and age groups.
Director Vasquez commented, "I am truly committed to enhancing the diversity of the Peace Corps. I am delighted to be able to count on such a prestigious group of leaders in the Asian American/Pacific Islander community to help guide us in our efforts. we will depend on their help and counsel."
Each year, the Peace Corps sends thousands of trained men and women to live and work in interested countries around the world. In the Philippines, the agency has 133 volunteers in place.
More than 165,000 volunteers have served in 135 countries since the Peace Corps was established in 1961. Today, more than 7,000 volunteers serve in programs to address education, health and HIV/AIDS, information technology, business development, the environment, and agriculture. For more information, call 800-424-8580 or visit website: www.peacecorps.gov.
