After the devastating earthquake in Haiti on January 12, 2010, Students Rebuild acted fast so students and educators could respond with their hearts, minds and creativity to raise much-needed funding for school reconstruction. More than 125 teams - 3400 students - from across 18 countries rose to meet the challenge and support their faraway peers. Through a curriculum including webcasts and interactive videoconferencing with the Haitian students benefiting from their efforts, the Students Rebuild teams got the unique opportunity to broaden their horizons and global understanding. All funds raised by Students Rebuild teams were matched dollar for dollar by the Bezos Family Foundation, netting a total of $350,000 towards reconstruction.
The Schools
The beneficiaries of Students Rebuild Haiti are the Haitian students, families and faculty of four primary and secondary schools around the country that have suffered from the aftereffects of the 2010 earthquake. The size, location and character of the schools vary widely from one another - each school presenting different challenges, opportunities and needs from which the designs were developed and construction managed by Architecture for Humanity in Haiti.Ecole La Dignité, Cayes Jacmel, Sud. Two-classroom extension for the only free private school in the Jacmel area.
Collège Mixte Le Bon Berger, Montrouis. The reconstruction of eight classrooms for a 400-student school devastated by the earthquake has garnered national praise and 25% increased enrollment.
Ecole Baptiste Bon Berger, Pele, Port-au-Prince. Phased construction of 20 classrooms for 1200 students near the world-renown slum of Cité Soleil.
École Elie Dubois, Champ de Mars, Port-au-Prince. Historic vocational school for girls (250 enrolled), working to rebuild its cafeteria and kitchen and renovate the surviving schoolhouse, before its 2013 centennial.
Institut Foyer du Savoir "Home of Knowledge," Delmas 75, Port-au-Prince. New construction for 400 students on a new site with sweeping views of the city. (Note: this project has been canceled. Why?)
Where is the money going?
In Haiti, construction materials cost a lot of money. At first we thought it was cost inflation that usually follows a natural disaster. Now we're aware that, for several reasons, the cost of doing construction in Haiti is and will remain more expensive than building in the United States, even. But Architecture for Humanity is adamant in not cutting corners that could compromise the structural integrity of a building. Equally, the designers and builders won't skimp on making the best, most comfortable, most delightful schools possible for Haiti. In mid-2011, the Haiti Rebuilding Center, run by Architecture for Humanity, put together this cost breakdown for different parts of the school. Based on cost estimates and Bills of Quantities submitted by our school contracting crews, this breakdown provides a real sense of how far money goes in Haiti's reconstruction. Amounts shown are per 40-student classroom. (For more, see Your Dollars at Work.)