United Nations Secretary-General Visits Peace Corps

United Nations Secretary-General Visits Peace Corps
Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter welcomed the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, to speak to Peace Corps staff as part of the Loret Miller Ruppe Speaker Series on Friday, October 12. The Loret Miller Ruppe series serves as a forum for distinguished individuals to speak about issues related to the Peace Corps' mission, such as volunteerism, international peace and development, and public service. "The presence of the Secretary-General today honors our Peace Corps Volunteers worldwide," said Tschetter. "Our missions and goals are similar–world peace and the betterment of people's lives around the world. Peace Corps Volunteers work with many UN Organizations on the ground. We are proud of this collaboration and hope it will continue."

During his speech, the Secretary-General talked about his first visit to the U.S. as a high school student when he was invited to meet the then President, John F. Kennedy, saying the visit "offered me a personal occasion to learn the ideas and principles the United States stands for and that, in turn inspired, a life of public service. President Kennedy gave life to his vision of global partnership." "Let me pay tribute to thousands of Peace Corps Volunteers who work around the world in 139 countries," said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. "Peace Corps has provided invaluable, critical support for the United Nations' Volunteers. Together, we can work toward results. Together, we can pursue our joint mission for a peaceful and prosperous, just world."  Read more.

Ron Tschetter completes one year as Peace Corps Director
The Director has visited 23 countries to date, including some locations never before visited by a Peace Corps Director, such as: Malawi, Bolivia, and Cape Verde. The Director has attended Peace Corps anniversary events in Niger, Paraguay, Cameroon, and the Dominican Republic. Also this year, Tschetter traveled to swear-in the first group of Volunteers to serve in Cambodia. Additionally, Tschetter has visited many of Peace Corps' regional recruiting offices across the United States.

One of the Director's main initiatives has been to attract and retain older Americans to serve in the Peace Corps. After conducting a survey of all currently serving 50+ Volunteers, he responded to the feedback and is transforming the agency to better integrate and increase the number of 50+ Volunteers. He has personally attended 50+ recruiting sessions around the country and seen great interest from the Baby Boomer generation to serve their country. Director Tschetter has effectively spread the message that it's never too late to serve. This month at the AARP National Convention, Director Tschetter unveiled a new 50+ Web site geared specifically toward older Americans. Over the past year, the 50+ initiative has earned the attention of major national news outlets such as CNN, Boston Globe, Seattle Times, San Francisco Examiner, and Christian Science Monitor.

Over the past year, Tschetter also created the Office of Strategic Information, Research, and Planning (OSIRP) within the agency to better measure the impact of Volunteers in the field and the work done to support them here at home. This new office performs three key functions: performance planning and reporting; evaluation and measurement; and data management.  Read more.

Read more about Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter.

Caption:  Peace Corps Director Tschetter with a volunteer in Cameroon earlier this year.  Photo:  michaeljdowney Flickr Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic