HOUGHTON -- This year Michigan Technological University celebrates 15 years of commitment to the United States Peace Corps Master's International Program (PCMI), which allows Peace Corps Volunteers to combine two years of service in developing countries with graduate study leading to a master's degree. Michigan Tech has seven PCMI programs with 58 students now enrolled and 97 who have completed the program and served overseas. It's the largest PCMI Program in the nation.
Forestry Professor Blair Orr, standing at left, who started Michigan Tech's Peace Corps Master's International (PCMI) program in 1995, introduces Eric Goldman, second from right, national manager of the PCMI program, at a luncheon held March 30 in the Memorial Union Building's Alumni Lounge. Also pictured are, counter-clockwise from far right, Carrie Cruz, recruiter from the Peace Corps' Chicago Regional Office; Goldman; Michigan Tech President Glenn Mroz; Jackie Huntoon, Dean of the Graduate School; Karin Van Dyke, Portage Health vice-president of Communication and Human Resources; Diane Gadomski, vice-president of Portage Medical Group, which offers medical services to PCMI students at a discount; and Max Seel, Michigan Tech provost and vice-president for Academic Affairs. Click on photos for larger versions. (Photos by Keweenaw Now)On Tuesday, March 30, Eric Goldman, national manager of the PCMI program, recognized Michigan Tech's accomplishment -- not only for the number of volunteers these programs train, but for the quality of their work.
"We’re fortunate to have Michigan Tech people involved in Peace Corps," Goldman said. "They are premier Peace Corps volunteers, and we extend our thanks to you for what you have created. It’s astonishing."
Of the 61 universities now offering PCMI programs, none comes close to Michigan Tech in commitment and accomplishment, Goldman added.
"There are countries around the world that want Michigan Tech (Masters International) volunteers," he said.
Goldman presented an award to Blair Orr, Forestry professor, who started Michigan Tech's first PCMI program in 1995, the Loret Miller Ruppe Master’s International Program in Forestry, and who still directs this and six more programs that have been established -- in applied natural resource economics, natural hazards mitigation (geology), civil and environmental engineering, science education, rhetoric and technical communication, and mechanical engineering.
"Blair is an absolute blessing," Goldman said. "He deserves every accolade for what he's accomplished here, and he does a superb job in keeping me and keeping Peace Corps honest."
Goldman also expressed Peace Corps’ gratitude to Portage Health, which provides a discount of up to 30 percent toward the cost of Michigan Tech’s PCMI students’ medical examinations.
Eric Goldman, right, national manager of the PCMI program, presents a plaque of appreciation to Portage Health, represented by, second from right, Diane Gadomski, vice-president of Portage Medical Group, and Karin Van Dyke, Portage Health vice-president of Communication and Human Resources, a Michigan Tech Forestry alumna. Seated at left is Blair Orr, who started the PCMI program in Forestry in 1995 and who also received a plaque from Goldman."To be a Peace Corps volunteer requires a rigorous medical process," said Goldman. "It’s a considerable expense, and Peace Corps only provides a small amount. I don’t know of anyone besides Portage Health who has done this. It’s a fantastic example of corporate social responsibility."
Goldman also noted an eighth PCMI program is being planned for Michigan Tech's Biology Department. It will include health education, environmental education and science teaching.
"We think the students coming from the Biology Department will be equipped to serve as volunteers in these areas," Goldman said.
Ron Gratz, Michigan Tech biology professor, and Karyn Fay, professor of practice in clinical lab science, said plans for the new program could include clinical laboratory science.
"The American Society of Clinical Pathology (ASCP) is trying to get an international presence, and we thought this would be a good way to make that happen," Fay explained. "They've already got a presence in some of the same countries as the Peace Corps and we're trying to piggy-back resources together to make it more effective."
Michigan Tech President Glenn Mroz accepted a plaque from Goldman that expresses the Peace Corps’ appreciation to the University community. It reads, "Your extraordinary commitment to, and accomplishment in, the Master’s International program has made significant contributions to the lives of thousands of people around the world."
Mroz was involved with the program from the start and recalled the first group heading out to Camp Alberta, where they learned "guts forestry" in preparation for their Peace Corps assignment.
"From those five students, we’ve grown to the largest program in the US," he said.
The program also benefits the University by bringing a diverse mix of students to campus, where they undergo two semesters of intensive academic preparation before entering Peace Corps.
"It’s not high paying," Mroz said. "But as an experience, Peace Corps is priceless. They learn that you can make a significant impact on people’s lives for a long time to come, and I think that part -- fostering that spirit at Michigan Tech -- has been really important."
Mroz noted that spirit is present in other programs of the university, where many faculty members, like Blair Orr, are returned Peace Corps Volunteers.
Max Seel, Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs, was Dean of Sciences and Arts in the early days of Michigan Tech's PCMI Program.
"I was involved in some of the process of getting the Masters International Program options approved," Seel noted, "and I'm always happy if we can add more options, as currently is happening in biological sciences."
Jackie Huntoon, dean of Michigan Tech's Graduate School, said she's very proud of the PCMI program.
"It's something that sets Michigan Tech apart from other universities, especially those that focus on science and engineering," Huntoon said. "A lot of our students are interested in service learning, so this gives them a clear opportunity to do that."
Matthew Kucharski of Tombstone, Ariz., is a Michigan Tech PCMI student who did his two-year service in the Philippines, working in coastal resource management.
"I loved it," Kucharski said, "I love the Philippines."
Kucharski's work in the Philippines involved conservation of coastal resources, habitats for fish.
"One of the big things they're encouraging in the Philippines is the concept of marine sanctuaries," he explained. "Overfishing is a huge problem."
Kucharski is presently studying groundwater under John Gierke, interim chair and professor in geological engineering. Although Kucharski began Peace Corps training in the environmental engineering program, his overseas experience led to a master's degree project in water resources and hydrology.
Coming from a dry area of the US, Arizona, Kucharski is well aware of the need for research and work in this area and plans to pursue a career either in the Western US or in the developing world.
Volunteer Julie Herrick recently returned from her Peace Corps assignment in Panama and is completing her master’s degree at Michigan Tech. For her, the program offered a way to conduct research and get involved in community service.
"I wanted a practical way to apply what I knew as a geologist in context. It was a commitment," she said. "But it was the right way to go about this."
Carrie Cruz, a recruiter from the Peace Corps' Chicago Regional Office, also spoke on campus in conjunction with Goldman's visit. She held an information session for students on Tuesday evening, March 30. Anyone with an interest in the Peace Corps can contact her at ccruz2@peacecorps.gov.
Visit the Peace Corps Web site for more information: www.peacecorps.gov.
For information on Michigan Tech's Peace Corps Master's International programs, visit their Web site, which has links to each individual program: http://peacecorps.mtu.edu/.
To read about individual students in the Forestry PCMI program, the oldest at Michigan Tech, and to access their email adventures and photos, click here.
Also, on our original Keweenaw Now Web site, you can read an article by and about Amber Kenny of Houghton, who served in Togo, West Africa, through the Michigan Tech Forestry PCMI program.
*Editor's Note: Thanks to Marcia Goodrich, senior writer for Michigan Tech, who shared with us the press release that contributed to this article.
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