Careers of Texas Global Staffers Shaped by Peace Corps Service

In honor of Peace Corps Week, celebrated February 24-28 this year, Texas Global at The University of Texas at Austin is proud to highlight several staff members who are Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs). These community-minded Volunteers share how their earlier international service experiences have shaped them professionally and personally.  

The Peace Corps is a United States government agency that trains its Volunteers and sends them to various regions around the world to work alongside local communities. Peace Corps Volunteers serve in their assignments for more than two years, living and working with their host communities in more than 60 countries across the globe. 

The overarching mission of the Peace Corps is to promote international peace and friendship through intercultural understanding and community-based development, addressing issues in agriculture, economic development, education, environmental infrastructure, health care and youth in development.   

Meet the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers at Texas Global

Anne Saldívar – Jordan  

Anne Saldívar, the recruiter for Peace Corps at UT Austin, also serves as information systems coordinator in Education Abroad at Texas Global. As the campus recruiter, Saldívar wants to offer others the same life-changing experiences she enjoyed during her own Peace Corps service.  

Saldívar provides outreach at career and Education Abroad events and hosts discussions across campus with current and former Peace Corps Volunteers, classes and student groups. She also meets with students one-on-one to answer questions, provide feedback on resumés and motivational statements for applications, and conduct mock interviews.  

“I am proud that UT is the No. 1 producer of Peace Corps Volunteers in Texas, and among the top 10 universities nationally,” said Saldívar.   

Before coming to UT Austin, Saldívar earned a B.A. in sociology and an M.S. in global health policy and management. She served as an AmeriCorps volunteer during undergrad, then worked for a decade in direct social services, including foster care case management, support for domestic violence and sexual assault survivors, and HIV/AIDS. She also worked in global health for the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health. 

“I put myself in challenging roles where I had to be comfortable being uncomfortable, and that allowed me to better adapt,” said Saldívar, surmising that her long and varied service record bolstered her Peace Corps application. 

Saldívar also had worked as an early childhood interventionist, which she believes led to her assignment in 2010-2012 as a special education volunteer in the Wadi-Zaid village of Tafila, a small town in the south of Jordan. After training near the Syrian border, her service primarily focused on supporting parents, teachers and their students with profound autism. All of her work was performed in Arabic. 

Reflecting on her experiences in Jordan, Saldívar spoke about how important it was to feel like a part of the local community — a phenomenon she sees as representative of what makes Peace Corps service truly important and effective.   

“I am not Muslim, but when I was in my village, I fasted alongside my community during Ramadan,” Saldívar said. “The whole mood was contemplative, with the Quran playing throughout the town. This was the first time I really felt integrated into a local, international community. It is hard to describe how incredible it was to see the entire community participating in the same collective action.” 

As a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer herself, Saldívar is uniquely positioned to understand the attributes that make a solid candidate for Peace Corps service, and she extends that knowledge to students who exhibit an interest in joining.  

A primary aspect that distinguishes UT as a Peace Corps recruiting university, Saldívar said, is the Peace Corps Prep Certificate. This pre-application training program aims to build the core competencies critical to Peace Corps fieldwork: language, leadership, intercultural competency and sector-specific skills. The training helps Longhorns become competitive Peace Corps Volunteer candidates.  

“Our students are lucky to have access to the Peace Corps Prep Certificate program,” said Saldívar. “This is a wonderful resource that helps students align their school courses and paid and unpaid work experiences with their future Peace Corps goals.”   

In PC Prep, students take three courses based in one of the following sectors: agriculture, community economic development, education, the environment, community health or youth in development. They also complete at least 50 hours of volunteer service in their chosen sector.  

Students interested in joining the Peace Corps should explore the many resources and programs that UT offers. They also can contact Anne Saldívar at peacecorps@austin.utexas.edu. 

As a final word about the value of Peace Corps service, Saldívar offered this sentiment: 

“It is not easy to go to another country, but it’s so enriching to experience new cultures, better understand religions and take advantage of opportunities for personal growth. I feel strongly that people-to-people diplomacy is critical to understanding our place in the bigger world; it can only strengthen our security by allowing us to see the humanity in all people and create a shared vision for peace.” 

 
Fiona Mazurenko – Ukraine  

Fiona Mazurenko has served as Texas Global’s director of Global Initiatives and Alumni Relations for the past four years. She holds a master's degree from the LBJ School of Public Affairs and bachelor's degrees in international relations and French. Before her work at UT, Mazurenko dedicated seven years to working in nonprofit community organizations, focusing on development and communications. 

Between earning her degrees, Mazurenko volunteered with the Peace Corps in Lapaivka, Ukraine. She served as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) Volunteer, teaching eight English classes daily to students ranging across grades 1-12. 

During her service, Mazurenko established a weekly English club, initiated a journalism club and launched the school’s first newspaper. She also co-led the Peace Corps Ukraine Girls Leading Our World, or GLOW, initiative, which focuses on promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment internationally. 

“My Peace Corps experience profoundly shaped my outlook and career in international education,” said Mazurenko. “It taught me the importance of cultural humility and adaptability, and the value of building genuine relationships across cultural divides. These experiences have been instrumental in my approach to international education, emphasizing empathy, inclusivity and a commitment to fostering global understanding.” 

Sarayu Adeni – Dominican Republic  

Sarayu Adeni has worked as the senior global health program coordinator between Dell Medical School and Texas Global since 2018. She holds a Bachelor of Journalism and a BDP in global studies, as well as an MPA in development practice. 

She has worked with grassroots organizations and public institutions on supporting youth-focused initiatives and health education programs in Austin and beyond. She currently serves on the board of the nonprofit GirlForward. 

Adeni volunteered for Peace Corps service in San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic, working on projects related to youth, family and community development in 2010-2012.  

Most of her work involved forming, training and launching local teen health promotion groups focused on topics of women’s and family wellness, sexual health, personal and community leadership and literacy support. All of her work was performed in Spanish. 

“Part of the reward of this work was not only strengthening my skills as a facilitator but also building that same confidence in the young people who befriended me, took my classes and helped me be part of the community,” said Adeni. “They became the leaders and teachers for the next round of participants, and I helped them all connect to opportunities to attend and present at larger conferences and network with groups like them — and other Peace Corps Volunteers — across the province, region and country.”  

Catherine Heimsoth – Ecuador  

Catherine Heimsoth has worked as senior program coordinator on the Global Customized Programs team at Texas Global for three years. After earning bachelor's degrees in international studies and linguistics, Heimsoth volunteered for Peace Corps service in 2012-2014, teaching English in Saquisilí, Ecuador.  

She worked with local English teachers to plan lessons at a high school level, eventually traveling to different provinces to help other local high school teachers. Heimsoth also created an English language club, taught English to preschoolers and worked as an English tutor for local community members.  

Following her years in the Peace Corps, Heimsoth worked for a nonprofit in Chicago, where she worked with Spanish-speaking families and developed after-school programming for at-risk youth. She later earned a master’s degree in applied linguistics and began her career in international higher education.  

“Going abroad to work can present logistical and cultural challenges, but Peace Corps is well-established and offers the structure and support needed to be successful in a new working environment,” said Heimsoth. “Few other professional exchange programs offer the same level of linguistic, cultural, technical and health/safety training before you begin your work assignment.”  

Daniel Ach – Kazakhstan 

Daniel Ach is the assistant director of Education Abroad and has been with Texas Global for 10 years. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in English literature and a master’s degree in international education policy and leadership.  

Before coming to Texas Global in 2014, Ach worked in student affairs and as a scholarship coordinator for Kuwaiti medical residents through the Cultural Division of the Embassy of Kuwait in Washington, D.C.  

After earning his master’s degree, Ach joined the Peace Corps in the Ulba River Valley of Kazakhstan as a TEFL volunteer. There, he taught English language skills to children in grades 5-11.  

On the weekends, Ach led music, film and conversation clubs for local university students. He also became the volunteer aide to the cultural director, leading sessions for the incoming group of Volunteers.  

Ach also met his now-wife in Kazakhstan and returned there for their wedding.  

“I think Peace Corps is one of the best ways to truly attain a unique depth of experience that cannot come from short-term travel or tourism. It also provides support for some of the challenges in cultural transition that anyone who lives in another culture will face,” said Ach. “I wouldn’t have the same self-awareness, cultural competence and confidence to lead without that experience. It truly changed my life.”