President John F. Kennedy established the Peace Corps on March 1, 1961, to promote world peace and friendship with countries around the globe by sending Americans to volunteer their services in developing countries.
Over six decades, it has sent 250,000 volunteers — mostly young Americans — to more than 140 countries around the world.
Though the Peace Corps suspended its operations and recalled volunteers for the first time in its history in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization plans to put volunteers in the field as soon as mid- to late-2021.
