Abby Bilello ’25 will live with a host family in Kosovo while completing three months of training before her two-year Peace Corps posting begins.
“I really wanted to help people in underserved communities, to help make a difference,” explains Abby Bilello ’25. “And this is a great opportunity to travel and have all these new experiences and cultural immersion. You don’t hear about Kosovo a lot. It’s not like Paris or London. It’s a very young country, very interesting, and it’s relatively safe.”
A Peace Corps Prep student while studying at Eckerd College, Abby was accepted recently into the Peace Corps, where, starting in February, she’ll live with a host family in Kosovo and spend three months training before her two-year posting begins. She graduated in May with a Bachelor of Arts degree in human development and minors in psychology and visual arts. And she already has a certification to teach English abroad.
Which is what she’ll be doing. Abby, who is from Mundelein, Illinois, will teach English to students in first grade all the way up to high school. Most people in Kosovo speak either Albanian or Serbian and are of the Muslim faith.
“I will have to make some cultural adjustments,” she says, “but I’ve heard from so many people who loved their Peace Corps experience. The host families are wonderful … I think I’m going to have a great experience connecting with people.”
Abby’s road to Kosovo was significantly cleared by two people—Kathleen “Kat” Robinson, Ph.D., assistant dean of faculty at Eckerd, and Paige Dickinson, Ph.D., associate professor of human development at the College and Abby’s mentor. “I had a lot of meetings with Dr. Robinson and we did a mock interview,” Abby explains. “It was extremely helpful for me to feel more prepared. And Dr. Dickinson was able to point me in the right direction and suggest classes to take to prepare me.”
Robinson says Abby has been motivated to be part of the Peace Corps since she joined the Prep program. “She has applied for various programs,” Robinson notes. “She was initially interested in another placement, but when Kosovo came up, she went for it. She worked on her application materials, and we had many meetings about her prep. She was superexcited to be interviewed.
“This year has been amazing for our EPC group,” Robinson adds. “Abigail is the fourth student accepted for this cycle. We are truly expanding the global reach of the Peace Corps and of Eckerd College.”
More than 175 Eckerd College alumni have served, or will soon serve, in the Peace Corps since 1961. Eckerd ranked 10th in the small college category among the Peace Corps’ 2025 Top Volunteer Producing Colleges and Universities.
