UO lands in the top 20 for its Peace Corps volunteers

Editor's Note: This article was first published in Around the O on Thursday, February 18, 2016.

The University of Oregon landed at No. 16 in the nation for the number of Peace Corps volunteers from large universities in the United States. The university currently has 35 alumni volunteering with the organization worldwide.

The UO has ranked near the top among large universities for more than 10 years, ranking No. 10 in 2015 and 2012 and No. 8 in 2014 and 2013. This makes UO the only school in Oregon to rank in the top 25 for universities that have 15,000 or more undergraduate students enrolled.

“Students at UO should definitely consider a Peace Corps experience,” said Mindy Stutzman, a UO alumna and returned Peace Corps Philippines volunteer. “My experience in the Philippines has come into conversations at least once a month for the past 10 years, which I think demonstrates how relevant living abroad and learning a different culture is to being a good citizen anywhere.”

Among the UO grads now serving in the Peace Corps is Sara Oller, a 2015 graduate who is working in Botswana, a small country in southern Africa.

Visit Around the O for the complete story.