Colorado School of Mines was recently approved by the U.S. Peace Corps to house the first Peace Corps Prep program in Colorado. All Mines undergraduates now have the opportunity to prepare for adventures overseas, either as a Peace Corps volunteer or as a professional.
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| Photo courtesy of Peace Corps |
The Peace Corps Prep program aims to enhance students’ undergraduate experience by preparing them for international development fieldwork and overseas service. Mines was selected for the pilot program based on the highly technical skills and knowledge of its graduates. “There is a real synergy between Peace Corps and Mines, because they need trained, technical people,” said David Frossard, a web administrator for Mines Computing, Communications and Information Technologies and one of the co-coordinators of the program. Frossard also served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Philippines and Zambia.
The Peace Corps Prep program encourages students to expand their global awareness and gain international knowledge and skills that employers value, as well as develop leadership skills through volunteer work or internships. The program integrates coursework with hands-on experience and professional development, allowing students to gain sector-specific skills and foreign-language proficiency, while also cultivating a cultural competence that will help students succeed no matter where they are in the world.
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| Photo courtesy of Peace Corps |
Frossard, along with fellow co-coordinator, Juan Lucena, hopes students will be eager to be a part of the Peace Corp Prep program. “It just seemed to us that this would be a great opportunity to give our students,” said Frossard. “For those who want to work abroad, who want to not just be a tourist but live in a place and become a part of a place, this is a fantastic experience.”
Overall, the Peace Corps Prep program is a stepping stone for Mines students to put their engineering or science degrees to use in service of others after graduation. Successful completion of the program will earn students a certificate and a competitive edge when applying for Peace Corps volunteer positions as well as make them attractive candidates for professional positions in government or industry.
For students interested in volunteering and gaining a broader understanding of another culture and sharing that understanding with others, the Peace Corps Prep program is ideal. Frossard adds: “Once you’re a Peace Corps volunteer, you’re always a volunteer.”
For more information about the Peace Corps Prep program or to get involved, visit pcprep.mines.edu.
Contact:
Ashley Spurgeon, Editorial Assistant, Mines magazine | 303-273-3959 | aspurgeon@mines.edu
Deirdre Keating, Communications Manager, College of Engineering & Computational Sciences | 303-384-2358 | dkeating@mines.edu
