Accomplishment
Institution Univers school has 2385 students in grades K
through 13. The June 2015 thirteenth grade of Institution Univers graduated 67 students. The school employs over 150 local
people. In 2009, Institution Univers was named "one of the top ten schools
in the nation" by the Haiti Ministry of Education. In the June 2015
national tests administered by the Ministry of
Education for all 9th, and 13th grade students in all of
Haiti, 100% of I.U. students passed these tests---and were therefore promoted
to the next higher grade or approved for graduation. In 2016, 99.9% of the students passed the exam.
Healthcare is also a critical community need in Ouanaminthe.
In the 2001-04 time period, Hugues Bastien (Director of Institution Univers)
collaborated with the Board of Directors of COCINA and an architectural
designer to obtain funding and a design for a three-story medical clinic.
Univers Medical Centre was built in 2005-2006. The building includes rooms for
pharmacy, medical examination and treatment, laboratory
testing, dental services and eye-care services, plus a surgery center, birthing
area and recovery area. The Univers Medical Centre began meeting medical needs
soon after its construction was completed in 2006. Mission teams came from the U.S.
for a week at a time to perform professional services in the clinic.
In 2008, COCINA obtained funding to hire a Haitian staff of
24 professional and support personal, and operate the clinic 45 hours per week.
In September 2010, because of local demand for greater services and expanded operating
hours, the clinic expanded its service hours to 7 days per week and 24 hours
per day---by adding a few more staff. The staff now numbers 50 --- including
several physicians, several medical interns and nurse interns, a dentist,
professional nurses, nurse assistants and a pharmacist. Univers Medical Centre annually provides over 15,000 doctor-patient consultations (i.e office visits), 14,000 pharmacy
prescriptions filled in the clinic pharmacy, 10,000 laboratory tests, 2,100
hospitalization patient stay-days, 1,100 dental clinic visits and 250 surgeries
(performed mostly by U.S. mission teams). In 2014 5 more doctors were added to
the staff including an OB/GYN, a Pediatrician, an Internist, an Orthopedic
surgeon and an Anesthesiologist. In 2015, an Ophthalmologist was added. This expanded the services greatly.
The vocational education program of Univers is called
Univers Technique et Commercial. In 2010-11 COCINA supported Director Hugues
Bastien in expansion of vocational education from what had been just
classroom-based courses (e.g. computer operations, languages, business
accounting) to comprehensive laboratory courses in auto-vehicle mechanics,
industrial-commercial sewing and repair of industrial sewing equipment. Funding
was obtained from several foundations to jump-start these three new vocational education
programs. In 2010-11, a separate
building was constructed to house these three new major programs. Equipment and
supplies were purchased and several professional instructors were hired. In the
initial classes
(starting in the spring of 2012) there were 12 adult
students enrolled in the auto-vehicle mechanics program, five in the sewing
program and three in the sewing machine mechanics program. In the 2013-14
school year there were 60 students enrolled in these five vo-ed programs.
In 2010, COCINA added "economic-development" to
its mission statement, knowing how critical it is to provide jobs and
businesses for Haitians in order to rebuild the country. During 2015 the bakery
was extended to include a store front in the village where sandwiches, coffee,
bread and pastries are sold adding an additional 6 jobs. The profit from the
bakery goes to fund the operations of the school and clinic.
Between the
school, the clinic, and the businesses there are more than 250 Haitians
employed. Institution Univers has supported employment in Haiti by being the
second largest employer in Ouanaminthe, Haiti.
In 2015 the apartment complex built to house doctors, nurses
and missionaries to the area became profitable and the funds are being used to
support the operations of the school and clinic.
