Guys guys guys guys guys if you missed yesterday’s post, I’m quitting my job, leaving Chicago, moving overseas and joining the Peace Corps!
Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa.
I’m still in shock and I’ve known about this for months now.
Anywho. This is the second post in a series of posts to come in the next few weeks about this little adventure of mine. This is something that’s been in the works for more than a year now, and since I had to keep it under wraps for so long, I have so much to update you guys on.
I wanted to elaborate a little bit more on yesterday’s post and give you the details on where I’ll be serving and what I’ll be doing.
First, the 411. I’ll be serving as a TEFL Secondary Education Volunteer in Ukraine.
I’ll be departing for Ukraine Aug. 18, where I’ll spend the first three months of my time with the Peace Corps doing what’s called pre-service training. During those three months, I’ll live with a host family, and I’ll spend my days taking language classes (either Russian or Ukrainian, it will be decided for me when I arrive); learning about Ukrainian culture, customs and traditions; and developing on-the-job skills I’ll need during my tenure as a TEFL teacher. After those three months, I’ll be given a site placement. This could be anywhere in Ukraine! The city or village I’m assigned to will be my home for the next two years.
A really quick note: The country I will be serving in is called Ukraine, not “the Ukraine.” There’s a very significant difference! Using the word “the” insinuates Ukraine is still a territory of the USSR… which it is not. Additionally, Ukraine’s capital city is called Київ. When translated from Cyrillic, Kyiv is the preferred Latin spelling. “Kiev” is the Russian translation… which is not preferred by Ukrainians.
I didn’t pick the country; I let the Peace Corps pick it for me. I honestly could not be happier about the decision! My jaw literally dropped when I got the email notification that I was under consideration for placement in Ukraine. My maternal great-great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from a little village in southern Ukraine called Ка́м’яне́ць-Поді́льський (Kamianets-Podilskyi) and I’ve wanted to visit ever since.
Now, not only do I get to visit… I get to live in Ukraine! Unreal.
Steve Stoianowski is my great-great-grandfather. Ksenia is my great-great-grandmother, and “Olha” (Olga) is my maternal great-grandmother. For the longest time I thought we were Russian because that’s what all the Stoianowski’s immigration paperwork said, and it wasn’t until I found this census with “Kamenec-Podolsk” crossed out and replaced with “Russia” that I was able to find Kamianets-Podilskyi on a map and put the pieces together.
Of course, I disclosed none of this in my Peace Corps application because frankly, it wasn’t relevant.
I have a feeling the Peace Corps selected Ukraine as my country of service due to my volunteer work with Heartland Alliance. For the past year and some change, I’ve been working with adult English language learners as both a one-on-one tutor and as a class instructor every week. At the time I applied, I was working as a tutor with three students: Two native Spanish speakers and one native Ukrainian speaker. I referenced working with the Ukrainian student in my cover letter, and I think that’s how the Peace Corps made the determination to place me under consideration for a position in Ukraine.
I mentioned my weekly Spanish classes and working proficiency in the language, but Spanish-speaking countries are incredibly competitive and explicitly selected by a lot of applicants, so the Peace Corps probably determined I would be a better fit for a less-competitive placement that my application could still be tied to, so those Spanish-speaking placements could be reserved for those who directly requested them.
When I applied, I didn’t select the specific country I was interested in serving in. I did, however, select the sector I wanted to work in. I selected education since — through my volunteer work with both adult English language learners and Chicago Public Schools students — I figured that was what I was most qualified for.
I’ll be posting more about my resume, cover letter, interview, etc. at a later date, so stay tuned!
