Take an RPCV to Work Day!

Last week marked 52 years since the Peace Corps’ inception in 1961, and it celebrated with a week-long series of activities carried out around the world. Three recently returned volunteers (RPCVs) – Alayna Garvin (Romania 2007-2009), Debra Howe (Malawi 2010-2012), and Kathryn Jacoby (Ghana 2008-2011) visited the BBG headquarters and Voice of America for “Take an RPCV to Work Day.”

RPCV Debra Howe and IBB Deputy Director Jeff Trimble

Kathryn Jacoby shared with us this account of her visit:

“The bustling energy of a major news agency in the morning is invigorating. We met and greeted RPCVs and VOA staff before attending the morning editorial meeting, where major news items were discussed and each department presented their stories for the day—an unusual opportunity to hear top professionals in the field discuss a day’s worth of news topics in 30 minutes.

The experience had a two-fold importance for me: I saw a bit of the around-the-clock work and the dedication to VOA’s mission that goes into producing the broadcasts that I listened to in the field; and I also saw some of the daily activities of a job in international journalism, and received warm smiles and sage advice from RPCVs who had been in my position in the past. This was a fantastic experience!

The RPCVs spent time with individuals across the BBG and VOA who had also previously served in the Peace Corps, including Connie Stephens (Niger), Kristy Hays (Belize), Stephen McGinley (Tonga), Kelsey Marsh (Lesotho), and Nancy Coviello (Namibia).

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  • Nancy Coviello

    I enjoyed participating in this event a great deal! It felt really good to give back to the Peace Corps in this way & to highlight some of the amazing work of VOA. I’m glad to know that the RPCVs had a positive experience. Special thanks to Suzie Carroll for suggesting we participate and for coordinating the visit.