Help Haiti
Message from NJIT President Robert Altenkirch
There are several initiatives underway to which you can direct your compassion, including the multiple locations around campus where student, faculty and staff volunteers will stand ready to accept donations beginning Tuesday, January 19. NJIT’s Engineers with Borders, which has served in Haiti, and our Haitian Student Organization, are part of a larger NJIT community that has come together to support the Haitians through UNICEF and other appropriate organizations and activities.
North Jersey Ice Thriller
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January 31, 2010
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Activities and Updates
Right now, what the Haitian people need more than anything else is money. In the future, people will be able to donate clothes and food and books and supplies. But due to distribution problems at the airport, aid workers cannot now contend with donations.
The university’s immediate plans will focus on fund-raising. Starting Tuesday, Jan. 19, donation tables will be installed in the Campus Center, where you can make donations to UNICEF. NJIT selected UNICEF since it’s a venerable United Nation’s group all of whose money goes directly to the earthquake victims. UNICEF does not use donations to pay administrative costs. Time is of the essence: UNICEF is on the ground in Haiti and will use donations to buy medical supplies, drugs, and food and water to assuage the pain of the victims. Those interested in volunteering to staff the tables can sign-up in the Campus Center lobby or contact Donna Minnich at minnich@njit.edu.
In addition, by donating to UNICEF a Campus Challenge – the George Harrison Fund -- will match our donations.
Along with donations, a vigil and a non-denominational prayer service is being scheduled for Wednesday, January 20 at 4:00pm in the Jim Wise Theater, as well as an International Student Coffeehouse fund-raiser at 4:00 pm in GITC 3730.
Engineers Without Borders at NJIT, a group that is already working on a water purification project in Haiti, will meet on Wed, Jan. 20, at 2:30 pm. in Colton 416. They will talk about what else they can do to help the Haitians get clean water. Interested students should contact Kate Boardman at kb3@njit.edu or Professor Namunu Meegoda meegoda@adm.njit.edu.
The Business Emergency Operations Center at NJIT, under the direction of Research Professor Mike Chumer, also plans to help Haiti with emergency communications.
Our fraternities and sororities also plan to host events. Contact Greek Life Director Thea Schoenberg at thea@njit.edu.
The Athletics Department will collect donations for Haiti during NJIT home games.
The Caribbean Student Society aims to do whatever they can to help. They feel that what happens to people in one Caribbean nation is felt by all of the Caribbean nations. Contact CARIBSO president Richard Jones at rtj2@njit.edu. NJIT, one of the most diverse universities in the nation, has hundreds of students from the Caribbean, some of whom are from Haiti.
We don’t yet know if any of our Haitian students have lost loved ones, but we’ll reach out to them. And for all those students who would like to talk to a counselor, we welcome you to contact the Counseling Center, employees can contact Nancy Conrad at nancy.dean.conrad@njit.edu.
NJIT graduate Marie Jackson (class of 2005) is assistant secretary of the NJ Chapter of the Association of Haitian Physicians abroad. The group has been sending volunteer doctors and nurses to Haiti. All donations to the group will aid emergency medical relief. If you’d like to donate to that group, write to MarieJacksondmd@hotmail.com.
There is an Highlanders for Haiti group in Facebook.
The effects of this earthquake, alas, will last a long time. The NJIT community's focus now is on immediate relief, but at the same time we’ll continue to come up with new ways to help and update every on this website.