Winter 2021 Impact Update: read about 4 major highlights this season!
225 and counting! Terre Froide Community School expands into Middle School
We reopened this past September with 225 students, despite a challenging summer in Haiti. The Terre Froide Community School continues to be the only school in Terre Froide and the only community-owned school in the region.
This school year, we also welcomed our first 6th grade class. Though we have limited physical space in the school, we are offering afternoon classes after regular school hours to support our 6th graders and make sure they can continue to attend school in Terre Froide. With the increase in demand for our teachers’ time, we are currently fundraising to be able to compensate them adequately and collect new reading and writing materials for our first ever 6th grade class.
Earthquake Relief Update
In August, a series of earthquakes struck the southern peninsula (western part) of Haiti, about 80 miles west of the capital of Port-au-Prince. Thankfully, our primary partner community, Terre Froide, was not directly affected, though the residual effects have touched all those on the ground. During this time, we partnered with other local initiatives , including HaitiNeeds, to facilitate coordinated support efforts for the south, where the extent of the damage was the greatest.
Planning Begins for Improved English Courses and New Computer Lab
A central part of our mission is co-creating innovative education opportunities with rural communities in Haiti. At the Terre Froide Community School, we have been providing English classes for our students, which we are currently evaluating and revamping for the new year. This fall, we launched our first prototype computer lab to equip students with increased digital skills. With this global shift to a virtual world, it is invaluable now more than ever to be able to navigate technology and the internet to learn, share and connect with others all across the globe.
Blown Away by Community Support
Last month, we hosted a Giving Tuesday campaign to fundraise for the Terre Froide Community School. With a total outpouring of support and generosity, we surpassed our fundraising goal in under 24 hours! We can’t even begin to explain how much of a difference your generosity and support is making and will continue to make in the lives of our partner community.
In response to this mobilization, we were challenged by a donor to increase our goal and raise $10,000 before the end of the year, agreeing to double the impact if we succeed. We are currently running this campaign, which is set to end on January 1. For every $1 you donate before the end of the year, $2 will go to supporting quality education in Terre Froide.