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Monthly Updates

Monthly Updates from Chris and Abner

Professional Development

Jun 28th, 2009
by Joanne.
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IMG_0136Three MCLC staff, Benaja, Feronel and I attended an Etoys training on the XO laptops that was held at a school in Petite Riviere, in the southern part of Haiti. Although the teachers spoke some English, it quickly became obvious that they would understand the lessons more fully if translated into Haitian Creole. I offerred that we could help teach and translate.  Bill, Benaja and I became a great XO training team. We are planning to run a pilot of the XO computers next February 2010. This is perfect for us because we learned how to make animated books with the Etoys software. This will furthur our ability to create Haitian Creole books on our website for our  Mother Tongue Books project.

A Rotary Club is being formed right here on Lagonave! If all goes as scheduled they will be able to start receiving projects by this August. This will enable us to start our next Rotary funded library expansion and book publishing project.

I just trained staff from Limyè Lavi and 24 women from KOFAVIV in Education is a Conversation, Children’s Rights module. see www.Kathleencash.org <http://www.Kathleencash.org> . In turn each of these KOFAVIV women will be implementing the program to a group of 20 people in each one of their communities. KOFAVIV is a solidarity group and clinic for victims of rape.

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We are really excited by the potential of these recent events.

Chris

May Update

May 24th, 2009
by Joanne.
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May 18th was Flag Day. Parents, teachers and students prepared a day of festivities starting with the whole school parading up and down the Matènwa road.

Ezner leads the 8th graders for the Flag Day parade.

Ezner leads the 8th graders for the Flag Day parade.

Bonise and Chrislene line up their kindergarten class for the parade.

Bonise and Chrislene line up their kindergarten class for the parade

  • “Flag Day makes me think of how we used to be enslaved but we broke those chains of slavery.
  • “Even though we are free, we are still not totally free because we are dependent on other countries.”
  • “We are an occupied country.”
  • “Perhaps we are physically free but not mentally free.”
  • “Our French education system is still colonizing us.”

After much music and food everyone moved outside to watch our soccer match.  The sun set with clouds moving in, promising rain.

MCLC Soccer Game

MCLC Soccer Game

Through The Haiti Twinning Program of Richmond, Virginia MCLC has a partnership with Lunchburg College. Kona, studying development, from Brown University (center)was visiting to see our arts programs.

Through The Haiti Twinning Program of Richmond, Virginia MCLC has a partnership with Lynchburg College. Kona, studying development, from Brown University (center)was visiting to see our arts programs.

We hosted a Lynchburg College group, and one student from Brown University.  We welcomed back Owen, a Lesley College student doing cultural and language immersion for the next 3 months. He is volunteering in our computer lab.

Matènwa artists and popular theatre performers for child rights: ( front to back)Maculese, Luciane, and Sonit, previously restaveks themsleves, attend the Mwen Se Ayiti Tou conference.

Matènwa artists and popular theatre performers for child rights: ( front to back)Maculese, Luciane, and Sonit, previously restaveks themsleves, attend the Mwen Se Ayiti Tou conference.

Members of Courageous Women, Women Artists of Matènwa and MCLC attended a conference of over 500 people called “Mwen se Ayiti Tou” (I am Haiti Too) sponsored by the Jean Robert Cadet Restavek Freedom Foundation and the Maurice Sixto Foundation. The conference was a call to action to end the Restavek system in Haiti. This event encouraged us in our work to promote dialogue and non-violence in our communities.

Sincerely, Co-directors Chris and Abner, Secretary Millienne

April Update

Apr 27th, 2009
by Joanne.
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Dear Friends of MCLC,

It is always a pleasure for us to write to you to thank you for your gifts. We also want to say hello to you and your families and tell of our last month’s activities.
We felt hopeful that rains would come earlier this year as the first evening rains came the last week of February, but then they dissipated. Many people have prepared garden beds for vegetables and have gotten their corn and bean seeds into the ground. Now we wait for sufficient rain. In addition to the doubling of food prices, President Preval says that we are about to face real inflation. We want to send a special thank you to our breakfast sponsors: you keep our children from severe hunger each month.
Teachers Lisa Brown and Valerie Bell from Nauset High School (Massachusetts, USA) gave seminars on class management, brain gym, and geography for our staff.
We said goodbye to three teachers from Segen after their 10 week teacher training. They learned to teach without hitting, dialogue with students, use Reflection Circles and Open Space, and make their own books and games. They saw how a school could help the whole community work together for change.
Our Local Arts Collaborative was awarded a grant from the Women to Women Committee of the Episcopal Church Women. The collaborative will expand their products that can be locally produced, bought, and sold with home grown materials. The artists are presently making straw hats that the children will proudly wear to promote local goods at our Flag Day celebration on May 18.

We end this month’s report with a Haitian expression of praise: Ayibobo!

Co-directors Chris and Abner
Secretary Millienne

March Update

Apr 14th, 2009
by Joanne.
1 comment

Bonjou MCLC supporters,

March was a great month for us here at the Matènwa Community Learning Center. We had 5 educators from the Episcopal school in Twen come for observation and training. They left with a book they wrote in Creole, a new vision of how their school can support local food production, and knowledge about how they can develop closer relationships with their students. A group called Support Local Production from Port Au Prince came for an exchange visit. They showed us a film and performed their play that emphasizes the value and advantages of consuming local production versus imported goods.
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But the most encouraging visit was when two education coordinators from Concern Worldwide brought 28 representatives—one student and one teacher from each of 14 schools across Lagonav to observe for 24 hours. They were especially impressed with our emphasis on creative writing in Creole, discussion groups in all classes, the school garden, and the close relationships between teachers and students. This has been our long awaited dream to finally share our educational model not only with schools from the mainland and other countries, but with the many schools right here on Lagonav.

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Agronomist Lucso holds up a 29 pound yam

We dug up 4 large yams. The biggest one weighed 29 pounds! It was a great thing to show our visitors. We harvested cabbages, plantains, hot peppers, and carrots and planted new beds of cabbages, chard, tomatoes, beets, squash, and peppers.

Thank you so much for your support which makes all this learning possible.

With much respect and gratitude,

Co-directors Chris Low and Abner Sauveur
Secretary Millienne Angervil

February Update

Apr 9th, 2009
by Joanne.
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Dear Friends of MCLC,

I have just returned to Haiti. Neighbors have been saying how much they appreciated MCLC donors’ support in the months that followed the hurricanes. MCLC opened its kitchen and served anyone who showed up for the daily meal. “I was surprised to see some of the people who showed up,” said Co-Director Abner Sauveur. “People were really in need. People were running around with their belongings under their arms because they had no homes.”

damaged-home repaired-home  damaged-home2 repaired-home-2

Here are two of the  11 homes MCLC has rebuilt. We are still seeking funds to repair 25 homes @ 500 US each.

img_70061Representatives from the Fayerweather Street School in Cambridge (Headmaster Ed Kuh, Connie Biewald, Dorla White Simpson, Meg Bruton, Kate Hubble, Lauren Mueller, and alum Sam Slavin who is now working on the border of Haiti and the Dominican republic, as well as Tina Jaillet from the Atrium School and Lesely student Owen Thomas) visited for one week to build on our school relationships. Equipped with 24-hour translators, the group did demonstration lessons in math and science and spent a lot of time talking with our community members. They came down with bilingual Creole and English books made by their first and second grade classrooms as an official kick off of our Mother Tongues Books project. They felt our school garden was extraordinary. They plan to start a Fayerweather School garden. Just last week we pulled up 4 yams, the smallest weighed 22 pounds and the biggest one weighed in at 29 pounds!
Thank you so much for your gifts, which make this work possible.

Sincerely,

Chris Low, Co-Director

An Evening of Education and Hope 2009

Jan 17th, 2009
by Joanne.
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Your Invitation

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Atrium School

69 Grove Street, Watertown, MA
6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

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Matènwa Community Learning Center

Annual fundraiser

On March 21st, 2009, the Friends of the Matènwa are hosting An Evening of Education and Hope to tell the story of a remarkable school in the remote mountain area of Matènwa, Haiti.  Especially challenged by an autumn that brought several devastating hurricanes to Matènwa and to other impoverished communities of Haiti, the Matènwa Community Learning Center has poured its energy into home reconstruction, feeding those most at risk, and sustaining its educational and community programs. It has led by example in these hardest of times.  Please join us in celebrating and supporting this inspirational school.  We are fortunate to have as our guest speaker, Jean-Robert Cadet, an advocate for Haitian children’s rights and the author of Restavec: From Haitian Slave Child to Middle-Class American.

The Matènwa Community Learning Center offers a model of hope and change. The teaching encourages children’s curiosity, develops their skills of inquiry and investigation, and provides projects that impact their community. It is a place where children are taught first in their native language, Creole.  Founded thirteen years ago by Abner Sauveur, a local Haitian educator, and Chris Low, a Cambridge-based educator, the school has grown, serving 242 students as well as engaging hundreds in the community.  Furthermore, it trains and inspires many educators in other parts of Haiti.  Matènwa’s adults are also working together to solve shared problems. Some of the Center’s solutions include a community library, social programs addressing human rights, adult education, an agriculture program, and a growing arts program.

The Matènwa Community Learning Center receives no public funds while serving one of the most economically poor areas in Haiti. It costs the school $300 a year to educate each child; on average students are asked to pay less than $10 per year.  In addition, the school feeds all Matènwa students a full hot and healthy meal three times a week, at a cost of  $18,000 a year.

Join us for this special evening. We hope to see you on March 21st at the Atrium School in Watertown. If you cannot join us, please consider making a donation. Your support directly impacts the lives of the children and families of Matènwa.

Sincerely,

Friends of Matènwa

Tickets are $60 each.

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