by Hans Goetz, UT Smith Center for International Sustainable Agriculture
Over the past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has made our world feel both large and small as we grapple with a global pandemic and the personal isolation of social distancing. During this time, the University of Tennessee Smith Center for International Sustainable Agriculture has continued to work towards growing the UT Institute of Agriculture’s network of international partners. Through the support of alumni William (BS, agricultural economics ’87) and Diane Seeley (BS, education, UT Martin ’82). UT can now count the University of Jérémie among its partners. UJ is a private university located in the Grand’Anse department in southwestern Haiti. UJ is one of the only universities in this remote area of Haiti. The university offers bachelor’s degrees in agriculture, business administration, nursing, and theology. This education presents a pathway for its graduates to secure higher paying jobs, pursue graduate studies, and serve in leadership roles in their communities.
William Seeley serves on the board of directors for University of Jérémie. He was introduced to UJ through his missions work in Haiti. The Seeleys engaged the Smith Center to carry out an assessment of the university. This assessment comes at an important inflection point for UJ. Jérémie was struck by Category 4 Hurricane Matthew in 2016. They are currently in the process of rebuilding and planning for the future. The assessment will support this process by identifying challenges and opportunities facing the university. Smith Center team member Sara Mulville and I traveled to Haiti with William Seeley this January to collect information for the assessment. During the flight to Jérémie, we were treated to views of the long, mountainous coastline of Hispaniola’s southern peninsula, including the highest point on the island, Peak Makaya. Once at UJ, we met with students, staff, and faculty, and toured the various practicum sites and income-generating ventures managed by the university.
Sara is the program administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean for the Smith Center. She works to increase UTIA’s engagement in the region through international partnerships and exchanges. Her background is in international studies and biosocial anthropology. As the Smith Center’s project development specialist, I bring experience from having lived and worked in Haiti for much of the past decade. Across this time, I worked development, research, and emergency relief assignments in Haiti with the International Organization for Migration, University of Florida and various consultancies. My background is in sustainable development with a focus on monitoring and evaluation.
Together Sara and I are conducting the external review of UH. We are in the process of reviewing the interviews, surveys, and documents collected during the trip. Our work has been supported by Laurent Zunino, distinguished lecturer in French and Francophone Studies in the UT Knoxville College of Arts and Sciences. The Smith Center will present their findings to the UJ board of directors and other stakeholders this fall. The next step for UJ will be to build on the assessment by developing a strategic plan to advance its education mission. As part of this process, the Smith Center is exploring possible areas for collaboration between UJ and UT, including virtual and in-person educational exchanges that would bring in other members of the UT community. The Center is also working to identify external funding for collaborative research with Haitian partners.
Contact Hans Goertz or Sara Mulville to learn more about opportunities with the University of Jérémie.