[16] The solution of the military, as first understood – of broadening the type of education and opening it up to more of the population, was considered a positive change by many Haitians as well as a number of American editorial writers who were keeping an eye on Haiti.

This concept of superiority were born in the minds of the elite during the years of slavery and were re-enforced when the French Catholic Church was allowed to return and begin establishing schools as a result of the Concordat of 1860.

[19] The decision process surrounding this move to agricultural education and its implementation caused a great deal of concern and controversy in Haiti as well as in the U.S. – particularly among black American leaders.

Concerns were raised about systemic racism such that one such leader Rayford W. Logan – an American French speaking advocate of Pan-Africanism – went on a fact finding mission, traveling much of the country and examining documents published by the Occupational forces.

In the Americans' view the Catholic Church was intertwined with French influence and its reach into Haitian society needed to be reduced even though this would negatively affect academic education.

This was also a chance to introduce a modern curriculum, one that combined a practical foundation in agriculture and manual trades with "book learning," i.e., the three Rs, elements of Haitian history and geography, social sciences, hygiene, and physical education – subjects that were of relevance to the children and their environment.

Maurice Dartigue was a graduate of the Central School of Agriculture (which the Americans had established in 1924); had spent five years working for the Technical Service; and had earned a master's degree in rural education from Columbia University's Teachers College in New York.

Meeting these problems head-on and solving them intelligently required a certain kind of instruction, a specific type of schooling, whereby economic proficiency was viewed as more important than literacy.

In addition to imparting technical skills, it was necessary for the peasant's education to expose him to and provide training in the cultural, civic, and social aspects of his immediate world and the larger one of the Haitian nation.

It was important to instill a unifying culture in the peasantry, to create a sense of the nation they belonged to, to have them embrace the values and qualities that could, with the middle and upper classes, join them into one society.

Grants for overseas study (mostly in the United States but also in Canada and Puerto Rico) were arranged to permit teachers, principals, directors, statisticians and the like to complete and perfect their education and training.

Mobile teams were created to go into the countryside to assist teachers; refresh their knowledge, teaching methods and curriculum; and reinforce the feeling of being part of the Division of Rural Education from which they were geographically isolated.

Yet between 1935 and 1941, the annual government-allotted budget for rural education kept shrinking, which meant increasing creativity and careful management on the Division's part in utilizing available funds.

It was felt that the habits and attitudes developed through these activities would be made more permanent if the initiative and the responsibility for the undertaking and carrying through of some of the projects were left to the pupils themselves under the guidance of the teachers.

The Minister of Public Instruction's report to then-president Sténio Vincent for the year 1932–1933 spoke of the stagnation of the urban schools, which was due principally to the absence of sufficient funding.

The shortcomings experienced at the primary level naturally affected the quality of urban education all the way up the line: insufficient formation in the lower grades left students less prepared for what they would encounter in high school.

However, around 1935, a modern trade school, well equipped with shops and a dormitory, was built in Port-au-Prince and placed under the direction of the Catholic Salesian Fathers (Salésiens de Don Bosco).

In May 1941, a new government, headed by President Elie Lescot, undertook a thorough reorganization of urban education under Maurice Dartigue, the newly appointed Minister of Public Instruction, Agriculture and Labor.

As in the earlier case of rural education, there would be many firsts in the urban field, and they would be preceded by a complete, objective and scientific survey of the department, from the central office to the most remote school.

Candidates for teaching posts without a diploma from a normal school or a teacher-training course or without a certificate of completion of their secondary education were employed only if they passed a competitive examination.

Du Bois, civil rights activist and co-founder of the NAACP; Aimé Césaire, co-founder of the Négritude movement in Francophone literature and French National Assembly Député representing his native Martinique; Alain Locke, "Dean" of the Harlem Renaissance and philosophy department chair at Howard University; and Auguste Viatte, literature department chair at Laval University in Montreal and champion of the French language throughout the world.

This was a radical departure from prior administrations where the field of education had been viewed as fertile ground for politicians to exercise their muscle in getting jobs for friends and family, regardless of qualification.

A new law was then passed inaugurating the University of Haiti, with Dartigue named as Acting Rector (in addition to all his ministerial responsibilities), and stating the general rules for its organization.

A handful of private schools in Haiti, mostly clustered around the capital city, Port-au-Prince, and accessible to the rich (except for limited scholarship fund opportunities), offer education with relatively high quality standards.

Since it may take at least 4 years to learn to read and write, dropping out before the first cycle is complete, typically makes an almost total loss of the money spent on that child's education.

The school takes a holistic approach to educating talented student's from the poorest neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince and runs an Office for External Affairs to provide job training and support for its graduates.

[7] The Bernard Reform sought to introduce vocational training programs designed as alternatives to traditional education in order to align the school structure with labor market demands.

[73][dubious – discuss] In addition to failing to make Creole the initial language of instruction there were two other serious failures: lengthy delays in the implementation of new the curriculum and inadequate resources and infrastructure to support the proposed changes.

[7] The NPET also shifted to a new paradigm of citizenship education aimed at developing civic knowledge and attitudes that would promote unity and an appreciation of the diversity in Haitian society, providing the foundation for an inclusive national identity.

[8] The primary goals of the commission were to provide 100% enrollment of all school-age children, a free education to all, including textbooks and materials, and a hot meal daily for each child.