Interview with Rachael Rosenberg, July 30, 2020

Interview Summary

Rachael Rosenberg served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Georgia from April 2018 to March 2020 when she was evacuated because of the COVID-19 pandemic. She joined as a Russian speaker with experience in the former Soviet Union. She served in an Armenian enclave co-teaching grade 1-12 English language classes, providing teacher training and working with a local youth center. She discusses not being considered a "true American" by some because of her dark hair and her Jewish heritage. She also discusses the local misinformation about and reaction to the COVID-19 threat. She describes her chaotic evacuation, first from Armenia, where she was on vacation, to Georgia; her quarantine in Georgia; and then her evacuation to the United States. She ends with discussion of help offered by the Texas Peace Corps when she returned and thoughts about improving the quality of the Peace Corps experience going forward.

Interview Keyword

Georgia (Country of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Education 2018-2020 (Date of service) Diversity in the Peace Corps Local expectations of volunteers Evacuated Peace Corps Volunteer (EPCV) Peace Corps (U.S.)--2020-Evacuation Teacher training

Interview LC Subject

COVID-19 (Disease) Georgia Peace Corps (U.S.)--Georgia Education Peace Corps (U.S.) Language and languages. Voluntarism. Volunteer workers in education Volunteers Culture

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Interview Usage

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