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Jack’s Angle: Good News from Haiti, with a Rhode Island slant – John J. “Jack” Partridge
by John J. “Jack” Partridge, contributing writer
(Photo: The Haitian Project)
The headlines concern gang violence: a UN vote to authorize international peacekeepers to bring order to the beleaguered people of the impoverished nation of refugees coming into the USA through our porous border.
Let me stop there for some good news. The LOUVERTURE Schools, a focus of Providence based the Haitian Project has announced a 100% pass rate on the nation’s 8th grade exam and its 9th grade baccalaureate exam, and the recognition of two national laureates. That is number 3 and 5, respectively, in all of Haiti.
Passage of the 8th grade exam is a requirement to attend high school, and passage of the baccalaureate exam is necessary to attend a university. The100% pass rate in each is nearly double the national rate of passage!
What are The LOUVERTURE Schools? They are a national network of tuition free secondary boarding schools in Haiti that provide for the education of academically talented, motivated students of Haitian families who cannot afford the education costs to maximize their children’s potential, and enable them to work toward a Haiti where peace and justice thrive. With this unique mission curriculum and program of instilling pride, the schools thrive in the midst of chaos, supported by hundreds of charitable donors throughout our country.
And why is this of significance to Rhode island? The Haitian Project was founded here by a group of inspired religious and parishioners of St. Joseph’s Parish on Hope Street in Providence. With Brown University students appalled by conditions in Haiti and willing to go forward on the premise that education was the only pathway to progress in Haiti. For over twenty years their groundbreaking, steadfast work has proven that given security and opportunity, Haitian children can grow to commit themselves to their nation’s benefit. It remains headquartered here, with hundreds of Rhode Islanders committed to give deserving children a chance at personal success and national redemption.
For more information and great examples of individual student successes, go online to the Haitian Project. Also, you can contribute to the effort at PO Box 6891, Providence, RI, 02940, or at VENMO , at @HaitianProject.
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To read more columns by Jack go to: https://rinewstoday.com/our-team/john-j-jack-partridge/
John J. ‘Jack’ Partridge, is a retired lawyer and Senior Counsel to the firm of Partridge Snow & Hahn LLP, with four offices in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
A Pawtucket native, Jack graduates from St. Raphael Academy and summa cum laude of Providence College, where he majored in history. After Harvard Law School, he served in the United States Army in Vietnam, where he was awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal. In 1967, he joined the firm of Tillinghast Collins & Tanner. In 1988, he became a founding partner of Partridge Snow & Hahn LLP.
Jack has been engaged in many civic, political, governmental, and business organizations, serving as legal counsel to the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce for 27 years and was chairman of the Old Slater Mill Association, Common Cause Rhode Island, and Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island.
He is the co-founder of The Pawtucket Foundation and an officer and director of innumerable not-for-profit entities. He served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Pawtucket Boys & Girls Club and was Treasurer of the Ocean State Charities Trust.
Jack has a long history of leadership involvement with Providence College, which recognized him in 1999 with the Providence College Alumni Association Recognition Award for Public and Community Service, and in 2011, with an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.
He is married to the former Regina McDonald and has three children: Sarah, Gregory and David.
