Peace Corps World Wise Schools

“On this anniversary, we honor the men and women from across the country who have carried forward our Nation's finest tradition of service, and we rededicate ourselves to fulfilling the dream and continuing the work of all those who aspire and yearn for peace.”
–President Barack Obama

On March 1st, 2011, President Obama officially proclaimed the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps and called on Americans to celebrate the contributions of Peace Corps Volunteers past and present. From the spark of an idea of service first introduced by John F. Kennedy during his presidential campaign, Peace Corps has worked with communities around the world through the service of more than 200,000 Americans. Nearly all 50 states have proclaimed March as Peace Corps Month.

Join Coverdell World Wise Schools in celebrating 50 years of Peace Corps service! Using the Peace Corps timeline, connect your students with history through interactive projects from each decade of Peace Corps, inspiring them to global citizenship.

1960s: The Peace Corps was founded. Brainstorm ideas for globally-relevant service learning projects.

1970s: The first female and first African American Director of Peace Corps was selected. Learn more about how Peace Corps is working with women in development.

1980s: The world map project initially appeared in the Dominican Republic and has been replicated in communities across the globe. Create a world map in your school or community.

1990s: Volunteers in Romania establish the first Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World). Start a club or discussion group in your school to encourage girls in leadership development.

2000s: Over 4,000 educators and their students are communicating with currently serving Peace Corps Volunteers through the Correspondence Match program. Sign up today!

Q: What do you want your Peace Corps legacy to be; and what makes you most proud to serve for an agency that is celebrating a legacy of 50 years?

A: I hope I leave a legacy of passion, kindness, and hard work in the small rural community I currently call home. While friends, family, and peers back in the States will express a brief curiosity in what I did for these two years abroad, my true Peace Corps legacy will only be known to those who accepted me whole-heartedly into their community and family to work, to teach, and to learn.

I am proud to continue upholding a fifty year legacy of service ... more

As technology changes over the decades, so has Coverdell World Wise Schools. Correspondence Match, which began in 1989, started as an exchange of posted letters between U.S. classrooms and Volunteers. Today, texting, emailing, video conferencing, digital photos and cell phone calls make it easy to communicate with a Peace Corps Volunteer serving overseas!

Peace Corps Volunteer in Kazakhstan with students

President John F. Kennedy's Inauguration

Peace Corps Volunteer in Romania playing soccer with children

Promoting Peace and Friendship in 139 Countries (pdf)

Have your students go on a scavenger hunt to learn fun facts and explore Peace Corps countries. (Answer key)

A Legacy of Service
50 Years of Peace Corps
(video, 6 mins)

Since 1961, more than 200,000 Americans have served in the Peace Corps, demonstrating how the power of an idea can capture the imagination of an entire nation.

Volunteer Stories

Search the World Wise Schools database that contains five decades of stories about cross-cultural experiences in education, environment, health, agriculture, business, community development and HIV/AIDS as told by Peace Corps Volunteers.

Peace Corps Volunteer in Burkina Faso cooking with host mother.

What can corresponding with a currently serving Peace Corps Volunteer help your students to learn? In addition to learning about another country and culture through the eyes, ears and voice of a Peace Corps Volunteer, students can also begin to understand the larger questions concerning service to others such as:

What does it mean to be a citizen of my community, or of the world? What does “the common good” mean and why does it matter? Why serve? What have I got to give? What have I received from the service of others? How far am I willing to go to make a difference?

Take advantage of the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps to incorporate some of these broader questions into the classroom conversation. For more suggestions on using the Correspondence Match program in your classroom, be sure to check out the Correspondence Match Handbook for Educators.

Smithsonian Folklife Festival Celebrate the Peace Corps experience with storytelling, music, dance, food, crafts, and cultural activities on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. from June 30 to July 11, 2011.
Crossing Borders, Through Literature, Poetry and Personal Stories On April 7, 2011, Coverdell World Wise Schools will conduct a teacher workshop at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library’s teacher conference in Boston, MA.
Global Youth Service Day During the weekend of April 15-17, 2011, encourage your students to become “domestic” Peace Corps Volunteers in their community.
National Peace Corps Association Check out the calendar of events for a Peace Corps celebration happening near you!