With 15 other wide-eyed volunteers, I arrived at the airport in Yerevan (the capital of Armenia) on March 13/14. On one hand, it doesn’t seem like a year. But the Peace Corps has a way of cramming a lifetime of experiences into that first year of service! So, on the other hand, it seems like soooooo long ago. Now that I’m reflecting on it, I’m at a loss of how to share it with you all, but I’ll give it a shot.
Staging and Pre-Service Training (PST)
This wasn’t my first rodeo. I’ve been a volunteer 3 times (Thailand, Mongolia, Nepal) before coming to Armenia. In a lot of ways, it let me be much more relaxed because I knew the drill and how PC does things. It also allowed me to be ‘present’ when new volunteers needed help or just someone to chat with. I was blessed with a very small cohort of only 16 (all my other cohorts were much larger) so I was able to get to know everyone a lot better. And because we were so small, there weren’t any cliques or groups excluding anyone. We are one big family!
Another thing that made PST much more enjoyable for me was my host family, Angela and Vigen. They were the sweetest people, always quick to smile or laugh. And even though my Armenian was terrible, we never seemed to have trouble communicating.
Village Zar and my Host Family
Village Zar seems like it is almost at the end of the world, nestled at the base of the mountains. But it is only 60 minutes by city bus from the Peace Corps office in the capital. So, I have the best of both worlds: the serenity of the mountains with all the perks of living near the capital. The village is about 1000 people but we grew a little bit in November with refugees from Artsakh (Azerbaijan). I mostly know the village through my students. I love how when I’m walking or running, all my students are happy to give me a “Hello, Mr. Jim!”
My host family, Lena and Zhora, take very good care of me. Lena works as the accountant at the school and Zhora is a retired PE teacher who spends hours in the greenhouse and the orchard. We have an abundance of fruit when it’s in season but they are a little disappointed that I don’t love it as much as they do. Lena and Zhora have 4 sons, 3 of whom live in the ‘big’ city of Abovyan about 30 minutes away. So, we see them and their families a lot. Sometimes the house explodes with adult conversations and screaming children. ha ha ha
Zar Secondary School and my Co-Teachers
Of all the countries I have served in, Zar Secondary School makes me feel like I’ve won the Peace Corps lottery. I have awesome co-teachers, Lucine and Mary. The principal, Amalya is a strong leader but is as sweet as can bee and loved by all. And really, the whole staff is amazing (almost all are women except two, the PE teacher and the Military Studies teacher). This might be the first time in my life that I am chomping at the bit to go to “work” every morning
Besides the staff, the students control my heart. On the very first day, when I visited the school, the 4th grade class spontaneously gave me a group hug as I was leaving the classroom. Even now, I am still in awe when students, now the 3rd and new 4th graders, run up to hug me on a daily basis. I don’t know what I did to inspire such devotion but maybe they see something I don’t. I know when I leave Armenia, they are going to break my heart.
What’s Coming in the Next Year?
This year has been full of learning about my school, my students, and my co-teachers. I’ve experimented a lot to see what works and what doesn’t when it comes to helping our students improve their English. My co-teachers, Lucine and Mary, have been very receptive to trying out new things. Even some of the other teachers have adopted some of our ideas. As we quickly approach the end of the 2023-24 school year, I’m still trying to figure out how to take all this information in and use it for next year.
- Our “Coding” English Camp last summer was such a great success, I want to do it again, but even more advanced.
- We are working on a project grant with the Peace Corps to give our teachers some mobile multimedia equipment to enhance our classroom lessons.
- Next month, the new cohort of volunteers will do their teaching practicums at my school with my students.
- And in May, the Director of the Peace Corps, Carol Spahn, is coming for the new volunteers’ swearing-in ceremony. This is the first time a PC director has come to Armenia since it started bringing volunteers here in 1992. And, she is coming to visit my school and watch me and my co-teacher Lucine teach! What an honor for us all.
- Hoping to do some traveling this summer to visit some of the other volunteers and see more of Armenia.
- And I have even more news coming very soon!
Thank you Peace Corps and thank you Armenia!
I have been so fortunate to still be on this Peace Corps journey. I would have never imagined where it would take me when I first applied back in 2013. I am grateful for all who have helped me on this journey and all those I have met along the way. I have been truly blessed. I just hope that I can give back at least a little bit to show my gratitude.
