Why Peace Corps: Jake Midkiff, GeoE’06, worked in consulting for three years after graduating from S&T, but he was never able to duplicate the sense of accomplishment he felt while working with Engineers Without Borders and Curt Elmore, GeoE’86.

Jake Midkiff

“I’ve spent the last two semesters at Michigan Tech taking environmental engineering coursework. Now I am serving for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer and will use my projects here as research for my thesis. It’s all part of the Master’s International Program, which combines a master’s degree with Peace Corps service.”

On joining EWB: “I’d be lying if I said that my involvement in EWB as a student wasn’t initially at least partially about free pizza. But during that initial meeting, I got really excited about the possibilities that EWB offered. I have always had more than my fair share of wanderlust. The travel and opportunity to use what I was learning at S&T in the developing world really appealed to me.”

What’s next: “As an environmental health extensionist, I’ll work with mostly indigenous communities in rural Panama to improve their community health. I’ll be working to design, fund and install aqueducts for three small communities where there are no latrines, running water or electricity. It’s going to be a challenge but I’m excited to get in there.”