Service in the Peace Corps was considered full-time—and so it is for those assigned in Micronesia.
In the Northern Marianas, the lives of Peace Corps Volunteers are guided by structured line of supervision and work pattern. The PCV’s program policy had to be adjusted “in light of realities working in Micronesia… some adjustments have had to be made.” [1]
Non-teaching volunteers have strong technical and professional backgrounds.
Teaching volunteers have been given additional training in community development work.
Built in 1958, Oleai Elementary School on Saipan, was one of the schools that Peace Corps volunteers served. In this photo, elementary students perform during a Christmas Concert. This was a photo taken between 1967 to 1971 from the Facebook page Mariana Memories-Micro.
The volunteers specific jobs include TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) teacher, teacher of all subjects, staff Micronesia reporter, radio station worker, community development worker, curriculum coordinator, speech specialist, lawyer, architect, secretary, nursing instructor, mass media volunteer, photographer, agriculture worker, business advisor, civil engineer, health screening counselor, librarian, entomologist, mayor’s assistant, commissioner assistant, financial consultant, bilingual education worker, and doctor.
Some Peace Corps volunteers during this period were sent under “CAA work study,” which likely refers to Community Action Agencies, local nonprofit organizations that carry out a program to fight poverty and promote self-sufficiency.
When the Peace Corps Volunteers arrived in the Northern Marianas, there were no institutions of higher education that were operating in any of the six districts. However, there were three specialized schools: the School of Nursing in Saipan, the Farm Institute, and the Micronesian Teacher Education Center in Ponape. [2]
Before the Peace Corps, there were 876 teachers in the Micronesian school system. These included 172 Americans and 704 Micronesians. [3]
The system for training Micronesian teachers has produced only a small percentage of fully qualified teachers, according to U.S. standards. This has had a detrimental effect on the use of English as the language of instruction and the teaching of English as a second language in the schools.
The Peace Corps has added 269 volunteers to the Micronesian education system. [4]
The only time for the Peace Corps volunteers to enjoy their personal time is to avail of leave—45 days, including Sundays and regular Trust Territory holidays.
A photo of Saipan residents bidding farewell to Peace Corps volunteers Dennis and Elayne at the Airport 1969. This is a photo from the Facebook page Mariana Memories-Micro.
And there’s plenty of work to do even during downtime for these volunteers. When schools are not in session, volunteer teachers are involved in the community aspect of their service. This does not mean that the volunteers cannot devote their time to school improvement or other TTPI education programs. What it meant is that regular school vacation breaks, except for leave time, are working time for volunteer teachers. [5]
Twenty years after the Peace Corps Act was signed, it became an independent agency under Title VI of the International Security and Development Cooperative Act of 1981.
But the program ended in the Northern Marianas in 1978 when the islands became a US Commonwealth. The Peace Corps ceased sending PCVs to the CNMI.
[1] P 5/ Peace Corps Micronesia Handbook, September 1967.
[2] Training Program for Peace Corps Volunteers to Serve in Micronesia, TTPI, June 26-September 2, 1967, Truk District
[3] Ibid.
[4] Training Program for Peace Corps Volunteers to Serve in Micronesia, TTPI, June 26-September 2, 1967, Truk District
[5] P7/Ibid
