by Carolyn Corson ’16
A simple walk down the street with my Central College professor in Mexico led me all the way to Tonga, and I haven’t looked back since.
I graduated from Central College just over a year ago, and now I’m an English Language Facilitator serving with the Peace Corps in the Kingdom of Tonga. I am 7,000 miles from my home state, Iowa, in the South Pacific near New Zealand and Fiji. Here, I teach English to primary school students (roughly grades 3-6) at a Free Wesleyan school in my village, Kolovai. I have been living in Tonga for 10 months.
Carolyn Corson ’16 is serving two years in Tonga with the Peace Corps.
I graduated from Central with a social science major and secondary education endorsement…how did I end up teaching English to primary students? I decided during my senior year at Central that, while I loved teaching junior high and high schoolers my subject of passion, I needed to go out and give back in the world.
I was once too terrified to study abroad — something unheard of for a Central College student! I finally traveled to Mexico first with the Symphonic Wind Ensemble during my junior year. It was magical and life-changing, and I returned to Mexico at the end of my junior year on a psychology/sociology trip.
During my time at Central, I completed minors in Spanish and sociology. Both of these studies — the ability to learn a second language and the ability to think sociologically — have aided me in my service here. During my sociology classes, I remember hearing Professor Shawn Wick talk about serving in the Peace Corps in a place called Vanuatu. Little did I know at the time, I would serve in a neighboring country in the South Pacific.
During that sociology trip to Mexico, I remember walking down the street with Shawn, telling him now that I had discovered how amazing leaving the States and seeing the world was, I was unsure of what my next step in life should be. He said he felt I would be an amazing candidate to serve in the Peace Corps. That was when it all came together for me. That summer I went home and told my mother I had a calling to serve in the Peace Corps and give back to the world. I applied in the fall of my senior year, and I was accepted in the middle of my last semester.
Carolyn Corson ’16 teaches English to primary school students in Kolovai, Tonga.
I would not be here if it wasn’t for a culmination of events at Central College. Seeing all of my friends and my own sister leave to study abroad (all at least once!) allowed me to step out of my comfort zone and travel — something I then fell in love with. If not for my love for history and countless classes I took from history faculty members Lori Witt and Mark Barloon, I would not have been aware of the impact of the Peace Corps. If not for my time in government classes with Andrew Green, I would not have such a clear understanding of America’s democratic republic and Tonga’s monarchy, as well as different government programs and aid. If not for the encouragement of anyone and everyone I met and worked with at Central, I do not think I would have been able to spread my wings and go all the way to Tonga with the Peace Corps.
Here are some interesting things that have happened to me since coming to Tonga: I have learned the language of Tongan and speak it every day when I teach and interact with people. I no longer go by the name “Carolyn,” but instead “Kalo.” The Tongan language has only: A E F H I K L M N NG O P S T U V, so there are no Rs for my name. If you showed up in Tonga and asked for Carolyn, no one could point me out. However, residents of my village and the surrounding area all know Kalo.
I have continually used skills of self-awareness I learned at Central in our Liberal Arts Seminar classes. I am constantly being called “Pālangi,” which is basically their word for a foreigner. It does not have a negative connotation, but I am always aware of hearing that word and reacting (or not). Integrating into the community was a rather tough ordeal, but with patience and persistence, I have been successful.
I love so many different parts of Tonga and its unique culture. It is a respect-based culture that is so deeply imbedded it fascinates me. I think anyone who spends time in Tonga will see the respect and love that families and neighbors have for one another.
My two years of service will be over in November 2018. I still have so much to learn and experience before then. I am having the adventure of a lifetime here in the Kingdom of Tonga!