American University of the Caribbean (Haiti)
The American University of the Caribbean (AUCHaiti) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit institution of higher education incorporated in Florida and Republic of Haiti, established in 1985. AUCHaiti is a non-denominational Christ-centered university. The university is approved and chartered by the Haitian Ministry of Education to award academic degrees.
Campus
The American University of the Caribbean main campus is located in the city of Les Cayes on the southern coast of Haiti. The campus is 12 acres and includes a working agro-forestry farm and 60,000 square feet of classrooms and labs.
History
The American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes was founded in 1985 with the assistance of USAID at a time when all universities in Haiti were closed under the Duvalier regime. It was founded by a Haitian-American nurse, Solanges Smrcka, and her husband Antonin as one of the very few fully accredited, private, non-profit schools in the nation of Haiti. The initial site was established in Les Cayes, Haiti by Eric Rasmussen, then a member of the Molecular Genetics staff at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. He was granted a Leave of Absence from Los Alamos to establish the grounds and initial classrooms for Solanges Smrcka between October 1984 and February 1985, leaving Haiti only when counseled by the US State Department as the Duvalier regime began to collapse and the risk to both teachers and students became untenable. Later, in 1994, the United States and the United Nations enacted a crippling embargo against the nation of Haiti which forced more educational opportunities to vanish from the island. However, the American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes was able to survive, and in 1999 to begin a new phase of growth with the opening of its program on Agroforestry and the Environment and the expansion of its community college.
Through times of political unrest, embargoes and administrative changes, the American University of the Caribbean has persevered in its efforts to become a place of scholarly achievement and Christ-centered education. The American University of the Caribbean in Haiti opened its classrooms to other universities' students after the earthquake of 2010. Large numbers of students, who otherwise would have lost a semester or year of studies because their campuses were destroyed, were able to continue their education while their campuses were being rebuilt.
Organization
AUCHaiti is organized around the College of Agriculture & Environmental Sciences; the College of Arts & Sciences; and The Alice Richards School of Community Education. The University awards the following degrees; Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and the Environment; Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering; Associate of Science in Computer sciences; and a Certificate in General Studies and a Diploma in General Studies.
The University is led by a strong Christ-centered administration and faculty.
Mission
The mission of the American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes is to offer a quality education and moral and spiritual guidance so that students may grow as a person as well as professional. The American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes strives to give light to its students today for brighter futures tomorrow.
To this end the American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes has established Baccalaureate Degree curriculums and community education and certificate programs that will enhance the students it enrolls, the community of which it is a part, the nation of Haiti, and the international affiliations which are its cornerstones. The Alice Richards School of Community Education at the American University of the Caribbean at Les Cayes provides professional and technical training for individuals not interested in matriculating into the university or who are not yet qualified for university study. Students who attend these courses receive specialized training in a variety of subjects related to their particular field or profession. The Alice Richards School of Community Education offers Associates degrees in Computer Science as well as certificate programs in English language studies, Spanish language studies, accounting, bookkeeping, language interpretation and general studies.