January 26, 2024
First student graduates with support of CEMARCH scholarship program
The Haiti Agricultural University Partnership: Center for Mitigation, Adaptation, and Resilience to Climate-Change in Haiti, or CEMARCH, is a five-year program supported by USAID-Haiti. This center was established by the Feed the Future Sustainable Intensification Innovation Lab, or SIIL, of Kansas State University.
The program has three overarching objectives, which are to provide support for bachelor's and master's degrees for Haitian agricultural students, develop agricultural technology parks to showcase and develop new climate-smart agricultural production technologies, and work with agricultural-based Haitian partners for extension and educational opportunities. The first objective is showing immediate success, as students are already completing their Bachelor of Science degrees in the agricultural sciences with the scholarship support from CEMARCH.
On Dec. 16, 2023, the American University of the Caribbean held its graduation exercises, and among the graduates was Walmy Borgard — the first graduate of the 105 students who received CEMARCH scholarship support from one of the six CEMARCH universities. Borgard comes from Les Cayes, located in southern Haiti, and completed his bachelor's degree in agronomy. He specialized in agroforestry and environment with a keen interest in environmental health, biodiversity and climate change. After graduation, he aims to apply his knowledge and skills to contribute to sustainable agricultural practices and environmental conservation efforts in Haiti.
The graduation of the first CEMARCH scholar celebrates the opportunities presented by CEMARCH academic support, with many more students to graduate over the coming three years. This graduation also shows the opportunity for the bachelor's students to participate in research at the agricultural technology parks, as Borgard did. His fifth-year project, "Morphological characterization of the avocado tree (Persea americana Mill) in the communes of Cam-Perrin and Ducis, South Haiti," was presented in a research seminar to all interested students and faculty on December 29, 2023. He was joined in this presentation by two other CEMARCH scholars, Merlie Louis and Romario Dolney. The completion of undergraduate research projects clearly demonstrates the intersection of the CEMARCH objectives — financial academic support coupled with growth in research competency, both designed to provide agricultural production information for Haitian growers.
“Having the first CEMARCH scholarship student graduating with a bachelor’s degree is a remarkable achievement, given current challenges in Haiti," said P.V. Vara Prasad, university distinguished professor of agronomy and director of the SIIL. "The student, faculty, and the AUC are all to be congratulated on this achievement. Our goal is to support 120 BS students and 30 MS students over the period of the program.”