It is very difficult to quantify the benefits of Peace Corps. Peace Corps has been sending volunteers to countries that request them for 50 years, so there must be positive outcomes.

The Peace Corps' mission has three simple goals:

1. Helping the people of interested countries in meeting their need for trained men and women.
2. Helping promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served.
3. Helping promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans.

As a returned volunteer and someone who has documented volunteers in 22 countries around the world it is my opinion that the way the Peace Corps "helps" is by bringing together people. People look at Peace Corps as a big agency, and they look for results as if Peace Corps volunteers were going into countries en masse and doing large development projects. That is not how Peace Corps works. Once Peace Corps volunteers get through training they are then placed on their own with an agency of the country where they serve and they live amongst the people they serve, so that they become integrated into the culture and work at the grass roots. Because of this Peace Corps volunteers develop a greater understanding of where they serve, and the people they serve learn about our country through the Peace Corps volunteer.

So, it is this exchange ... a development of understanding between different people, that is how Peace Corps helps. Then the volunteers bring what they learn back to the United States and helps spread this understanding and awareness of others.

Peace Corps volunteers are not soldiers. They are paid a modest monthly allowance in local currency based on living costs in the community where they live, plus a readjustment allowance of about $6,000 upon completion of two years of service.

As a Peace Corps Volunteer, you are not paid a salary. Instead, you will receive a stipend to cover your basic necessities -- food, housing expenses, and local transportation. While the amount of the stipend varies from country to country, you will receive an amount that allows you to live at the same level as the people you serve in your community. The Peace Corps pays for your transportation to and from your country of service and provides you with complete medical and dental care. At the conclusion of your service as a Volunteer, you will receive a "readjustment allowance" of $225 (rate as of January 2003) for each month of service. If you complete your full term of service, you will receive $6,075.