Photo credit: Courtesy of Korea Foundation
Latest News
The Korea Society Recognizes Peace Corps Korea Volunteers
A recent article in The Korea Times traces the history of the Peace Corps in Korea and highlights how The Korea Society’s 2008 Annual Dinner played an unexpected role in helping former volunteers return to Korea.
According to the article, September marked the 60th anniversary of the arrival of the first group of Peace Corps Korea Volunteers, known as K-1, in 1966. The Revisit program, organized by the Korea Foundation, gathered former volunteers for a dinner at The Plaza Seoul, joined by family members, former Korean coworkers, and members of Friends of Korea, the nonprofit organization founded by former volunteers in 2002.
The origins of the Revisit program extend back to The Korea Society’s Annual Dinner on April 15, 2008, where the James A. Van Fleet Award was formally presented to Peace Corps Korea Volunteers. Then-President Lee Myung-bak, who was in attendance, was surprised to learn of their work and proposed inviting the volunteers back to Korea. The Korea Foundation has since organized one or two Revisits each year.
Notably, Kathleen Stephens, who served as U.S. ambassador to Korea from 2008 to 2011 and will complete her tenure as Board Chair of The Korea Society at the end of November 2026, was also a Peace Corps Korea Volunteer. Ambassador Stephens taught English in Korea for three years starting in 1975 and entered the U.S. foreign service in 1978, where she acquired fluency in Korean and later became the first Korean-speaker to hold the position of U.S. ambassador to Korea.
Between 1966 and 1981, the Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 young Americans to Korea in 51 groups, from K-1 to K-51. The volunteers taught English in middle schools and universities and provided health education and care, particularly for patients with tuberculosis and leprosy, while building enduring relationships with the communities they served. Initiatives like the Revisit program and organizations like Friends of Korea help former volunteers stay connected with Korea and further grow the bond between Koreans and Americans.
The Korea Society is proud to recognize the bonds first formed six decades ago by Peace Corps Korea Volunteers that continue to offer a strong foundation for deepening people-to-people connections between Korea and the United States.
Read the full article here.
According to the article, September marked the 60th anniversary of the arrival of the first group of Peace Corps Korea Volunteers, known as K-1, in 1966. The Revisit program, organized by the Korea Foundation, gathered former volunteers for a dinner at The Plaza Seoul, joined by family members, former Korean coworkers, and members of Friends of Korea, the nonprofit organization founded by former volunteers in 2002.
The origins of the Revisit program extend back to The Korea Society’s Annual Dinner on April 15, 2008, where the James A. Van Fleet Award was formally presented to Peace Corps Korea Volunteers. Then-President Lee Myung-bak, who was in attendance, was surprised to learn of their work and proposed inviting the volunteers back to Korea. The Korea Foundation has since organized one or two Revisits each year.
Notably, Kathleen Stephens, who served as U.S. ambassador to Korea from 2008 to 2011 and will complete her tenure as Board Chair of The Korea Society at the end of November 2026, was also a Peace Corps Korea Volunteer. Ambassador Stephens taught English in Korea for three years starting in 1975 and entered the U.S. foreign service in 1978, where she acquired fluency in Korean and later became the first Korean-speaker to hold the position of U.S. ambassador to Korea.
Between 1966 and 1981, the Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 young Americans to Korea in 51 groups, from K-1 to K-51. The volunteers taught English in middle schools and universities and provided health education and care, particularly for patients with tuberculosis and leprosy, while building enduring relationships with the communities they served. Initiatives like the Revisit program and organizations like Friends of Korea help former volunteers stay connected with Korea and further grow the bond between Koreans and Americans.
The Korea Society is proud to recognize the bonds first formed six decades ago by Peace Corps Korea Volunteers that continue to offer a strong foundation for deepening people-to-people connections between Korea and the United States.
Read the full article here.