GENESEO, N.Y. – SUNY Geneseo is among the top colleges and universities in the country in producing volunteers for the Peace Corps, ranking 17th this year among medium-size schools with 17 alumni currently volunteering worldwide. Geneseo ranked 22nd in last year’s Peace Corps rankings.
Geneseo alumni are currently serving in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Dominican Republic, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nepal, Paraguay, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda and Zambia. They work in sectors including agriculture, education, environment, health, community economic development and youth development.
Among the volunteers is Geneseo alumna Stephanie Edwards, a 2011 graduate from Falls Church, Va., who is scheduled to depart for Paraguay next month as a Peace Corps member.
“I have been assigned to the community health sector as a health extension volunteer,” said Edwards. “Our sector is aimed at helping local communities to improve their health status by providing education and training to health personnel, teachers, children, and families.
“I am a hands-on kind of person, and I am looking forward to jumping right into my community and helping in every way possible. I am equally excited to learn a new language and new way of life,” she added.
Interim SUNY Geneseo President Carol S. Long called the recognition “very gratifying” since Geneseo strongly encourages active community and volunteer service at all levels and has been working with the American Council on Education Internationalization Lab to expand its international education effort as well.
“Geneseo has had strong volunteer efforts at the international level for many years and they are getting stronger as this recognition substantiates,” said Long. “I sincerely commend Stephanie and all of Geneseo’s alumni in the Peace Corps – present and past -- for their commitment to this most worthy endeavor.”
The jump to #17 comes on the heels of Geneseo earning the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching's highly respected Community Engagement Classification for 2015 in early January for demonstrating "exemplary practices of community engagement." Long said the Peace Corps ranking reflects the college’s mission in action.
"When we say, 'The entire college community works together to develop socially responsible citizens with skills and values important to the pursuit of an enriched life and success in the world' -- it's not just words,” said Long. “Our students and alumni are making the world a better place."
Edwards is among 253 Geneseo alumni who have served in the Peace Corps since the agency’s founding in 1961. Nationwide, some 3,000 alumni from colleges and universities have served in the organization.
“The Peace Corps provides an indispensable opportunity for young people out of college to put their unique skills to work making a difference for communities around the world,” said Peace Corps Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet. “Volunteers make lasting change by living and working at the grassroots level in their communities of service and using their talents to tackle some of the most critical challenges in international development.”
This year’s rankings follow historic reforms to Peace Corps’ application and selection process, led by Hessler-Radelet, that resulted in a 22-year application high for the agency in 2014. Applicants will now find a simplified, more personal application process, and can learn more by reaching out to the northeast regional recruitment office.