The University of Colorado at Boulder ranks fifth in the nation for the number of graduates currently serving as Peace Corps volunteers, according to 2002 rankings released today.
For several years, including last year, the university ranked second in the nation in numbers of volunteers.Ìý
In 2002, the University of Wisconsin at Madison ranked first, with 96 volunteers, followed by the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor with 76, the University of California at Berkeley with 70, the University of Texas with 69 and CU-Boulder with 64.
Other Colorado colleges and universities in this year's rankings included Colorado State University at 12th with 48 volunteers and Colorado College, which is ranked ninth among small schools with 14 volunteers.
Nelson Chase, regional manager for the Peace Corps' Denver office, said the economy may have played a role in this year's decline in participation by CU-Boulder graduates.
"In 2000 and 2001 we saw a decrease in the number of volunteers coming from metro Denver universities," Chase said. "We attribute this to the strength of the Colorado economy during that time. In December 2000, the unemployment rate in Colorado was 2.5 percent compared to 4 percent nationally."
President Bush's call to double the number of Peace Corps volunteers over the next five years, made in his Jan. 29 State of the Union address, also is expected to increase the number of CU-Boulder volunteers, Chase said.Ìý
The Peace Corps Web site received almost four times its usual number of visits the day after the president's speech.
"We are very excited about the president's commitment to volunteerism, as outlined in his State of the Union address, which will provide increased opportunity for CU-Boulder students to serve in the Peace Corps," he said. "In fact, we have already seen a 15 percent increase in enrollment for this year and expect it to continue to rise."
A total of 7,000 Peace Corps volunteers currently serve in 70 countries, working in communities to help fight hunger and disease, provide clean water, educate children and help people launch new businesses. Since the Peace Corps was established in 1961, the vast majority of volunteers have been college graduates. Of current volunteers, 82 percent hold a bachelor's degree and 13 percent have a graduate degree.
The CU-Boulder representative for the Peace Corps is Kathleen Stolle, who can be reached at (303) 844-7013 or by email at kstolle@peacecorps.gov.
To contact the Peace Corps call 1-800-424-8580 or visit the Web site . The Web site includes upcoming event information and online applications.