Brief Overview of Myself / Peace Corps Experience

My name is Keisha, and I am serving as a Youth Development Volunteer in Peace Corps Guatemala. The video entails basic information about who I am, and my Youth Development work as a volunteer.

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People & Blogs

[starchick1113]

Thanks so much for the video!! My name is Lee and I am in the Peace Corp Process right now!! I have my interview next thursday and I was wondering how accomodating they are with placement and how hard it is to be nominated. I am fluent in Spanish, and I hope to be placed somewhere in Central or South America but I'm so worried I won't be! Any tips?

[KKailuaHerbert]

@starchick1113 Wow, I apologize for responding late. I hope it went well! In regards to accomodation, you are usually placed based off previous language and work experience. I took Spanish during college and worked as an academic tutor. So I was placed in the Youth Development Program in Guatemala. Its really important to stressFLEXIBILITY though. If you are FLUENT in Spanish then you should be FINE! I am sure you will be placed in Central or South America! Let me know if you have any more ?s!

[2tim149]

Good for you! Stay safe. Your parents must be very proud.

[KKailuaHerbert]

@nappicurlz Yes, I would say its safer. If you live with a family then they will look out for you and help you adjust. They can introduce you to people in the community as well, which will help with integrating. Host family experiences differ depending on the volunteer and the family. I chose to live with this family, and the experience has been great thus far. Yes, I see my sitemates often. I have two and they are only 10mins away. We get together and do movie nights, cook, and really bond.

[nappicurlz]

@KKailuaHerbert Oh, okay. It's really good to know that you have a choice. Do you think it's safer to live with a host family rather than living alone? And do you see your sitemates often or are you far away from them?

[KKailuaHerbert]

@nappicurlz When you first come to country you will live with a host family during training, which is three months. After training, you move into your official site, where you will continue living with a host family for the remainder of your service. The rules just recently changed this year. I had the option to not live with a host family, and two of my sitemates live in their own houses. The change is a good way to integrate and it has other benefits regarding time away from site.

[nappicurlz]

@KKailuaHerbert Okay, thanks, that's encouraging. Also, I wasn't aware that they place volunteers with host families. How many times have you/will you change host families?

[KKailuaHerbert]

@nappicurlz Yes you definitely should! My experience has been great thus far! Wow, I myself have not experienced any major incidents. Peace Corps top priority is the safety and security of volunteers. You will not be placed in dangerous areas with high crime incidents. During training you are told what NOT to do, and if you follow the rules & make good judgment calls then you will be fine.

[nappicurlz]

Hey! I'm happy I found your video. I'm a black female and I want to join the peace corps but I've been hearing a lot of horror stories about rapes and abuse and was wondering if you've experienced anything negative during your stay?