C of C ranks 6th on list of top volunteer schools

The College of Charleston ranks sixth in the 2007 list of Top 20 Volunteer Producing Colleges representing undergraduate schools throughout six states in the Southeast.

With 19 alumni currently serving as Peace Corps volunteers, the College of Charleston also tied with Clemson to rank first among all schools in South Carolina.

"This is an extraordinary achievement for a school the size of the College of Charleston," said Ken Ayers, regional Peace Corps manager. "Over the past five years, the school has become one of the leading sources of Peace Corps Volunteers in the Southeast, and we appreciate the support of the administration and faculty in making this happen."

Linda Robinson, College of Charleston's coordinator of recruiting and technology programs, says, "The College of Charleston has a long history of graduating globally aware, civic-minded students, so we're very proud that we have the distinction for the largest number of Peace Corps alumni of universities in South Carolina. College of Charleston graduates who join the Peace Corps not only share their educational preparation and life experiences with people of other cultures, but also bring back the knowledge that they have made a positive impact in those communities. These experiences will have a lasting effect on the communities where they have served, on their own lives and on the lives of those around them, whatever career."

Since the Peace Corps' inception in 1961, 133 alumni have joined the ranks, making the College of Charleston one of the Peace Corps' top regional 25 all-time producers of volunteers in a population of nearly 1,000 schools of all sizes in the Southeast. The Southeast Region comprises Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama.

There are 76 South Carolina residents serving in the Peace Corps, representing 11.9 percent of the total number of Peace Corps volunteers in the Southeast region. There have been 1,250 volunteers from South Carolina since 1961.