/ Newsroom/ L&C Ranks in Peace Corps’ Top 10 for 2025

L&C Ranks in Peace Corps’ Top 10 for 2025

Lewis & Clark has been named No. 8 among small colleges on the Peace Corps’ 2025 Top Volunteer-Producing Colleges and Universities list. With six alumni currently serving across five countries, the college continues its deep-rooted commitment to global service.

Global Service

May 08, 2025

Lewis & Clark has made the Top 10 list of small colleges and universities that have produced the highest all-time number of Peace Corps volunteers since the agency’s inception in 1961.

Credit: Suhail Akram BA ’24

Six alumni are currently serving across five countries.

Lewis & Clark has once again been recognized for its strong tradition of service and global citizenship, earning the No. 8 spot among small colleges and universities on the Peace Corps’ 2025 list of Top Volunteer-Producing institutions. The ranking reflects the number of alumni currently serving in Peace Corps placements around the world—six alumni are on assignment this year across five countries: Cambodia, Ecuador, Gambia, North Macedonia, and Zambia.

This distinction highlights the college’s long-standing commitment to international engagement and cross-cultural understanding. Since the Peace Corps was founded in 1961, a total of 377 Lewis & Clark alumni have served as volunteers.

“We’re proud to see our graduates continuing this legacy of leadership and service,” says Niels Marquardt BA ’75, L&C’s diplomat in residence. “The values they take with them into the world—curiosity, compassion, and a commitment to justice—are deeply rooted in the L&C experience.”

The Peace Corps is an international service network of volunteers, community members, host country partners, and staff. At the invitation of governments around the world, Peace Corps volunteers work alongside community members on locally prioritized projects in the areas of education, health, environment, agriculture, community economic development, and youth development.

Lewis & Clark’s inclusion on the 2025 list reinforces the strength of its globally focused curriculum and the support systems that encourage students to pursue service and international opportunities after graduation.

Career Center

Experiential Learning

Where Legal Theory Meets Real Life

Lewis & Clark Law School’s extensive externship program enables students to earn academic credit while gaining hands-on professional experience across the corporate, public interest, private law, and government sectors.

Literary Arts Connects Intern With Writing Community

Burton Scheer BA ’25 is bringing their studies in English to the professional world of creative writing and literature through an events internship with the acclaimed Portland nonprofit Literary Arts.

Psychology of Gender

Psychology Meets Digital Storytelling

Students in an upper-division psychology course are partnering with local video production company Story Gorge to use the art of digital storytelling to explore the experience of gender.

Change in Action

A Community-Centered Approach to Housing Insecurity

Lewis & Clark’s partnership with local nonprofit Blanchet House enables students to provide dignified aid to those living with housing and food insecurity in downtown Portland.