In this interview, you’ll hear from Audrey Cruey, a Peace Corps Education volunteer in Kenya. Audrey shares what daily life looks like, the work being done, and how service has shaped their personal and professional growth. You’ll learn about housing, cultural differences, project work, language learning, and what it’s like to live and work in a new country. This interview offers a real look into Peace Corps service and what future volunteers can expect.
Table of Contents
- Volunteer Experience and Motivation
- Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
- Surprises and Challenges
- Advice and Support
- Practical Tips and Language Learning
- Social Identity
- Final Thoughts
Volunteer Experience and Motivation
1. What do you do as a Peace Corps Education volunteer in Kenya?
I am a Deaf Educator, so my main responsibility is teaching at a primary school for the Deaf. The academic year is split into three terms in Kenya (January-March, May-July, and September-October). During the school terms, I spend most of my time teaching, lesson planning, and doing after-school activities with my students.
The language of instruction in Deaf schools in Kenya is Kenyan Sign Language (KSL), which is the language I use to teach and communicate with my students and Deaf colleagues. I am usually in school all day, from 8 AM to 4 PM, where I teach up to four lessons per day. This year, I am the grade 4 class teacher. I teach them English, Mathematics, and Creative Arts & Sports, and then I teach Grade 6 Science & Technology.
My school is a boarding school, as are most Deaf schools in Kenya. After school, my students practice sports (track and field events during Term 1; ball games during Term 2) before completing chores and homework for the next day. I typically come to school to “story” with my students during the weekend as well!
2. Why did you decide to join the Peace Corps and serve in Kenya?
I had my eye on the Peace Corps throughout university. My advisor suggested the Peace Corps due to my interest in different cultures, and I always wanted to work/live abroad. Learning new languages, meeting new people, trying different foods, and working in a different environment seemed exciting to me!
I learned American Sign Language (ASL) in university, so seeing the Deaf Educator position in Kenya when searching for openings felt serendipitous. Working within the Kenyan Deaf community would not only allow me to experience Kenyan culture, but also Deaf culture in Kenya—the best of both worlds!
Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
3. What is your housing like in Kenya?
During pre-service training (PST), I lived with Deaf host parents. This was a unique and amazing experience, and it helped me improve my KSL skills and integrate into the Deaf community pretty quickly. Now I live in Siaya County, in a relatively developed rural village. My house is on a Catholic church compound, about a 10-minute walk to/from my school and market (in opposite directions). It is a cozy one-room house with electricity, running water, and an outdoor toilet. I live independently on the compound, although I occasionally have German and Kenyan neighbors.
4. What moments or interactions stand out during your service?
As a Deaf Educator, I feel most integrated into the Kenyan Deaf community. I spend the majority of my time with my Deaf colleagues, counterpart/KSL tutor, and students, and I am grateful for the way in which they have welcomed me into the Deaf community with open arms! Just learning from them and “storying” with them has been a privilege and makes me feel at home far from home. These everyday interactions have greatly enriched my service and will be what I miss most when I go home!
Surprises and Challenges
5. What has surprised you most about living or working in Kenya?
Living and working in Kenya, every day is full of surprises! How hospitable Kenyans, especially the Luo (the tribe spread across western Kenya), are was a welcome surprise when I arrived in Kenya. You can always count on being greeted, complimented on your Kiswahili or Luo (no matter how limited!), and invited in for chai when out and about in the village. Sometimes it can be overwhelming, but I am grateful for how integrated into my community I feel every time I walk to the market or school!
6. What challenges have you faced in your Education work, and how did you respond?
Here in Kenya, the curricula for Deaf and hearing students are the same—with little to no accommodation or adaptation, besides being taught in KSL. However, many Deaf students have low literacy and communication skills, as their language acquisition is hindered when they go home to hearing families who may not sign at all. Schools for the Deaf, then, are environments in which students can freely communicate and socialize while developing language skills. Learning how to communicate and express oneself on top of the curriculum content that one is tested on is challenging, though.
As a result, I work very hard to adapt curriculum content to meet my students’ needs: teaching EVERYTHING in KSL, making learning aids (digital and/or paper) with illustrations to suit their visual learning styles, and assessing them with practical and signed/written tasks early and often. These are all intervention methods I learned from my Deaf colleagues, who have the unique and valuable experience of being on both ends of the classroom.
Also, during Deaf Awareness Month 2025, my school led an outreach program to teach basic signs, spread awareness about Deaf culture and our school, and de-stigmatize deafness. We hoped to integrate our students into the larger community in this way, so they could communicate/sign with people outside of school.
7. What secondary projects have you worked on during your service?
First, I coordinated a shipment of books from Darien Book Aid for my school. Outside of textbooks, we lacked a wider variety of reading materials that could be used to develop early literacy skills (i.e., children’s books with basic vocabulary and ample illustrations). Darien Book Aid did a great job curating books across reading levels and with plenty of pictures. We set up the little library this year. Our students enjoy reading the books and looking at the illustrations, and we love to watch them broaden their horizons and use their imaginations!
Learn how Peace Corps volunteers can add free books to their libraries by requesting books from Darien Book Aid, an organization that ships to PCVs globally HERE!
Also, my school applied for and received a Peace Corps Partnership Program (PCPP) grant. We fundraised for a desktop computer, printer, and wi-fi system. Using this technology, teachers can adapt learning materials and assessments for our Deaf students more easily and effectively. In addition, students can access online learning resources, which will enhance the quality of their education. Students also engaged in interactive lessons on basic computer skills and internet etiquette/safety. Through this project, we aimed to create a more supportive, Deaf-friendly learning environment for our students!
Advice and Support
8. What advice would you give to future Education volunteers in Kenya?
Speaking specifically to future Education for the Deaf (E4D) volunteers in Kenya, throw yourself into the Deaf community! You will find out VERY quickly that the Kenyan Deaf community is tight-knit—basically everyone knows each other. Your KSL Language & Cultural Facilitator (LCF) will support you as you forge connections with members of the Deaf community during PST. Afterwards, sign with anyone and everyone you may meet!
Not only will you further develop your KSL skills, but you will also earn the Deaf community’s respect and trust and, in turn, integrate more fully.
9. How did Peace Corps training prepare you for service?
My PST experience was very unique. I am the only Deaf Educator in my cohort, and my training village was separate from the rest of my cohort. Although I felt isolated at first, being apart allowed me to focus fully on teaching practice and learning KSL. My host family also prepared me to live independently in Kenya. I cooked chai, chapati, mandazi, and ugali with my host mama and helped my host siblings with their chores on the weekends. All in all, I was so lucky to live with such a welcoming host family and work with the most dedicated E4D staff!
Otherwise, In-Service Training (IST), Mid-Service Training (MST), and Close of Service (COS) conferences have been great opportunities to reconnect with my cohort and receive support from Peace Corps Kenya staff. The Program Design and Management (PDM) training was crucial for our cohort and our counterparts after USAID was shut down. We learned how to apply for and implement grant-funded projects with sustainability top of mind. Many of the projects that we workshopped would later become successful PCPP grants!
Practical Tips and Language Learning
10. What would you tell future volunteers to pack—or leave behind?
To pack:
- An e-reader and/or books
- A power bank/portable charger
- Chaco sandals (seriously, these are the most durable footwear for Kenyan paths/roads!)
- Earbuds/headphones
- Sticker books (especially if you are an Education volunteer!)
To leave behind:
- Anything expensive or overly valuable
- Birkenstock sandals (Kenyan paths/roads are ROUGH…your Birkenstocks will be torn apart in a matter of months!)
- Heavy clothes
11. How has language learning been for you in Kenya?
As a Deaf Educator, learning KSL is my main focus. I learned ASL in university, but KSL is a different language with its own sign variations and grammar. During PST, I had KSL lessons with my LCF daily. These lessons focused on fingerspelling, grammar, signed dialogues, and vocabulary building. Then, I further developed my KSL skills during teaching practice and through everyday communication with my Deaf host parents.
At my site, I have tutoring sessions with my counterpart/KSL tutor weekly. We focus on whatever vocabulary I may need for interpreting school events and teaching my lessons, as well as grammar and Deaf culture. I enjoy “storying” with my counterpart/KSL tutor, Deaf colleagues, and students whenever I can! This allows me to practice signing and pick up slang.
Social Identity
12. How has your personal identity shaped your service experience?
Here in Kenya, the term mzungu refers to a (typically white) foreigner. I have become well acquainted with this term, whether yelled by passing boda boda drivers or shouted by children at the market. While being called mzungudefinitely highlights my “otherness,” I try to overcome this outsider label by offering a different aspect of my identity—my name (most often my Luo name, Akinyi), my role as a Peace Corps volunteer, or my work as a teacher at a special school for the Deaf.
13. Did your identity lead to specific challenges or situations?
Besides being considered a mzungu and receiving unwanted attention because of that, I experience my fair share of harassment as a woman. I am regularly asked for my phone number, catcalled, and proposed to when out and about. Over time, this behavior has lessened in my community (a few firm rejections set the tone). However, I have gotten used to it and try my best to ignore it or block it out when possible.
14. What advice do you have for volunteers who share your identity?
Give yourself grace and space to process your feelings. It is okay to feel discouraged or upset after being called mzungufor the zillionth time, or when someone won’t leave you alone until you give them your phone number. Feel it, process it, and decompress afterwards. Try not to let the bad days/encounters overshadow what is good.
Final Thoughts
16. What final advice would you share with future volunteers?
Enjoy the two years—time FLIES! Remember your “why” when the going gets tough. Try not to lose sight of why you joined the Peace Corps and what is keeping you here, despite the bad days. Finally, spend as much time as possible with your community and your students (especially if you are a teacher). These everyday experiences are what make Peace Corps service so special!
Are you thinking about joining the Peace Corps? If you’re curious about service and ready for something new, apply today. Like Audrey, you can live abroad, work with communities, and grow in ways you didn’t expect. Apply to the Peace Corps and take the next step.
The content of this post does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps, or Kenya Government.
