USF World News
USF Among Peace Corps’ 2019 Top Volunteer-Producing Colleges and Institutions
Peace Corps announced today that the University of South Florida (USF) ranked No. 3 among graduate schools on the agency’s list of top volunteer-producing colleges and universities in 2019. There are 16 USF alumni currently volunteering in countries around the world.
This is the third consecutive year that USF has ranked among the top 5 graduate schools. In addition, Florida ranked No. 6 among the top ten volunteer-producing states in the agencies 2018 Top Volunteer Producing States list, consistently climbing in the rankings from the No. 8 spot in 2011. There are 311 volunteers from the Sunshine State currently serving worldwide. Since the Peace Corps’ founding in 1961, more than 8,230 Floridians have served in the Peace Corps, and over 500 have been USF alumni.
“We have seen time and again that the colleges and universities that produce the most
Peace Corps volunteers focus on cultivating global citizens in addition to promoting
scholarship,” said Peace Corps Director Jody Olsen. “I am proud that so many graduates
of these esteemed institutions leverage their educations to make the world a better
place. They bring critical skills to communities around the world and gain hands-on,
life-changing experience along the way.”
Elizabeth Garcia graduated from USF in 2011 and is currently serving as an economic
development volunteer in the Eastern European nation of Georgia. “A sense of community
and the desire to help and support others is something that USF really instills in
its students. I think my time at USF challenged me to not only help those around me,
but to also think about what I could do abroad,” Garcia said of her alma mater.
Daniela Aguirre graduated from USF in 2014 and is currently serving as a public health educator in Mongolia. “I believe USF alumni are not only very passionate about what they do, but they also wish to share such passion with people from all over the world. A great quality that USF instills in all its students through volunteerism and leadership,” Aguirre said.
The University of South Florida is a Peace Corps University Program partner offering the Peace Corps Prep certificate program to undergraduates. Peace Corps Prep is a certificate program for undergraduates that centers on empowering their skills to be the best volunteer. Coverdell Graduate Fellowship program, at the Colleges of Public Health, the Patel College of Global Sustainability, College of Nursing, College of Civil Environmental-Engineering and Applied Anthropology the USF Department of Anthropology. The Paul D. Coverdell Fellows Program is a graduate fellowship program that offers financial assistance to returned Peace Corps volunteers.
The Peace Corps ranks its top volunteer-producing colleges and universities annually according to the size of the student body. View the complete 2019 rankings of the top 25 schools in each category here and find an interactive map that shows where alumni from each college and university are serving here.
Graduate Schools – Total Volunteers:
*Rankings are calculated based on fiscal year 2018 data as of September 30, 2018, as self-reported by Peace Corps volunteers.
About the Peace Corps: The Peace Corps sends Americans with a passion for service abroad on behalf of the United States to work with communities and create lasting change. Volunteers develop sustainable solutions to address challenges in education, health, community economic development, agriculture, the environment and youth development. Through their Peace Corps experience, volunteers gain a unique cultural understanding and a life-long commitment to service that positions them to succeed in today's global economy. Since President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps in 1961, more than 235,000 Americans of all ages have served in 141 countries worldwide. For more information, visit peacecorps.gov and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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