2014 Recruitment Reflections
This year, HELP identified our recruitment drive as a priority and developed a new strategy for the January - March recruitment period. Over the course of 12 weeks, student-led teams visited over 1,000 schools across the country and spoke directly to more than 160,000 secondary school students, even reaching those in remote areas like the islands of La Tortue and La Gonave. “We put in a strong effort this year, and the results speak for themselves,” says Recruiting Intern Sabrina CYPRIEN (agronomy ’15). “Some notable differences from past years include the assignment of team leaders for each department and the increased availability of vehicles and materials for each team. These changes allowed for better productivity and time management.” HELP's outreach was expanded even further by our student media teams, which appeared on more than 50 regional and national radio stations, and by our partners at Digicel, who sent a nationwide text blast with admissions information to 2,000,000 subscribers!
Not only did the recruitment drive spread the word to tens of thousands of students about the importance of education, but it was also an inspiring experience for the HELP participants. As Sabrina explains, “An especially large number of students were interested in taking part this year. To me, this shows an impressive level of engagement, as well as a strong sense of belonging with HELP, and a desire to share with others the important values that it promotes. The continued participation of the students in the recruiting process, and in HELP’s activities overall, is indispensable to strengthening the program.” We also had more employee involvement in recruitment than ever before, with a total of 10 staff members joining student teams across Haiti. Below, both students and staff write about their recruiting experiences, and you can see more photos from the recruiting drive here.
Benjy TOUSSAINT (computer science ‘17): It’s thanks to a HELP’s recruiting campaign that I’m part of the program, so it was a great pleasure for me to go to my home region (the Northeast Department) to find students who may have lost hope of going to university. My role is to tell them how they can be part of the HELP family, where we work to build a more just Haitian society. The recruitment period was also an opportunity for me to develop my sense of leadership by speaking with younger students, advising them, motivating them, and sharing the story of my own education. I also had the chance to visit parts of the region that I’d never been to before. The recruitment campaign was, for me, a campaign to raise awareness among young students of how to see Haiti from a different, more positive angle.
Susie ZEIGER (English Instructor): Recruiting in the Grand Anse Department will remain one of my favorite memories of my time at HELP. Although we traveled long distances and the roads were difficult, the experience and beauty of the countryside were absolutely worth the challenges. There was excellent team spirit throughout the trip as everyone did their part to reach as many schools and students as we could. Great leadership and a sense of humor among the team members were critical to our success, even if I didn’t always understand the jokes in Creole! I was also impressed by the countless schools we visited where, in spite of the scarcity of resources and over-crowded classes, the secondary school students were both curious and receptive.
After each long day speaking at schools, our team returned to the home of Nephtaly Andoney PIERRE-LOUIS, a HELP student from the area. There we were treated like family, with warm welcomes and amazing food that allowed us to recharge and get ready for another day. Overall, our mutual respect, as well as the generous hospitality from our hosts and the schools we visited, made the trip really pleasant. If I were to give a grade to the participants and for what we achieved, it would definitely be an A+!
Nephtaly Andoney PIERRE-LOUIS (economics ‘17): I see recruiting as the duty of every HELP student, so I was just doing my part by participating. It is also an initiative that contributes significantly to strengthening the bonds between students and staff. The teamwork we exhibited will be really useful for us in the future, whether in our professional or family life. As a Team Leader for the Grand Anse Department, I’m thrilled with the experience I gained. I was able to practice my skills in leadership, planning, and management. The feelings of pride and belonging that I experienced while speaking to the students were powerful. Having grown up in Jeremie, it was great to share my story and my experiences at HELP with other students from my hometown, to show them that education is the true path to success. I will always be a willing volunteer in promoting the mission of HELP because I truly believe in it. The past two years that I’ve been part of this family have changed my life in many ways, and have helped me to become a better person.
Samuel-Leon BOURSIQUOT (IT Instructor, HELP class of 2013): I participated in recruitment for the first time this year, and was fortunate enough to visit my parent’s birthplace of Jacmel in the South-East Department. It was so easy to work with my team, where everyone kept a careful eye on each other - we were like family. We became somewhat competitive, trying to visit as many schools as possible. I was proud to stand in front of the classrooms in every school we visited, telling the story of how I was once a student sitting in their chair, studying hard. Now it feels so rewarding to be the messenger. I know that if I could do it, they can do it, and I hope they will gain strength from my story. It was a great experience to tell more students about the unique opportunity I received at HELP.