Austin College graduates have a long and distinguished history of service in the U.S. Peace Corps. Over 30 alumni have served in the Peace Corps since the program’s founding in 1961. Below is a list of many of the Austin College graduates who have given years of outstanding service in the Peace Corps in countries all over the world. Click on the linked names in order to find out more about these students’ Peace Corps experiences.
Bill Luthans '77 spoke with Fiji One Television at an event hosted by the US Embassy in Suva, Fiji, celebrating the Peace Corps’ 50 years of service in Fiji. Bill served in the Peace Corps in Fiji on a remote island, Moala, as a science teacher from 1977 to 1979.
Kyle Floyd '06 is living in Esquipulas, Matagalpa, as a small business volunteer with Peace Corps Nicaragua and celebrated his first year “in country” in March. He particularly works to equip teachers in the local high schools, and his day may include classroom management and co-planning daily lectures for the “Emprendedurismo” program. Peace Corps and MINED (Ministerio de Educación) have compiled a curriculum for high school seniors that includes working in groups throughout the year to design a product that does not exist in their community. They complete market studies, interviews, and create a prototype of their product. Finally, students write a business plan that is presented at a local competition, with potential to advance to regional and national competitions. Winners receive money they can invest in their business plan if they wish to continue. In addition to working in the schools, the Peace Corps volunteers work with small business owners providing business and financial education.
Read more about Austin College Global Ambassadors. (excerpt from Austin College Magazine - June 2005)
Name: Wallis Westwood '63
Location: Panama
Years: 1963-1965
Name: Jean Clark '64
Location: Panama
Years: 1965-1967
Name: Winifred Jones Bellido '66
Location: Peru
Years: 1969-1971
Name: Richard “Scooter” Merritt '66
Location: India
Years: 1967-1970
Name: Dana Fienning Minaya '66
Location: Ghana
Years: 1966-1968
Name: Vance McCracken '70
Location: Northern Ghana
Years: 1970-1972
Name: John McLeod '70
Location: Nepal
Years: 1970-1971
Name: Louise McLoughlin Gonzalez '73
Location: Domestic Peace Corps
Years: 1973-1974
Name: Martha Edwards '75
Location: Western Samoa
Years: 1976-1977
Name: Bill Luthans '77
Location: Moaala, Fiji
Years: 1978-1979
Name: Leslie Hughes-Lind ’78
Location: Honduras
Years: 1978-1980
Name: Pablo Salcido '78
Location: Honduras
Years:
Name: Claudia Finney ’79
Location: Honduras
Years: 1985-1987
Name: Rebecca Wood Wyatt '80
Location: Central African Republic
Years: 1980-1981
Name: John McGown '86
Location: Phillipines
Years: 1992-1994
Name: Scott Bryant ’87
Location: Lesotho
Years: 1990-1994
Name: Mark Adcock '88
Location: Honduras
Years: 1989-1991
Name: Lorel Donaghey '86
Location: Uzbekistan
Years: 1992-1994
Name: Ruth Junkin '88
Location: Marshall Islands
Years: 1988-1990
Name: Helen Lowman '88
Location: Thailand
Years: 1988-1991
Name: Virginia Smith Volpe '90
Location: Sri Lanka
Years: 1992-1994
Name: Colleen Lyons Gardner '91
Location: Niger
Years: 1996-1998
Name: Julie Ell Lugar '91
Location: Guinea-Bissau, West Africa
Years: 1994-1996
Name: Lauren Marshall ’92
Location: Gabon
Years: 1988-1992
Name: Michelle Dickson ’95
Location: Ukraine
Years: 1995-1996
Name: Joe Jordan '99
Location: El Salvador
Years: 2000-2002
Name: Naureen Rajan ’00
Location:
Years: 2000-2002
Name: Rachel Branaman '01
Location: Namibia
Years: 2009-2011
Name: Melania M. Marin ’01
Location:
Years: 2003-2005
Name: Sally Altland '02
Location: Botswana
Years: 2003-2005
Name: Amy Evans '02
Location: Armenia
Years:
Name: Dung Le '02
Location: Honduras
Years: 2002-2004
Name: Suzanne Price '02
Location: Mongolia
Years: 2003-2005
Name: Michael Shawn Kirby ’03
Location: Azerbbaijan
Years: 2006-2008
Name: Carolyn Wilson '03
Location: Micronesia
Years: 2003-2005
Name: Cat Chamberlain ’04
Location: Albania
Years: 2006-2008
Name: Kyle Floyd '06
Location: Matagalpa, Nicaragua
Years: 2013-2015
Name: Jerry Kenney ’06
Location: Armenia
Years: 2007-2009
Name: Meaghan Mueller Kenney '06
Location:
Years: 2007-2009
Name: Ada Mbagwu-Mahlik ’07
Location: Niger
Years: 2008-2009
Name: Austin McBee ’07
Location: Mauritania and Rwanda
Years: 2008-2011
Name: Casey Kaczmarczyk ’08
Location: West Africa
Years: 2011-2013
Name: Molly McMills '08
Location: El Salvador
Years: 2010-2011
Name: Molly Salomon ’08
Location: El Salvador
Years: 2010-2012
Name: Jake Pritchard '10
Location: Masaya, Nicaragua
Years: 2011-2013
Name: Allen Wang ’10
Location: Costa Rica
Years: 2010-2012
Name: Leslie Leonard '11
Location: Cameroon
Years: 2014-2016
Name: Chelsea Parker ’11
Location:
Years: 2016-2017
Name: Bianca Williams '13
Location:
Years: 2014-2016
Name: John Clark '13
Location: Mongolia
Years: 2014-2016
Name: Liz Ramirez ’13
Location: Cambodia
Years: 2015-2017
Name: Edgar Rodriguez ’15
Location: Madagascar
Years: 2016-2018
Name: Tejasvi Koka ’17
Location: Botswana
Years: 2017-2019
Name: Jared Weaver ’17
Location: Botswana
Years: 2018-2020
Name: Poya Seck ’17
Location: Senegal
Years: 2018-
If any of this information needs improvement or correction, please email Patrick Duffey, PCPP Coordinator.