Disaster Relief
The Crisis Corps and World Wise Schools look at Peace Corps work following Hurricane Katrina and the Asian tsunami.
Asian Tsunami
Former Peace Corps Volunteers spent three months in Sri Lanka as Crisis Corps volunteers working on everything from database entry to construction projects. Gain unique insight on the tsunami from their perspective:
- Slide Show: photographed, written, and narrated by returned Peace Corps Volunteers who were on the ground in Sri Lanka after the tsunami.
- Read about one Volunteer's journey.
- Check out this lesson on the Asian tsunami.
Hurricane Katrina
For the first time in Peace Corps history, Crisis Corps Volunteers were sent inside the United States, helping in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
- Jamaica Corker tells of her experiences in New Orleans.
More Hurricane Lesson Plans
Last year World Wise Schools sent out a special edition of NewsBrief (the World Wise Window's previous incarnation) in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. If your students might be interested in those resources, they're here:
- Life in a Hurricane Zone: What is it like to live in the path of hurricanes like Georges? Peace Corps Volunteers explain and World Wise Schools gives you a few tips on how to integrate it into your classroom.
- Working for the Common Good: How can a disaster bring a community together? Peace Corps Volunteers and staff explain how.
World Wise Schools' New Website
We have a brand-new website! Check out these new features:
- A database full of stories from Peace Corps Volunteers all over the world.
- Lessons plans searchable by grade level, subject area, and geographic region.
- E-mail This Page: Easily share your finds with other educators.
- Print This Page: Clean printouts of all our lesson plans and stories for classroom use.
Congratulations to Correspondence Match Summer Enrollees!
In the June issue of Coverdell World Wise Schools' e-newsletter, we offered a challenge to our Correspondence Match educators to help us recruit new teachers during the summer months. We have appreciated your energetic response and are proud to welcome to the program 230 new educators from across the United States. These teachers are matched to Peace Corps Volunteers all over the world, from Romania to the Philippines to Bolivia, and they will be sharing with their students expertise on topics as diverse as health care, environmental conservation, and elementary education.
As a special thanks, we would like to congratulate our Correspondence Match teachers at Robert E. Willis Elementary School in Bradenton, Florida, and Powhatan High School in Powhatan, Virginia, for enrolling in the greatest numbers. These schools will receive sets of World Wise Schools posters. And please be sure to read all about some of our Correspondence Match educators' plans for the new school year in our new e-newsletter, the World Wise Window.