While everything that HBHH accomplishes in Haiti brings a sense of joy to the volunteers, few efforts can match the thrill that comes with the completion of a new school. Unlike the U.S., in Haiti new schools are never replacements for old and tired existing schools - because in Haiti an existing school is never retired. Instead, new schools either bring classrooms to village children for the first time - replacing daily walks that can be as long as two hours round trip - or the new schools replace mud-walled huts that in some cases have been built by the students themselves!
Construction in the mountain villages of Haiti almost never involves machinery or power tools. Machinery would be too expensive to buy or rent and there is no outlet to plug power tools into! So, the foundations for this school are being dug by hand.
All school construction is based on formal plans drawn by licensed architects and engineers and construction techniques are similar to that in the U.S. Due to termites and expense of lumber, 95% of all new construction in Haiti is done with cement blocks.
Because so much construction is done by hand, Haitian construction companies have skilled artisians capable of finishing out the cement block walls with a beautiful stucco texture.
This first reception in the school with Bishop Chibly in the mountains of Cotelette, was an exciting and unforgettable moment.
This new Christ the King School, located in Cotelette, a small village in St. Suzanne has 10 classrooms, a large storage room and administrative office space. New bathrooms for the students were made possible from Jesuit High School Key Club in Tampa, FL. Other office space is used for a medical clinic where a doctor travels once a week to give medical care to the communtiy.
Note in the pictures below that the walls between the classrooms are wood and can be removed. This makes it possible for the school to open up into large rooms and become a church or community center at nights and on weekends.
NEW PROJECT: HBHH has teamed with CHF International and others to replace an old school that was falling apart. The new school will have at least 1200 students. It's locatedl just down the mountain in Trou du Nord. This school will have elementary, middle and high school classes. High school education is very rare in Haiti, making this an exciting project in Haiti. Construction begins September 2009.
