Bellingham Ranked No. 5 on Peace Corps’ List of Top Metro Areas for Volunteers

The Peace Corps listed the Bellingham metropolitan area as fifth nationally of metro areas per capita with the highest number of Peace Corps volunteers.

Bellingham is home to the main campus of Western Washington University, which the Peace Corps in 2019 ranked as No. 5 nationally among medium-sized schools, with 32 alumni currently volunteering worldwide.  Since the Peace Corps’ founding in 1961, more than 1,010 alumni from WWU have served abroad as volunteers.

"It is no surprise that quite a few Peace Corps volunteers call Bellingham home, as Western Washington University continues to be a top producing university for the Peace Corps. I am proud that our university contributes to both the top Colleges and Cities rankings. It shows the true spirit of our city and university,” said Jill MacIntyre Witt, Peace Corps campus representative at Western.

The Peace Corps announced that Washington ranks in the top 10 of states with the highest number of Peace Corps volunteers. Nearly 10,000 Washington residents have served in the Peace Corps since the agency’s founding.

“The domestic dividend of Peace Corps service cannot be overstated,” said Peace Corps Director Jody K. Olsen. “Across the United States, communities continue to experience the benefits of volunteers returning home with new skills and perspectives. I am grateful to these communities for instilling a sense of service in their citizens.”

The Peace Corps is unique among service organizations because volunteers live and work at the community level. Service in the Peace Corps is a life-defining, hands-on leadership experience that offers volunteers the opportunity to travel to the farthest corners of the world and make a lasting difference in the lives of others.

Below find the nation’s report for top volunteer-producing states and metropolitan areas.

2019 Top States – Per Capita (# of volunteers per 100,000 residents)

1. District of Columbia – 18.2

2. Vermont – 8.1

3. Montana – 5.1

4. Virginia – 4.5

5. Maryland – 4.3

6. Oregon – 4.2

7. New Hampshire – 4.1

7. Colorado – 4.1

8. Maine – 3.8

9. Washington – 3.6

9. Massachusetts – 3.6

10. Minnesota – 3.5

 

2019 Top States – Total Volunteers

1. California – 851

2. New York – 413

3. Virginia – 384

4. Texas – 368

5. Florida – 341

6. Pennsylvania – 293

7. Illinois –279

8. Washington – 271

9. Maryland – 259

10. Massachusetts – 247

 

2019 Top Metropolitan Areas – Per Capita (# of volunteers per 100,000 residents)

1. Charlottesville, VA – 16.5

2. Missoula, MT – 13.7

3. Fort Collins, CO – 13.3

4. Burlington-South Burlington, VT – 11.8

4. Ithaca, NY – 11.8

5. Bellingham, WA –10.9

6. Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA – 10.7

7. Bloomington, IN – 10.0

8. Columbia, MO – 9.8

9. State College, PA – 9.7

9. Eureka-Arcata-Fortuna, CA – 9.7

10. Harrisonburg, VA – 9.6

10. Ann Arbor, MI –9.6

 

2019 Top Metropolitan Areas – Total Volunteers

1. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV – 472

2. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA – 217

3. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI – 212

4. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI – 155

5. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA – 149

6. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA – 140

7. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA – 117

8. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO – 109

9. San Diego-Carlsbad, CA – ­106

10. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH – 103