MEMORANDUM TO THE HEADS OF ALL EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP89-01114R000100010143-7
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 12, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 13, 2002
• Sequence Number: 143
• Publication Date: April 10, 1963
• Content Type: MF

Approved For Relea5e.2002/04/01 : CIA-RDP89-01114R00010Q,Q10143-7
April 10, 1963
I have today signed an Executive Order designed to encourage return-
ing volunteers who have satisfactorily completed their service under
the Peace Corps Act to enter the civilian career services of the Fed-
eral Government. Also, I have been pleased to learn that the major
agencies employing personnel under the Foreign Service Act already
have made arrangements to facilitate the recruitment of returning
Peace Corps volunteers into the Foreign Service and Foreign Service
Reserve by giving examinations in the field and otherwise expediting
the examining process and by providing special examination options
which will permit testing and evaluation of the ability of applicants to
live, act, and learn in a foreign environment.
The Director of the Peace Corps has stated that more than 35 percent
of the Peace Corps volunteers now serving overseas have expressed
an interest in making their careers in various agencies of the Federal
Government. As I have stated before, I am most anxious that the
valuable experience and the demonstrated capabilities of the men and
women who have volunteered to serve under the trying conditions which
confront Peace Corps volunteers should not be lost to the Federal serv-
ice. I anticipate that each of you will take advantage of the opportunity
to obtain the services of these dedicated people by making full use of
the procedures prescribed by today's Executive Order and the other. ar-
rangements which have been provided for under the Foreign Service
Act, and I request that you keep me informed, through the Chairman
of the Civil Service Commission, of the results of your efforts in this
regard.
Approved For Release 2002/04/01 : CIA-RDP89-01114R000100010143-7
 PEACE A
VOL. 2
, -NO. 4
Peace Corps Director Sargent Shriver talks with the late President Kennedy shortly
before the President addressed a group of outgoing Volunteers.
Can One Sargent
Be Two Lieutenants?
The Peace Corps, like any four-
year-old, suffers from growing
pains.
"I wouldn't say its image is tar-
nished, but the luster has dulled a
little," said one Peace Corps official.
"Other people have done it and the
'me alone' feeling is missing."
Age has brought the Peace Corps
the additional problem of trying to
become an institution with a sense
of permanence, while keeping its
youthful spirit and idealism intact.
"I have contemplated the problem
growth could bring to the Peace
HHH Heads
PC Council;
Meeting Set
One of the first official acts of-
Vice President Hubert H. Humph-
rey as new chairman of the Peace
Corps Advisory Council was to call
a conference of returned Volun-
teers.
The conference, scheduled for
March 5-7, was suggested by Pres-
ident Lyndon Johnson. Johnson
turned the responsibility of the
chairmanship over to Humphrey
Jan. 26.
The President also suggested the
new chairman point out the oppor-
tunity returnees have for further
service by working with the many
foreign students in the United
States today.
Johnson termed the assignment
an especially appropriate one for
Humphrey. He noted Humphrey's
vision in seeing the future of the
Peace Corps while a Senate member
and offering legislation to embody
it.
Humphrey told the Peace Corps
News that "the Peace Corps has
been a living monument to the
idealism, skill, and devotion of
American youth, and serves as an
example of humanitarianism for all
the world. -y
"But we cannot be content with
even this fine record. There is much
that still needs to be done. The de-
mand for Peace Corps Volunteers
is so great throughout the world
that last year we could only fill
about two-thirds of the requests
that were received.
"To any college graduate looking
for a chance to broaden his life and
enrich his experience I can offer
no higher recommendation than
working for the Peace Corps.
"He will find not only excitement
and challenge, but above all have
the opportunity to serve his fellow
man."
Corps," said Warren Wiggins, as-
sociate director for Program De-
velopment and Operations. "Presi-
dent Johnson has said he thought
we should have some 20,000 Volun-
teers in the next three or four
years.
"I feel we can have this number
and still retain the highly indi-
vidual character of the agency,"
Wiggins said.
Another problem is that Sargent
Shriver now serves the dual role
of directing the Peace Corps and
the War on Poverty.
"Shriver still makes all the pol-
icy decisions and keeps his personal
touch on the agency," said an offi-
cial. "The main loss is in the time it
takes to get decisions made. Things
can get bogged down in the mean-
while."
Another official compared Shriv-
er's dual position with that of the
Secretary of State or Defense.
These men have one title but many
jobs. One could consider a man with
Shriver's abilities to have been un-
der-employed before his present
load.
Shriver serves as a reminder of
President John Kennedy and per-
sonifies the idealism of the Peace
Corps "type."
President Kennedy had gener-
ated a particular type of spirit and
sense of living dynamic. This esprit
de corps captured the minds of
many young Americans. Because
President Kennedy originated the
Peace Corps and because of his
youthfulness, there was a unique
identification.
The most recent growing pain
has come from within the Peace
Corps itself. A Peace -Corps pro-
gram director in Bolivia, Jasin Ed-
wards, has complained of the.
"blandness" of today's Volunteers..
"The bland Volunteer is one who
doesn't cause trouble, who makes
the necessary friends,, adjusts nice-
ly to his environment, accepts
things as they are and gets along
beautifully without worrying any-
body or wrenching changes in the
environment.
"Anyone approaching the ex-
treme such as the quiet guy, the
pretty girl, or the outspoken critic
was selected out somewhere along
the line as a dangerous risk," said
Edwards.
In the critic's opinion, the selec-
tion process may eliminate the per-
son who would not only understand
and adjust to a new environment,
but also those who would have the
courage and drive to inspire change,
affect attitudes and encourage oth-
ers ;to act for themselves.
Commenting on what Edwards
said, F. Kingston Berlew, acting
(Continued on Page 2)
A Special College Supplement
SPRING, 1965
A Story of Opposites:
Bias & the Peace Corps
The Peace Corps, in its four years of existence, has
emphasized repeatedly. that racial and religious bias
are not tolerated in its selection process.
The Peace Corps rejects bias. But bias has not been
so kind to the Peace Corps.
A major problem in the civil rights movement to-
day is finding skilled and well-educated Negroes to
fill jobs now open to them either through reforms
generated by the civil rights bill or the increased
readiness of employers to hire them.
The problem admits to no simple solution, for an
individual coming from a "culturally deprived" en-
vironment, who receives sub-standard schooling,
doesn't necessarily "make the grade" even if he is
given the chance.
The issue, not so much racial as socio-economic, is
a very real concern for rights leaders. It is also of
concern to the Peace Corps.
The trouble centers in both Peace Corps recruit-
ment and selection.
"A lot of Negroes just aren't sure that the Peace
Corps wants them," states Bob Gale, director of
recruiting. "The sign says 'join,' but Negroes think
'they don't mean me.' It's been that way so many
times that some Negroes don't even bother any
more."
Sargent Shriver, director of the Peace Corps, said:
"We haven't waited for colored citizens to seek
jobs in the Peace Corps. We went out and looked for
them.
"We have sent white men into black men's coun-
tries and black men to white men's countries and not
once has this policy caused us a single moment of
discontent or created a single incident."
Gale pointed out that letters have been sent to the
presidents of Negro colleges asking for the names
of top students, who were subsequently contacted by
Peace Corps representatives. A "special saturation
effort" is conducted at Negro campuses to get a larger
representation in the Peace Corps.
"The job of the Peace Corps is not civil rights,"
one official points out. "We have our own job to do.
But we'll do anything we can to help qualified Ne-
groes get into the Peace Corps."
Thus the articles in Negro publications, photos of
Negroes in Peace Corps advertising literature, Ne-
groes placed on as many recruiting teams as possible.
Yet the percentage of Negroes serving as Volun-
teers overseas remains low. Although Negro repre-
sentation as staff members in Washington and over-
seas is high (about 26 per cent), Negro Volunteers
abroad constitute only about 5 to 6 per cent of the
total, -based on unofficial estimates. The nationwide
percentage of Negroes is about 11 per cent.
One problem manifests itself in concern over the
"image." George Carter, director of the North Af-
rica, Near East and South Asia projects, and a Negro
himself, said:
"There is probably no project in the world without
a Negro connected to it in some way, either as a
staff member or a Volunteer.
Volunteer James F. Fisher, a 1962 graduate of Princeton Uni-
versity who majored in philosophy, was an English teacher at the
demonstration school of Katmandu's only teacher training college.
An Eagle Scout, he was also active with the Nepalese scouting
movement which is just getting underway. Here he helps a young-
ster master one of the knots she must learn. He wears the
Nepalese national dress.
Running a school lunch program is one of many things done by
Volunteer Ida Shoatz, a 1963 liberal arts graduate from State
College at Cheyney, Pa., as she works in the Peruvian Andes.
Here she greets a young friend in the market of Pisac where
she has gone to buy food. 4
"The only place where a preponderance of whites
is a problem is in those countries where we already
have a 'racist image.' Here the lack of Negroes tends
to fix the Peace Corps in the people's minds as a
middle class white organization."
Many bright, socially-oriented Negroes are com-
mitted to the civil rights fight at home. Others are
busy looking for good jobs or graduate schools. Com-
petition for the educated Negro in business, industry
and education has become fierce today.
But even when a substantial proportion of Negroes
submit Questionnaires, there is still a problem, es-
pecially in the case of the Southern Negro.
The Peace Corps relies strongly on the Modern
Language Aptitude Test, which purports to measure
potential ability to learn a language. On this exam,
Negroes, as a group, tend to score lower than other
Volunteers.
The race of an applicant, incidentally, is not known
to Peace Corps personnel before he shows up for
training-in other words, until after the tests have
been taken.
Gale pointed out that "until we raise the level of
teaching in some Southern schools, we won't have
college students who score well on the aptitude
exams."
Dr. Abraham Carp, director of Selection, points to
another difficulty.
"There is a danger," he says, "in using these apti-
tude tests for applicants from culturally deprived
environments. The tests may underrate applicants
in terms of their potential." They are not, he main-
tains, an absolute index of what their future achieve-
ment as Volunteers may be.
Dr. Carp is presently studying whether training
courses could be lengthened for these applicants. He
sees "academically oriented techniques" used in apti-
tude testing and training as favoring certain types.
Also under study are more programs where another
language is not required.
The Peace Corps is sensitive, in a meaningful way,
to the problems of discrimination. They will dis-
qualify anyone if he shows discriminatory tendencies.
Colleges that are not integrated will not be chosen
as training sites. The representatives of minority
group members on the staff in Washington and over-
seas is high compared to other government agencies.
But other hazards are operative too-those of "re-
verse discrimination" which hampers the organiza-
tion that wants to give Negroes a break but can't
because of complex societal factors; those that stop
a Negro from believing that the sign reading "join"
means him; those that deter a Southern Negro from
getting good references because the people he asks
do not know how to write.
The Peace Corps tried to say goodbye to bias a
long time ago. But it's a stubborn guest.
Approved For Release 2002/04/01 : CIA-RDP89-01114R000100010143-7
 Approved For Release 2002/04/01 : CIA-RDP89-01114R000100010143-7
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Common Misconceptions Exploded
The Peace Corps, like many other governmental organizations, is
plagued by a "knowledge problem." Many people, including a large
number of college students, don't know what the Peace Corps is all
about.
The misconceptions cover almost every phase of Peace Corps activity,
but the truth about the work is simple and less menacing than most
suppose. Here are the most commonly offered objections to joining the
Peace Corps:
? I don't speak a foreign language.
Although some knowledge of Spanish or French is desirable, it is
by no means necessary. The Peace Corps teaches you what lingual
skills you'll need.
? I'm not physically strong enough for the training program.
There's a 79-year-old woman serving overseas. She hasn't done a
push-up in years.
? I'm a liberal arts major.
So are 70 per cent of all Volunteers.
? I'm a chemistry Ph.D. I can't afford to spend two years digging
ditches somewhere when I have to advance my career.
How about spending two years teaching chemistry in an overseas
university?
? I can't afford it.
Although the "hourly pay" is lousy by American standards, Volun-
teers receive an allowance to pay for clothing, food, housing, and in-
cidental expenses and a readjustment which accrues at the rate of $75
per month for each month of service, including training. You won't
starve, either during service or for sometime after.
? I'll never make it through selection. The requirements. are too
tough.
They are. But so are about 45 per cent of those college students who
apply and are accepted.
? I'm a girl.
As are 40 per cent of all Peace Corps Volunteers.
? I'm married.
There are 580 married couples serving overseas. The Peace Corps
just requires that the pair work in the same project and have no de-
d
pen
ents under 18.
? I don't want to live alone in some remote jungle town.
Don't. You can still join. Volunteers are placed in pairs, unless they
want to be alone. Many work in cities, where they sometimes live
better than they did at home. The mudhut image 'is just that, real to
only.a few.
? I have a girl friend.
Take her with you. You can even serve together, if you can take
it for two years. (Really.)
? You never hear from the Peace Corps after you apply.
Often a request, sent in, for example, in March, that indicates you'll
be ready in November is put aside while more urgent requests for
June, July or August-are processed. In any event, you'll get a note
within a month telling you what's being done.
If you want to know more, use the coupon in this issue for free
information.
This small boy is the child of a leper.
He lives with his parents at a large
leprosarium on a hillside outside Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia.
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