Tek4 Kids Inc

Tek4Kids gives children in Haiti access to clean water and modernized education.  Because schools are the heart of Haitian communities, they are the ideal center of operations for Tek4Kids. Working within the schools benefits the children, their families and in turn the whole community.  Most schools in Haiti are unable to provide the basic safety, sanitary and educational needs of their students.  We begin with clean water and safety, and then install computer labs for education in technology. 

 

We purify water to minimize illnesses and deaths caused by preventable waterborne diseases.  Safe water is the most basic of life’s necessities, and Haiti continues to struggle in a water crisis.  Tek4Kids installs water purification systems and strategically places cisterns on school property.  We teach the kids the importance of washing their hands and encourage them to carry water home to share with their families.  The extensive health benefits are immediate. 

We install electricity. City electricity is only available for a few hours each evening, and sometimes power outages can last for weeks.  To provide electricity for our computer labs, water purification systems and principals’ offices, we use backup generators and inverters with batteries. 

Tek4Kids’ education and technology programs set us apart from other groups working in Haiti.  To change the course of Haiti’s economy, the children must receive an education on par with 21st century standards.  We install computer classrooms in existing schools (avoiding most brick and mortar expenses). Tek4Kids uses Lenovo laptop computers equipped with Microsoft Office software, the same programs used throughout the business world.  We hire and train instructors to teach computer skills, advanced French and English languages.  Technology classes for adult education are offered after school.  Computer technology connects people all across the globe – it is vitally important that the people of Haiti are not excluded in this connection.

In October 2013, we launched the Tek4Kids iPad Initiative.  Countless education apps designed for the iPad solve specific problems faced by schools in Haiti.  Textbooks, which are costly and frequently unavailable in the traditional paper format, can be loaded on the iPad electronically.  iPads enable students to hear the correct pronunciation of words during language studies.  We are able to teach beyond Haiti’s required standardized tests by creating our own course lessons with the iAuthor application.  Children need very little instruction to begin using the iPads. We have hired teachers to travel with iPad Minis to each of our elementary schools on different days of the week.  The iPad is transforming education in the U.S. (adopted this year by many schools in the Louisville area) and we are excited to present this new way of learning to our schools in Haiti. 

 

In the fall of 2014, Tek4Kids will open an advanced technical school and begin a graduate support program that will include job placement services.  By educating young Haitians with technology, we give them the same tools used all around the world.  Improved education will expand the skill set of the local workforce.  Successful graduates become employable.  Employed citizens are able to care for their families financially, and educated citizens have higher expectations for clean water, better schools and essentials for life. 

By helping young people free themselves from cyclical poverty, we work towards our ultimate goal of helping to secure the success of future generations, bringing an end to child slavery, prostitution, oppression and poverty prevalent in Haiti.