April 23, 2012

Peace Corps Watch

peacecorpswatch@gmail.com

RE: FOIA Request No. 12-143

Dear Peace Corps Watch:

You submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request on April 15, 2012. I am writing to ask for
additional information about the subject of FOIA 12-143. According to the request, I request that a copy
of the following document(s) be provided to me. All Annual Volunteer Surveys - Measurements - HCN
Perceptions of Volunteer Impact and research questions (English), Goal 2: Research Model all
respondants and types - e.g what people said before and after,level and type of contact. For clarification
we are referring to this example of the data: Plenary Presentation 2: Dr. J osephine K. Olsen, Connecting
to African Communities: A Peace Corps Model for Language and Culture Training (pp. 11- 37).

We need to know more from you in order to process the request. FOIA 12-143, as it stands, does not
satisfy the minimum conditions for a proper FOIA request which are explicit in the Peace Corps Manual

.
Below, please see the relevant language per MS 893: Freedom of Information Act Administration. We
ask you, in the words of Section 303.8, to provide a more specific request.
Section 303.8: Requests for Records
(c) A request must reasonably describe the records requested so that employees of the Peace Corps who
are familiar with the subject area of the request are able, with a reasonable amount of effort, to determine
which particular records are within the scope of the request. If it is determined that a request does not
reasonably describe the records sought, the requester shall be so informed and provided an opportunity
to confer with Peace Corps personnel in order to attempt to reformulate the request in a manner that will
meet the needs of the requester and the requirements of this paragraph. If the Agency cannot identify the
requested records after a 2 hour search, it can determine that the records were not adequately described
and ask the requester to provide a more specific request.
(d) To facilitate the location of records by the Peace Corps, a requester should try to provide the following
kinds of information, if known:
(1) The specific event or action to which the record refers;
(2) The unit or program of the Peace Corps which may be responsible for or may have produced the
record;
(3) The date of the record or the date or period to which it refers or relates;
(4) The type of record, such as an application, a particular form, a contract, or a report;
(5) Personnel of the Peace Corps who may have prepared or have knowledge of the record; or
(6) Citations to newspapers or publications which have referred to the record.

Requests that are not filed in accordance with the requirements of the FOIA and Peace Corps Regulation
(22 CFR Part 303) as detailed in MS 893 may not be deemed received until the request has been
identified as a proper FOIA request by agency personnel. Therefore, until such time, there is no obligation
on the part of the agency to meet time deadlines, search for records, or supply requested records.




Page Two
FOIA 12-143



Please revise the request with additional information about the subject of FOIA 12-143. You would be
welcome to contact me at 202-692-1904 or FOIA@peacecorps.gov in order to discuss the request.
Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,

Candice Allgaier
FOIA/PA Specialist