Interview with William Reese, November 9, 2021

Interview Summary

William Reese served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Brazil from 1971-1974 living and working as a social worker/community organizer in a community-based redevelopment project in Alagados, a run-down area in Salvador, Bahia. He subsequently served in increasingly senior Peace Corps staff positions in Brazil and then at Peace Corps headquarters as training director and acting regional director of the Latin American division, and as director of Peace Corps' 20th anniversary commemoration. He discusses issues related to language and cultural adaptation training and minority recruitment. He says his volunteer and staff positions launched his career in non-profit international development working in Brazil and other countries while leading Partners for Americas and the International Youth Foundation. In these positions he hired 200+ Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. He concludes by discussing Peace Corps’ domestic dividend; the relationship between Peace Corps, USAID, and the State Department; and the role of the National Peace Corps Association where he is a board director.

Interview Keyword

Brazil (Country of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Urban Community Development 1971-1974 (Date of service) Peace Corps staff 1974-1979 (Date of service) Peace Corps headquarters staff 1979-1981 (Date of service) Partners for America International Youth Foundation John Wirth Richard Celeste Loret Ruppe Salvador (Brazil) Diversity in the Peace Corps Peace Corps training USAID advisory committee National Peace Corps Association Asset-based community assessment Afro-Brazilian culture United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Peace Corps directors

Interview LC Subject

Peace Corps (U.S.) Peace Corps (U.S.)--Brazil Brazil Acculturation Communication and culture Culture Culture shock Intercultural communication Interpersonal communication and culture Interpersonal relations Interpersonal relations and culture Language and culture Language and languages Lifestyles Manners and customs Voluntarism Volunteers

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