Tulane Tops in Peace Corps Volunteerism

With a commitment to service not only in the New Orleans community but also on a global scale, Tulane was recently ranked among the nation's top 25 medium-sized schools based on the number of graduates who serve in the Peace Corps. “Even before Tulane decided to start going global, the Tulane Master's International Program was already doing it by sending students all over the world,” says Ty Bryant, a returned Peace Corps health volunteer.

Ty Bryant, who will graduate from the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine with the class of 2011, celebrates a festive meal with friends in Mozambique, where she served as a Peace Corps health volunteer. (Photo from Ty Bryant)

Bryant, who will graduate from the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine with the class of 2011, has served as one of the coordinators of the Master's International Program, in which students simultaneously apply to Tulane and the Peace Corps. First, students earn a master of public health degree at Tulane. Then, the grads apply their skills and knowledge to solving important health problems in developing countries as Peace Corps volunteers.

“Tulane is one of the oldest programs out there,” says Bryant. “It was one of the first three master's international programs that was established with the Peace Corps, and I feel like the program has come a long way in recruiting students, retaining students and making sure that students are getting proper placements and taking the necessary steps to become better public health workers.”

As a Peace Corps volunteer in Mozambique, Bryant was a health educator involved in speaking to schools and churches about abstinence, safe sex and living positively with HIV or AIDS. She also worked with People Living with HIV/AIDS Associations, facilitating the design and implementation of income-generating projects to support the group's work with residents in rural communities.

By the end of this semester there will be 29 Tulane master's international volunteers overseas and 40 master's international students in coursework at Tulane. More than 180 returned Peace Corps volunteers have graduated from the master's international program at Tulane.

Michael Celone is a sophomore student at Tulane majoring in public health.