Cineas-- Last Site Opens!

Yesterday was an exciting day for many reasons:

We opened our last child-friendly space (Espas Zanmi Timoun-EZT) in a camp called Cineas. The site will have a total capacity for over 1700 children, and yesterday I was filled with so much joy to see the children show up and engage in their first day of activities.

We identified this site more than two months ago, and Dharma has been working with a wonderful construction team to create semi-permanent wooden structures that will be able to transition the EZT into a more functional school. The site also includes a garden where two agronomists are setting up rows of different vegetables such as eggplant, carrots, plantains and cabbage. We are installing 6 composting toilets that within 60-90 days will create enough nourishment for the garden.

Now that the construction is almost complete, we are starting the children's program. It's been a rocky road at this site due to various factors including personality clashes, committee interests, construction delays, but we seem to be turning a page. Yesterday, after the first two days of opening activities, I spoke with the 50 monitors/teachers in Kreyol about how important their work is for the children and how wonderful it is to feel their energy and learn from their creativity! (After a few months here now, I feel comfortable speaking basic ideas with Haitians. It’s one thing to be able to speak, but it’s quite another to understand when they say something back to me.)

This afternoon, I will return to the site to meet with our EZT coordinator, Madame Remy. She is from the community and she will act as the principal of the site. Today we will go over the schedule, monitors’ assignments, materials, logistics and activity plans. Madame Remy is a dynamically strong force, probably in her fifties. She has earned the respect of the community as the leader of the Womens Committee (Comite Fanm), and with her at the helm, I am confident that the site will flourish.

Now that all our sites are set up, we can enter a new phase of this child protection project. We can now consolidate and examine the quality and functionality of the sites and programs. I am constantly reflecting on how well we are meeting our objectives of creating safe, informal education and healing spaces for children. The fluctuating situation in the camps creates a moving target. Some of the children’s families are moving out of the camps, and some children are returning to school. Our enrollment dropped precipitously when schools re-opened a couple weeks ago. However, children were scared to enter the school buildings, and shortly thereafter they returned to our EZTs which are housed in either tents or wooden structures. We had another spike in attendance this week when a radio announcement aired declaring that even Green Houses were not safe. More parents pulled their children out of schools and enrolled them in our EZTs. So, each week the situation changes and with the inconsistencies sure to continue, we must create flexible program that serves the evolving needs of the children.

I have been continuously mulling over two questions the last several days:
• How can we continue to enrich our play-based learning approach?
• How well are we preparing children to start formal school again in September? (Will they even start formal school in September?)