Haiti, Through Other Eyes

After ten years working in Haiti, the Pearl of the Antilles, I couldn't help but feel the most recent trip helped me see the country, its beauty and its struggles, through new eyes. As a young teacher in Haiti a decade ago, I was aware of the work that ACE was doing in the US, but the idea that such an organization with its lofty ambitions and whatever-it-takes mantra could gain traction and succeed in Haiti was a dream. I couldn’t fathom how such a program would work in a country with such daunting challenges.

On our trip last weekend, and after years of witnessing so many well-intended programs stumble out of the gate, it was both humbling and thrilling for me to share all that we’ve accomplished with ACE in Haiti with you, and to see the children we are serving not only succeed, but thrive.

With you, we saw Haiti through the eyes of a Haitian school parent, committed to getting her son and daughter the education that will be their ticket to a better life. Through a partnership with Digicel, ACE and Holy Cross have built a brand new school in a neighborhood that experienced exponential population growth after the earthquake. This school, College Notre Dame II, will continue to expand to help the children of the neighborhood learn and grow. When a parent was asked what her dreams were for the school, her only wish was that the school would develop faster so that her young daughter could attend as a preschooler.

This dream was repeated at the parish of Our Lady of Guadalupe, where in a plea for a preschool and kindergarten, a mother told our visitors that if we give children the first six years of education, it can be “a gift that will last a lifetime.”

We also saw Haiti through the eyes of a Haitian school teacher, embracing a new curriculum that will carry her students forward. Holy Cross took over the parish at Guadalupe in 2000, and with 5,000 practicing members, the school is outgrowing itself. This year, with the assistance of the CEEC, USAID, and the World Bank, the school adopted ACE’s Read to Learn program to improve early-grade literacy outcomes. As the World Bank’s Bob Prouty explained, Read to Learn is the perfect program for this environment, and will lay the foundation for improved literacy for generations across the country. We were privileged to be serenaded by the second graders and witness the program in action as first and second graders engaged in active Creole literacy lessons.

We saw Haiti through the eyes of a Haitian school nurse, caring for the medical needs of students, teachers, and the community. She supplies everything from toilet paper, to snacks, to a cot to sleep off a headache, to the first aid supplies to care for a student badly burned at home.

We also saw Haiti through the eyes of the dynamic English teacher, trained by ACE Fellows using facets of ACE’s English as a New Language program, as he led his students through rigorous drills that will help them master English and help the country compete on a global stage.

On our trip to Leogane, the home base for the Notre Dame Haiti Program, I saw Haiti through the eyes of my fellow travelers. We were able to see the beautiful Haitian countryside for the first time, and discuss the various interpretations of the Creole proverb, “Beyond mountains, there are more mountains” as the Haitian plains opened up to the hilly countryside, and the Haitian people continue to meet successive challenges with dignity and strength. We were also able get a glimpse of life in a country still struggling with basic services, where a twenty mile drive can take over three hours.

Throughout the trip, we saw Haiti through the eyes of others—through a father’s dreams for his son’s future, a mother clinging to her child’s hand as they walked along, a patient’s daily struggles with the ravages of lymphatic filariasis, or a teacher bringing a class to attention and opening up new worlds to his students.

There are times working in Haiti when it is so easy to get bogged down by the enormity of the tasks at hand. But this trip, seeing Haiti through new eyes—through your eyes—as we witnessed the work of our partners and the effects of our labor, was an apt reminder of the positive impact ACE is having in Haiti. Still, this work would not be possible without the significant investment of time and resources from our friends and our partners.

Together, we are constructing new schools, improving teacher training, and revitalizing efforts to help Haitian children read. As we lay these important educational foundations, block by block, God’s block by God’s block, we are striving to build a better future with and for these people, especially their children. Thank you for journeying to see—and understand—their world and their needs.