On my campus, students are organizing a Haiti relief benefit concert to take place this Friday night. In my neighborhood, the word on the street from local 7-year-olds–okay, really just from my friend, Sophie–is that elementary school students are making simple toys to sell as part of their own fundraiser. I’ve heard that Hub Bub, the arts incubator and performance & exhibition venue, is raising money. I’m sure similar efforts are taken place all over the world.
However, what I’m particularly interested in hearing about from ProfHacker readers are academic projects designed to provide other kinds of assistance. For example, the Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Duke University professor Deborah C. Jenson is teaching a course titled “Haitian Creole for the Haitian Recovery.”
According to the article, the course is “designed to help undergraduates, as well as health-care practitioners and engineers, who want to be involved in relief and rebuilding efforts learn enough of the language and culture to communicate effectively in Haiti.” This seems like an especially worthwhile endeavor. Don’t get me wrong, it’s important to raise money, but efforts to provide skills–language-based or otherwise–to volunteers who will be putting feet on the ground are also valuable and have the potential to set in motion assistance that continues beyond the initial surge of interest and news coverage that follows any disaster like this.
My first year in my current job, I helped coordinate a busload of students on trip to New Orleans in order to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity. One of those students decided to spend the entire next semester volunteering, taking her classes via distance education tools, and contributing to her major in non-profit administration.
So I’m curious to learn about other Haiti efforts like Jenson’s, or to hear your thoughts about such projects.
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