Happy 50th Anniversary, Peace Corps!

Library staff and the International Studies Program collaborated on this exhibit which highlights  the important work of the Peace Corps and encourages our students to consider international service. Special thanks to Jermain Griffin, Associate Director of International Studies, for all his work on the exhibit and for loaning us materials gathered during his own Peace Corps experience.

Come see this exhibit which runs through March and showcases Fairfield University community members who have been Peace Corps volunteers.

From a germ of an idea glimpsed in a speech given on October 14, 1960  by then senator John F. Kennedy, the Peace Corps has changed the world by promoting peace and friendship.

The contributions of Robert Sargent  Shriver, who died this week on January 18, 2011, cannot be overstated.  His vision and dedication to the Peace Corps were instrumental in shaping its course.  To learn more about Shriver’s contribution, got tohttp://shriver.peacecorps.gov/

Shriver stated, “The Peace Corps represents some, if not all, of the best virtues in this society. It stands for everything that America has ever stood for. It stands for everything we believe in and hope to achieve in the world.”