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Emma Bradley teaching a class of young students

Emma Bradley currently teaches English to sixth and seventh graders at a small primary school in a north Namibia village called Owamboland.

Emma Bradley had always considered joining the Peace Corps, but she never anticipated being among the first volunteers to return to overseas service since the agency’s unprecedented global evacuation at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic four years ago.

A native of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, and an Auburn University alumna, Bradley is currently living with a host family in Namibia, Africa, where she will work as an English teacher in a secondary education classroom for two years. She arrived in southwest Africa last fall and began teaching earlier this year.

While Bradley teaches English to sixth and seventh graders at a small primary school in a north Namibia village called Owamboland, she is learning the local language of Oshindonga.

 

President John F. Kennedy announced the formation of the Peace Corps to 10,000 college students in 1961. Think you can answer his call to action?

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“It was always something I said I wanted to do,” Bradley recalled. “But when I met with a [Peace Corps] recruiter at Auburn and we discussed options, I concluded that it may not be the right fit for me. At the time, I had no experience in any of the sectors of the Peace Corps.”

It’s like that saying about when one door closes. But in this case, the door only looked closed for Bradley; she just needed to find a different way to open it.

The challenge was reminiscent of Bradley’s first year on the Plains, when she admittedly struggled to find a major. That summer, her mom showed her a video from the Fiji study abroad trip, offered through Auburn’s College of Human Sciences.

“I was so intrigued by it that it led me to find the global studies major,” Bradley said.

“I went the first week of classes sophomore year to change my major, and it genuinely changed my life. The professors and classmates I had the privilege to work alongside and learn from made me see the world in a completely different way. They empowered me to want to take charge in improving the quality of life of people in my community and across the world.”

Bradley never got to take the Fiji trip — because of COVID-19 — but she did participate in the Joseph S. Bruno Auburn Abroad in Italy program, another study abroad option offered by the college. Bradley spent the summer of 2021 living and learning in the hillside town of Ariccia, Italy. Her cohort was the first to do so post-pandemic.

The global studies program focuses on providing students with skills related to working on modern global problems with diverse individuals in both domestic and international environments. It is a perfect major for students seeking to make the world a better place while also getting hands on experiences.

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Bradley graduated the following spring with a renewed global perspective, but no job prospects. Undeterred, Bradley found direction from a familiar source. Bradley’s mom, a teacher, connected her daughter with a fellow teacher needing an assistant in her first-grade classroom.

The younger Bradley got the job, which gave her a shot at being a Peace Corps volunteer. Education is one of six project sectors in the Peace Corps. The others are agriculture, environment, community economic development, health and youth in development.

 

“On the job, I realized how much I enjoyed teaching, and the door opened back up for me,” she said. “The global studies program at Auburn focuses on increasing your cultural intelligence and adaptability.

“My education will help me feel more confident going into this experience, as I have the tools to help me navigate new cultural experiences respectfully.”

Education is the largest area of need identified by the countries asking for Peace Corps assistance.

“I hope to become a better communicator and continue to grow as a teacher,” Bradley added. “Every group of students teaches you something new to improve and adapt your teaching methods. I am excited to be back in the classroom and to experience teaching at a different age group.

“I know this experience will broaden my understanding of different languages and cultures to become a better global citizen.”

Peace Corps: Pre- and post-pandemic

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the Peace Corps suspended its global operations and evacuated nearly 7,000 volunteers from more than 60 countries.

For now, more than 2,600 volunteers have returned to 58 of those countries. The Peace Corps is currently recruiting volunteers to serve in 59 countries.

The volunteers who have returned to service now are first-time volunteers, like Bradley, and those volunteers who were evacuated in 2020. They all completed a three-month training after arriving in country and are currently collaborating with host communities on locally prioritized projects.

The Peace Corps continues to monitor COVID-19 trends in all of its host countries and will send volunteers to serve as conditions permit.