University of Maryland News

By Beth Cavanaugh

November 11, 2011

"Peace" Is the Word: UMD Alums Extend Education in Peace Corps


Peace Corps volunteers from Maryland are working this year in 27 countries—including Jamaica, Turkmenistan, Zambia and Costa Rica—expanding their skills in areas such as agricultural economics, business advising, environmental science, youth development and education.

Veterans and volunteers-to-be in the program say the experience changed their lives. Here are stories from three of them:

Greig Stewart M.A. '79
Executive Director, College Park Scholars
Peace Corps 1974-76
Morocco
—Greig Stewart can thank the stagnant job market of the 1970s for connecting him with the Peace Corps. After completing his bachelor's degree in sociology at the University of Massachusetts, Stewart went in search of a teaching position. With no luck, he answered a blind ad stating "Teachers Wanted." The ad turned out to be the Peace Corps, and within a few months, Stewart was on a plane headed to Morocco to teach English.

He spent his first year at a high school in Khemisset, and his second in Casablanca, where he taught at the country's only civil prison school. He counts these students among the best he's ever had because of their dedication and commitment.

After his two-year assignment, Stewart earned a master's degree in counseling at the University of Maryland, and he says the Peace Corps served as the foundation of his career in education, including 24 years at Maryland.

"It affirmed my understanding to be sensitive to other people's perspectives," says Stewart.

He adamantly encourages his students to pursue international and service opportunities, including study abroad, Peace Corps, AmeriCorps and City Year.

Traveling thousands of miles, he says, is a great way to learn that the world is a small place. "Even back in the 1970s, before social media, I learned how interconnected we are in so many ways."

Amalia Pleake-Tamm '06
University of Maryland Carey School of Law student
Peace Corps 2007-09
East Africa
—Amalia Pleake-Tamm grew up hearing stories of her father's and siblings' travels throughout Africa, while her father served with USAID during the 1970s. But it was meeting Terp Peace Corps hopefuls and a recruiting session that hooked her on the idea of becoming a volunteer. Within a year, Pleake-Tamm was living in a tiny house in a tiny village in Malawi.

A forestry extension officer in the village of Jumbi, she taught villagers how to construct wooden and paper-mache beehives. The honey served primarily as a food and medicinal source, but was also a source of income at local markets. Pleake-Tamm also used her education in environmental science and technology to help the village women's group make portable clay stoves, which are more efficient and burn less wood than three-stone fires.

Pleake-Tamm developed a strong camaraderie with the villagers, especially the women. "When you are the only American, white, English speaker in the village, you really depend on your neighbors and they become your family," she says. "You rely on them for so much and they protect you. And if anything out of the ordinary happens, they will come running."

She still writes the villagers and says she misses the children the most. "I got to name one of the babies after my brother, and I still get pictures of him every once in a while," she says. "It's a very warm culture. I can't wait to go back."

Tiara Darnell '11
Peace Corps March 2012-14
Morocco
—Tiara Darnell began to learn about different cultures through postcards her father, an Air Force officer, sent home—and a subscription to National Geographic. And at 22 years old, she's more than scratched her itch to see the world. Through study abroad and international programs at Maryland and personal travel, she's been to 11 countries, and will add Italy and Spain to that list next month.

As part of the March 2012 Peace Corps volunteer cohort in Morocco, Darnell will focus on youth development, including teaching English and tutoring, and young women's empowerment.

She'll spend her first two months with the Peace Corps learning Moroccan Arabic and French, and getting culture training while staying with a host family. After that, she will be living on her own. Darnell says her extensive travel and cultural immersion have prepared her for this journey.

"(Returned Peace Corps volunteers) say that the first year is really about establishing yourself, and building lasting relationships and trust within the community," said Darnell. "Not knowing the language and culture is probably my biggest fear, but I know I am not the first and won't be the last volunteer to go through this. I've never quit anything in my life, and I don't think it is going to be Peace Corps, no matter how hard it gets."



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