2008.08.15: August 15, 2008: Headlines: History: Directors - Shriver: North Colorado business Report: Maurice Albertson remembers origins of Peace Corps

Peace Corps Online: State: Colorado: February 8, 2005: Index: PCOL Exclusive: Colorado: 2008.08.22: August 22, 2008: Headlines: RPCV Groups: News 9: Peace Corps celebration begins in Fort Collins : 2008.08.15: August 15, 2008: Headlines: History: Directors - Shriver: North Colorado business Report: Maurice Albertson remembers origins of Peace Corps

By Admin1 (admin) (70.233.229.30) on Friday, August 29, 2008 - 1:58 pm: Edit Post

Maurice Albertson remembers origins of Peace Corps

Maurice Albertson remembers origins of Peace Corps

We couldn't believe how fast it was. Sargent Shriver, (President John F. Kennedy's) brother-in-law, put together a terrific team. Bill Moyers headed up PR for the program. Warren Wiggens, who had worked for USAID, organized everything. It was just amazing how organized it became. Sarg talked to everyone in Washington to get the Peace Corps funded.

Maurice Albertson remembers origins of Peace Corps

Study water, save the world with a volunteer corps

By Jane Albritton

August 15, 2008 --
Editor's note: Between Aug. 22 and 24, Fort Collins' Northside Aztlan Community Center will become the epicenter of Peace Corps & Friends: A Celebration. The weekend will feature activities, speakers, concerts and reunions of returned Peace Corps volunteers, in recognition of the pivotal role played in the development of the organization by Colorado State University.

NCBR writer Jane Albritton, who spent her Peace Corps years(1967-69) in India, sat down with Maurice Albertson, now professor emeritus for the CSU Engineering Department, for a wide-ranging interview about how he helped bring the international organization into being. She is also editing an anthology of volunteer stories, "Peace Corps at 50,"(www.peacecorpsat50.org) to be published for the organization's half-century anniversary in 2011, and will conduct a writing workshop for volunteers on Friday afternoon of the celebration.

NCBR: What originally brought you to Colorado State University after you completed your doctoral work in engineering at State University of Iowa (now the University of Iowa)?

Albertson: I came to Colorado State, which was then Colorado A&M, in 1947 with the job of developing a water resources research and graduate program. In 10 years we had the largest program in the world - starting from zero. We had inherited a campus lab from the Bureau of Land Reclamation where we could do model studies in hydrology. That research got us well acquainted with the international development that was taking place.

NCBR: How did you happen to get directly involved in international development?

Albertson: After World War II, the Marshall Plan pulled Europe out of a terrible situation. So the thinking was, "Why not do it with the rest of the world?" In the 1950s, there was a lot of money going into water resources, building dams and canals. That was also the time when the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, SEATO, was set up in Bangkok, Thailand.

NCBR: But that was a military organization, wasn't it?

Albertson: Yes, it was. But the director said that there should be some non-military projects and that local students should be trained as engineers to lead the way with sustainable development. So the plan was to develop a graduate school for water resources. USAID (United States Agency for International Development) said they would find someone to run it.

NCBR: How did USAID find you in Fort Collins?

Albertson: They first went to MIT, and my colleagues there said, "Maury Albertson is the one you want." Then they went to Georgia Tech and then to Michigan. You see, they weren't accustomed to going west of the Mississippi. But when everyone said, "Talk to Maury," they finally asked me if I was interested. I said yes.

That was in November of 1958. Bill Morgan was president of the university, and he was in favor of my going. So I went over there in late January of 1959 and contacted the largest university in Thailand, Chulalongkorn University. They were enthusiastic. They gave me two buildings for classrooms and labs and built another one for our offices. That was the start of the SEATO Graduate School of Engineering.

My job was to bring in money, students and faculty each year. I had to get Australia and New Zealand to give us some money, along with the U.S. and UK. Initially, France declined because the language of instruction was English. But we finally brought them in.

NCBR: Is the school still operating?

Albertson: Oh, yes. Next year is the 60th anniversary. Since 1967 it has been an independent institution named the Asian Institute of Technology.

NCBR: So in the late 1950s, you had become deeply involved in international development and research. What did that mean at CSU?

Albertson: In 1958, Bill Morgan came to me and said, "80 percent of our grant money comes from you. You need to head up research for the whole university." So he set me up as director of the CSU Research Foundation.

NCBR: And was that about the time you got wind of the Peace Corps?

Albertson: Yes, only it wasn't called the Peace Corps at first. It was originally called the "4-Point Youth Corps," an idea tacked onto the Mutual Security Act. The idea was to send young people to work in developing countries. I knew that CSURF was the only organization in the country that could put together the report on "the advisability and practicability of the 4-Point Youth Corps." I recruited Pauline Birky and put together a proposal to get the contract from the State Department. It was only for $10,000.

NCBR: How did you get the contract?

Albertson: We knew we had terrible competition: the Stanford Research Institute and MIT wanted it. But we never let the people in Washington forget us. I was in Washington twice a month for meetings for other grants and research, and every time I was there I dropped in on Rep. Henry Reuss from Wisconsin or the people with the ICA (International Cooperation Agency) to keep them up to date on the ideas we had about the project. We were finally told we would get the contract, but it was months before we got the money.

NCBR: How were you able to work on the project?

Albertson: I wrote proposals to the Rosenthal Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation. At that time Dean Rusk was director of the Rockefeller Foundation and organized a conference of top people to discuss the ideas our team had come up with. Then he gave us $5,000 to continue our work. The Rosenthal Foundation gave us $25,000.

(In her memoir, "Peace Corps Pioneer," Pauline Birky-Kreutzer noted that General Hershey, Director of Selective Service; Colin Bell, executive secretary of the American Friends Service Committee (Quaker); and Lewis Carliner, representing the United Auto Workers, were among those who participated in the conference.)

NCBR: So what did you do when you finally had a contract and the $10,000 in hand?

Albertson: The contract said we had to do a detailed study in at least 10 countries on three continents. I was able to combine my trip to the SEATO Graduate School of Engineering with stops in Pakistan and India. A member of our philosophy faculty, Dr. Manuel Davenport, had been invited by Albert Schweitzer to attend a workshop in Africa. So we paid his airfare, and he did our study on that continent. Pauline did the study in Latin America and the Caribbean.

NCBR: So you got the contract in 1960, you turned in the preliminary report in February 1961 and you had 400 volunteers in the field by the fall of the year.

Albertson: We couldn't believe how fast it was. Sargent Shriver, (President John F. Kennedy's) brother-in-law, put together a terrific team. Bill Moyers headed up PR for the program. Warren Wiggens, who had worked for USAID, organized everything. It was just amazing how organized it became. Sarg talked to everyone in Washington to get the Peace Corps funded.

NCBR: Your report, which later became the book "New Frontiers for American Youth: Perspective on the Peace Corps," was written by you, Pauline and Andrew Rice, who was based in Washington. Was that it for Colorado State?

Albertson: Oh, no. The logical step was for us to submit a proposal to train volunteers and to administer the programs overseas. We had faculty and programs well established in Pakistan, Iran and Thailand. We won the contract for Pakistan, and when the first director there didn't work out, Pauline went over and ran it. She was highly successful.

NCBR: Before the Peace Corps was established, detractors of the idea called it the "Children's Crusade" and "Kennedy's Kiddie Corps." Earlier this year, some 47 years later, there was a flurry of activity on the New York Times' Op Ed page and "Letters to the Editor" about whether the Peace Corps was really relevant to development in the 21st century. What do you think? Is the Peace Corps obsolete?

Albertson: Absolutely not! I talk with people from foreign countries all the time, and the one thing they are happy with, the one thing they think really represents the American people, is the Peace Corps. The greatest PR for the U.S. in the world is Peace Corps.

NCBR: Is there anything you can suggest that would improve it?

Albertson: Well, the government is not going to be able to keep it going unless they expand it. Presidents always talk big, but they won't push Congress to give it the money it needs. It needs to be much bigger, and there are plans for that to happen.

(The annual budget for the Peace Corps, originally under the Department of State but since 1981 an independent federal agency, is now $325 million.)

NCBR: Meanwhile, at age 90, you are continuing your work with sustainable development.

Albertson: Yes, I created Village Earth. It's a nonprofit organization based at the CSU Engineering Research Center. We are dedicated to promoting sustainable, community-based development around the world.




Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: August, 2008; History of the Peace Corps; Sargent Shriver (Director 1961 - 1966)





When this story was posted in August 2008, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers RSS Feed
PCVs Evacuated from Georgia Date: August 19 2008 No: 1254 PCVs Evacuated from Georgia
The Peace Corps has announced that all Volunteers and trainees serving in the Republic of Georgia are safe and they have been temporarily relocated to neighboring Armenia. Read the analysis by one RPCV on how Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili believed that he could launch a lightning assault on South Ossetia and reclaim the republic without substantial grief from Moscow and that Saakashvili's statements once the war began demonstrated that he expected real Western help in confronting Russia.


 Contact PCOL Search PCOL with Google Site Index Recent Posts Bulletin Board Open Discussion RPCV Directory Register
Dodd vows to filibuster Surveillance Act Date: October 27 2007 No: 1206 Dodd vows to filibuster Surveillance Act
Senator Chris Dodd vowed to filibuster the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act that would grant retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that helped this administration violate the civil liberties of Americans. "It is time to say: No more. No more trampling on our Constitution. No more excusing those who violate the rule of law. These are fundamental, basic, eternal principles. They have been around, some of them, for as long as the Magna Carta. They are enduring. What they are not is temporary. And what we do not do in a time where our country is at risk is abandon them."

August 6, 2008: This Month's Top Stories Date: August 6 2008 No: 1250 August 6, 2008: This Month's Top Stories
PC in Budget Crunch may cut PCVs by 5% 5 Aug
Garamendi first to announce run for governor in 2010 2 Aug
Bob and Pat Parish receive president’s award 31 Jul
Sam Brownback removes block on Kathleen Stephens 31 Jul
Peace Corps Removes Ban on HIV-Positive Volunteers 31 Jul
RPCVs organize online for Obama 31 Jul
Peace group awards perfect rating to Sam Farr 29 Jul
How Hill used back channels to negotiate Korean agreement 27 Jul
Voter surge may hurt Shays 26 Jul
Matthew A. Hamilton writes: A Shadow on Ararat 25 Jul
Gates says Tools of inspiration are indispensable 15 Jul
An interview with Composer Gabriela Lena Frank 13 Jul
Ginny Farmer to swim in Olympics for American Samoa 11 Jul
Dodd is possible vice presidential candidate 11 Jul
Carl Pope supports the Pickens Plan 8 Jul
George Packer writes: Obama’s Iraq Problem 7 Jul
An Interview with PCOL 4 Jul
Ifugao hopes for tourism boost after Campbell Trial 3 Jul
Peace Corps To Quit Kiribati 3 Jul
Tony Hall asks: Where is moral outrage over food crisis? 3 Jul
Wofford raises awareness about global poverty 2 Jul

New: More Stories from June and July 2008

July 1, 2008: This Month's Top Stories Date: July 16 2008 No: 1245 July 1, 2008: This Month's Top Stories
Sarah Chayes continues work in Kandahar 29 Jun
PCV Catherine Saltwick killed in Automobile Accident 2 Jun
Richard Stoll returns to Tonga for capitol’s rebuild 2 Jun
Peace Corps Reopens Program in Liberia 4 Jun
Tu Dang is a Foreign Affairs Officer 4 Jun
Bethany Hedt takes aim at AIDS with statistics 5 Jun
Expanding opportunities for deaf PCVs 5 Jun
Peace Corps/Kenya Program Reopening 6 Jun
José Klein is plate artist 9 Jun
Kenyan Prime Minister Visits PC Headquarters 19 Jun
Michael Meyer's writes "The Last Days of Old Beijing" 20 Jun
Chuck Ludlam writes: Congress Enacts PCV Tax Law 24 Jun
Dodd Speaks in Opposition to FISA Bill 24 Jun
Christopher Hill critical to success in Korea Talks 25 Jun
Mark Gearan writes: Hillary Clinton's Contribution 25 Jun
James Rupert writes: Pakistan Fights Taliban 27 Jun
Elaine Chao hails U.S.-China dialogue 28 Jun
Obituary for Bud Keith - Champion for Disabled 29 Jun
Life in prison for killer of PCV Julia Campbell 30 Jun
John Coyne writes: PC Archives at JFK Library 30 Jun
Mark Shriver to Chair National Commission on Children 30 Jun

New: More Stories from May and June 2008

June 1, 2008: This Month's Top Stories Date: July 16 2008 No: 1247 June 1, 2008: This Month's Top Stories
Senator ties up Kathleen Stephens appointment 1 May
Philip Dacey writes "The New York Postcard Sonnets" 31 May
Sophia Polasky writes: Luncheon with the president 30 May
Arnold Wendroff warns dangers of ritual use of mercury 30 May
Lynn Lurie writes “Corner of the Dead" 29 May
Obama Urges Grads To Serve Country 26 May
Nick Mucha promotes development at surf destinations 25 May
Don Crosby and wife serve in Thailand at 70 23 May
Matthew Handley pursued case of 12 murdered Nepalis 22 May
Zig and Irma Sokolnicki receive President's Award 21 May
Bruce Sterling writes: Steve Cisler RIP 20 May
Colorado to host Peace Corps Reunion in August 19 May
Hugh Pickens writes: Death Be Not Proud 17 May
Zachery Scott writes: Being a gay volunteer 14 May
PCVs in China Are Safe after earthquake 12 May
Louis Adams relives PC days in Morocco 12 May
Jemison say US leaders have made foolish decisions 11 May
Amy Smith's low-tech inventions have high impact 8 May
Bill Moyers on the 2008 Elections 8 May
Don Odermann creates Education Fund for Latin Players 5 May
Peter Hessler wins National Magazine Award 2 May

New: More Stories from April and May 2008



Read the stories and leave your comments.








Some postings on Peace Corps Online are provided to the individual members of this group without permission of the copyright owner for the non-profit purposes of criticism, comment, education, scholarship, and research under the "Fair Use" provisions of U.S. Government copyright laws and they may not be distributed further without permission of the copyright owner. Peace Corps Online does not vouch for the accuracy of the content of the postings, which is the sole responsibility of the copyright holder.

Story Source: North Colorado business Report

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; History; Directors - Shriver

PCOL41992
04


Add a Message


This is a public posting area. Enter your username and password if you have an account. Otherwise, enter your full name as your username and leave the password blank. Your e-mail address is optional.
Username:  
Password:
E-mail: