UF students can learn Creole in Haiti this Summer.
UF will host a study-abroad program in the northern region of Haiti. The six-week language and cultural program will be held May 9 through June 17. The cost of the trip is $4,676, and students will receive five college credits in Haitian Creole and three credits in Haitian Culture and Society.
The program will be stationed in Cape Haitian, which is the second-largest city in Haiti. The program is sponsored by UF’s Departments of Languages, Literatures & Cultures and Agricultural Education & Communication in partnership with Projects For Haiti.
Bertrhude Albert, the chief executive officer of Projects For Haiti, said this program will allow students to fully immerse themselves within the Haitian culture.
“When people go to Haiti, they’re able to get a glimpse of this beautiful and this incredibly intriguing history,” Albert said.
Benjamin Hebblethwaite, a UF associate professor of Haitian Creole, and Paul Monaghan, a UF associate professor, will co-teach the Haitian Culture and Society course in English.
“This particular version of the course will be something like humanities plus social sciences,” Hebblethwaite said. A UF graduate student and Haitian Creole expert will offer the language instruction, he said.
“Having the language and the culture in your pocket really empowers students to connect to the world around them,” Albert said.
Alexandra Cenatus, a first-year master’s student in Latin American studies, said students who visit Cape Haitian will gain a greater understanding of Haiti’s culture and history.
“I think you get the best of Haiti through Cape Haitian,” Cenatus said.
The program includes excursions to several historical landmarks in Haiti, including Citadelle Laferriere, which is one of the oldest fortresses in Haiti. Albert said the fortress sits on the top of a mountain and represents the strength of the Haitian people. Students will visit courtrooms, farms, government offices, schools and churches.
“I feel like students walking away from this experience will walk away changed,” Albert said.
