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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Susie P. Gonzalez
Jan. 25, 2008
Trinity University Joins Peace Corps’ Top 25 in Annual Rankings
SAN ANTONIO – Trinity University has joined the Peace Corps’ Top 25 list of small schools that produce the most Peace Corps volunteers. At present, 14 Trinity alumni are serving in the federal agency. Since the inception of the Peace Corps in 1961, a total of 147 Trinity alumni have joined, making Trinity the No. 288 producer of agency volunteers.
“This is a positive reflection on Trinity students who continue to be interested in the ‘world beyond,’” said Brian Hirsch, Trinity’s director of career services. “It is also a positive reflection on the faculty and staff who encourage and nurture our students and graduates to explore these types of experiences.”
Although it is not a requirement for service, the majority of Peace Corps volunteers are college graduates, with 95 percent of the volunteers having at least an undergraduate degree and 11 percent holding a graduate level degree. The average age of a volunteer is 27.
With an undergraduate enrollment of about 2,500, Trinity was ranked in the small school category, which is open to colleges and universities with a student body of less than 5,000 undergraduates. This year, Trinity was in a seven-way tie for spot No. 24 with Bowdoin College, Hamline University, Hope College, Johns Hopkins University, Wesleyan University, and Wheaton College.
The Peace Corps currently has 8,079 volunteers in 74 countries across the globe, the highest in 37 years for volunteers serving in the field. Over the years, the Peace Corps has had 190,000 volunteers and trainees serving in 139 countries.
The mission of the Peace Corps is three-fold: to help the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women, to help promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of people served, and to help promote a better understanding of other people on the part of Americans.
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© 2007 Trinity University