Chanel Jimenez

Connecting With the People Around You:

Chanel Jimenez’s Time in Anton, Coclé Province, Panama (2019-2020)

 

Chanel Jimenez first discovered the Peace Corps at a job fair, and she knew the program was right for her. She was excited by the opportunity to travel internationally and interact with new cultures. She applied before she graduated, but was not accepted into the program on her first try.

Even so, Chanel’s desire to go abroad and work in international development persevered. She graduated from UNT with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and spent her first year out of college working with the Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte to teach English in Spain.

When that program concluded, Chanel wanted to continue working abroad, but she didn’t want to stay so far from home. She felt that her family needed her, but, when she was accepted into Peace Corps on her second application, she knew it was an important opportunity to pursue.

“My family had a lot of trust in me because I’m first [generation] everything, so they kind of had to trust me that I’m doing the right thing,” Chanel said.

Chanel was assigned to Panama and worked with high school students in the Education Sector teaching English language, leadership, and life skills. She worked with Panamá Bilingüe, a program that aims to make Panama a bilingual country. In the classroom, she helped students by practicing English conversation and making lessons more interactive.

“They wanted to have more dynamic classes, so we did a lot of games and activities,” Chanel said.

She led English clubs that met before school or assisted teachers in gamifying lessons to make learning more fun for the students.

In the other half of her working time, Chanel led the leadership and life skills programs on topics like professionalism or SMART goals setting. Those lessons were part of the Youth in Development program.

“The leadership and life skills were always more fun because we were doing everything in Spanish so we didn’t have to face that barrier,” Chanel said.

After school days, Chanel would go to the local library or infoplaza where she would collaborate with the staff to create summer reading programs or teach computer classes. Other days, she went to the nearby university to work with professors and college students. In the evenings, she tutored some of her students and spent time with them and their family members. When Chanel had free time, she spent it with her host family or another local family that adopted her in.

“The most rewarding thing was working with the people, meeting with the people, talking to the people,” Chanel said. “Another rewarding aspect was seeing what I could do, where I could live.”

Although Chanel knew a lot about Latin culture before she began service, she wasn’t expecting the big lifestyle changes that came with moving to Panama. She learned to be more flexible and patient and found that she was able to trust herself as she worked through the adjustments.

“People were getting things done and the teachers were very professional, but things weren’t agenda driven, set in stone and serious; it was very relaxed,” Chanel said.

While many volunteers struggled with loneliness and homesickness, the heat and insect population were the most difficult part of service for Chanel. She found that the isolation could actually be a good thing.

“You spend a lot of time by yourself and you kind of get away from all the noise of the U.S. like your friends, family, social media, what people are doing,” Chanel said. “You have a lot of time to think and do something very different which is good because you may not ever have that again in your life.”

At the same time, she enjoyed the benefits of experiencing many cultural festivals and celebrations such as Independence Day, Christmas, and Carnaval.

One of Chanel’s fondest memories of service was helping her fellow teacher’s daughter apply and earn a scholarship to study kinesiology in Canada. She felt that moments like that were why she went to Panama in the first place

When she returned to the U.S. in 2020, her time with the Peace Corps was not over. Chanel took advantage of her connections and returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) status to earn a job in the Peace Corps headquarters as a training and outreach specialist.

She also took advantage of the Coverdell Fellowship to earn her Master’s degree in Sustainable Development.

Like most RPCVs, Chanel’s advice to those considering the Peace Corps is simple: just apply. She recommends interested applicants speak to multiple RPCVs to get a full understanding of the experience.

“Do the research on the country, but in that same vein, drop all of the expectations that you have,” Chanel said. “The fewer expectations you can have, the better, because it will help you when you go in—nothing will be like you expected.”

Chanel took a lot away from her service. She learned how to make patacones for her family and spoke with a coastal accent. She learned about Panamanian history and practiced disregarding her ethnocentricity. But above all, she took away a myriad of memories and held onto the invaluable connections she made with other people.

Interested in learning more about Chanel's time in Peace Corps? You may reach out to her here.

^{Written and Edited by Eliana Fulton, B.A. Journalism Student at UNT
Interviewed by Zach Yeager, Peace Corps Prep Coordinator}