Peace Corps 1961-1981

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Founded in 1961 under the Kennedy administration, the Peace Corps is an U.S. governmental agency dedicated to establishing global peace and camaraderie through acts of volunteering. However, during its first operational year, it received a great deal of public scrutiny from young Americans as they saw this agency as a ploy to promote neocolonialism based on its global involvement with developing countries. It took people like R.Sargent Shriver, the agency's first appointed director, to combat this negative image by establishing programs to promote social and economic growth in these participating developing countries. With these ongoing positive efforts, 1981 became the year that marked the Peace Corps' 20th anniversary.