Thanks to consistent recruitment efforts on campus, SUNY-ESF contributes the second-most volunteers to the Peace Corps nationwide.

The Peace Corps announced the 2014 top volunteer-producing college and universities in a Feb. 11 press release. The State University of Environmental Science and Forestry was ranked number two among small colleges.

Peace Corps recruiter Dove Russo frequents the ESF campus, Elizabeth Chamberlain, a Peace Corps Northeast Regional Office Public Affairs Specialist, said in an email. Russo will participate in the ESF Career Fair later this month, Chamberlain said.

Fifteen ESF alumni are currently serving in the Peace Corps in 14 countries, Chamberlain said. They work in education, environment, health and community economic development, she said, adding that 802 Syracuse University and ESF alumni have served overseas as Peace Corps volunteers since 1961.

Though the ranking only measures undergraduate participation, graduate students also participate in the Peace Corps, Scott Shannon, the associate provost of the graduate school at ESF, said in an email.

“We actually have several current graduate students who are Returned Peace Corps Volunteers,” he said.

Shannon said three ESF students are enrolled in the Peace Corps Master’s International Program, which integrates a master’s degree with overseas service.

Some current graduate students who are participating in the ESF Peace Corps Master’s programs are now working as volunteers in Jamaica, he added.

“The Peace Corps has lots of opportunities for us students,” said Shannon Hennessey, a junior forest resources management major, who said she would like to join the Peace Corps after college. “Once a month they have a recruiting table at ESF.”

Hennessy’s desire to join the Peace Corps began in high school.

“I feel like I’ve been given so much in life, even just the roof over my head. I just want to give back to the world,” she said.

As a forester, Hennessy said she would like to go to Africa or South America and work in community education and agroforestry, planting trees for agricultural plans, she said.

She said the application process is mostly online, but there are also interviews, resume and cover letter reviews. Then volunteers get put into contact with the regional recruitment officers.

“I’ll probably start applying in May,” she said, adding that it is important to apply about a year ahead of time.

Candice Lanette, a 2010 ESF graduate who majored in environmental studies, is now in the Peace Corps. Lanette applied through the online application process and it took about a year and four months to get her invitation, she said.

“I wanted to travel abroad, give back, live more simply and learn a new language,” she said.

She added that she could have traveled abroad in her undergraduate career but believed the Peace Corps could give her different opportunities, such as being able to live in a village for two years and immerse herself in the culture.

Lanette was there with four other volunteers, including Mark Betzhold, another ESF graduate. While in Zambia, Lanette attended classes and went on site visits. She went to an HIV and AIDs support group, where members raved to her about how grateful they were to have the Peace Corps volunteers there.

Recently, Lanette had to be sent home from Zambia due to an allergy. She said she hope to be reassigned to a new location soon, as she is excited to continue giving back.

Published on February 17, 2014 at 1:26 am