Anna spent two years with the Peace Corps in Kazakhstan, where she taught English in a village school, held teacher trainings, and ran summer camps, including one at a local orphanage. While in Kazakhstan, she had a fascinating time observing the remnants of the Soviet Union, drinking tea (and a few cups of fermented mare’s milk), and navigating around the idiosyncrasies of a second world country. Her Russian improved greatly, although there are certain things that she can only say in Kazakh. (She can never remember how to yell at her students to “Be quiet!” and tell them “That’s enough!” in Russian, but Kazakh is second nature.) She kept a blog about her experiences and philosophical musings: http://annarodgers5.blogspot.com/.
After returning to the States, Anna earned her Master of Arts in Teaching at Willamette and is now teaching 5th grade at Toledo Elementary School.