McKenna Technical Institute
The Technical Center
To be called the Sant Teknik McKenna [McKenna Technical Center], this project has as its goal teaching boys and girls from Maison Fortuné, but also from the town, skills in such areas as the building trades, tailoring/sewing, auto mechanics, and agriculture. The Sant Teknik’s products and services will eventually provide income to make it a sustainable operation. It will, in addition, become an incubator for small businesses in the area.
A Haitian agronomist, who will be on the Sant staff, is drawing up a budget for the agricultural component [for which a grant proposal has been submitted to the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund]. An American architect is working on plans for the building.
The Site
As of August 2010, with funds contributed by the McKenna Foundation, supplemented by funds provided by the Maison Fortuné Orphanage Foundation, we are moving ahead with the purchase of about three acres of land across the road from the orphanage.
The McKenna Foundation has pledged to raise funds for a 1:2 challenge grant of $50,000 to match $100,000 to be raised by the Maison Fortuné Orphanage Foundation for construction and equipment costs.
This major initiative has been discussed with the church and town leadership in Hinche, and everyone is excited about this project in support of the Haitian government’s efforts to provide jobs outside of Port-au-Prince.