HWS News
15 June 2020 • Service Gorelick '19 to Serve in the Peace Corps
Molly Gorelick '19 was recently invited to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer for a two-year placement in the Dominican Republic, where she will serve as a Spanish Literacy Promoter for primary schools.
After working with students throughout Ontario County, primarily in elementary schools, and specifically in Geneva's dual language immersion program, Gorelick found an increased passion in bilingual education and saw the importance of helping youth learn both Spanish and English from the start of their education.
During her service, Gorelick will become a resource for school staff, students and families and develop strategies and methods to improve literacy in the community where she is assigned.
An educational studies major, with minors in anthropology and Spanish for bilingual education, Gorelick focused much of her studies at HWS in areas of language and diversity. She says that she was always interested in the Peace Corps from a young age and realized at HWS that it could become a reality.
On campus, Gorelick was actively engaged, taking part in community and mission driven clubs. Gorelick's involvement included serving as co-chair for the Days of Service Club, studying abroad in Seville, Spain, working with the Centennial Center for Leadership and serving as the Senior Civic Leader for the Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning.
Noting that her advisers and professors in all departments "were so supportive of my decision and really helped me be confident in it," Gorelick says that she also connected with past and current HWS Peace Corps volunteers to "hear firsthand what being a Peace Corps volunteer would actually entail, making me more excited at the possibility to be one as well."
Gorelick begins her next chapter in March. "The thought of doing two things I love, while also gaining more experience for a future career, made the Peace Corps the perfect option," she says.
The Colleges rank third among small schools on the Peace Corps 2019 list of Top Volunteer-Producing Colleges and Universities. Since the Peace Corps was founded in 1961, 235 alums from HWS have traveled abroad to serve as volunteers, including 16 alums currently volunteering.