ANN ARBOR—The University of Michigan ranks high in the nation for the largest number of graduates enrolling in the U.S. Peace Corps, according to a ranking released by Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez.

U-M, where John F. Kennedy first proposed creating the Peace Corps in 1960, currently has 95 graduates serving, second only to the University of Wisconsin at Madison, which has 123 graduates enrolled. However, the state of Michigan has more graduates on the top 10 list than any other state in the union since Michigan State University finished seventh on the list with 66 Peace Corp volunteers.

Nearly all Peace Corps volunteers are college graduates with 98 percent holding bachelor’s degrees and 6,678 volunteers serving in 136 countries around the world. During the organization’s 42 years, U-M has sent 1,970 graduates into service, fourth on the list of schools which have produced the most volunteers. Michigan State finished fifth on the list with 1,970 graduates serving.

The University of California-Berkley has sent the most volunteers over the past 42 years, sending 3,110 graduates into service.

Rodolfo Altamirano, director of the University’s International Center, which oversees and promotes Peace Corps programs on campus, notes that the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States made many students want to learn more about the rest of the world. He noted that former Peace Corps volunteers also work in the International Center and said the center’s Overseas Opportunities Office “does an excellent job in promoting the Peace Corps program via e-mail, which reaches 10,000 recipients and through our educational forums.” But he is also proud to tell the story of how the Peace Corps was born at U-M.

“In the early hours of Oct. 14, 1960, then-Sen. John F. Kennedy made an unprepared campaign speech to a group of U-M students on the steps of the Union,” he said. “He asked if they would be willing to devote a few years of their life working in under-developed countries around the world to promote better understanding between the United States, developing countries and their peoples. Within weeks, 1,000 Michigan students had signed a petition calling for the establishment of the Peace Corps program.

Related Links:

• International Center