Little Bay All Age School
The Foundation completed its 2010 summer capital project, Phase 1 of the renovation and expansion of the Little Bay All Age School, in time for the children''s return for the 2010-2011 school year. Located twenty-five minutes from Negril there is a small fishing village called Little Bay. It remains largely unchanged from the time more than 30 years ago when Bob Marley used to journey there for peace and quiet and a little roast fish on the beach. The Little Bay All Age School was built in the early 1970''s. It is a steel beam structure without adequate sanitation or kitchen facilities - where children ate and learned at the same desks, have no access to technology, no safe and engaging play and sports space, and no consistent source of potable water.
What they do have is a dedicated and caring staff and leadership who make the very best of this challenging environment everyday as they help prepare their students for the rigors of high school and beyond. Our collaboration and dialogue with the various stakeholders during project planning allowed us to focus on the most pressing needs of the school first. Phase I of renovations included the expansion of the school to provide a new canteen and renovated kitchen; new outdoor recreation facilities; and a renovated Infant School classroom with age-appropriate furniture and learning materials; and great improvements to safety and security with new perimeter fencing, walkways, and railings.
The renovations in Phase 2 will be complete in Summer 2011 and will include structural work to reinforce the 1970''s building, upgrading the remaining classrooms, principal''s office and staff room; installation of a water filtration system; new bathrooms; a state-of-the-art media room and computer center equipped with internet; and a new infant playground. We have ensured that priority needs and solutions were developed as a team and ultimately achieved together. The addition of a modernized, well-outfitted kitchen and eating area, along with key improvements to the infrastructure and amenities at Little Bay All Age have already begun to dramatically impact how children learn and how teachers feel as professionals in their workplace.
Negril Public Library
In 2009 the Foundation completed its most ambitious project to date - a complete modernization and substantial expansion of the Negril Community Library. The library is Negril''s oldest extant building and housed the original police station. It is located next door to the Negril All Age School and the Negril Basic School, the Foundation''s first two partners in improving places where children learn in Negril and whose students are amongst the Library''s most frequent users.
For decades the library had too little space and resources to meet the growing needs and numbers of local students and community residents. The refurbished, expanded facility is well over 4 times larger, equipped with 15 new computers, thousands of new books, a spacious reading room and book stack section, as well as a colorful and engaging junior library. When the Rockhouse Foundation teamed with the Jamaica Library Service (JLS) and the Negril community in 2007 to discuss the proposed library renovation it never imagined what a radically successful process was about to unfold. Armed with an inspired vision jointly crafted with JLS, a committee of local residents, and architects Chris Stone and David Douglass of Cornerstone Design, we broke ground in July, 2008 and have now handed over a signature addition to the Negril community. The new, improved library space is a much needed resource and reflects the Foundation''s ambition to support learning for children of all ages.
The new library reflects the Foundation''s ambition to support learning for children of all ages. With the completion of the library in 2009, the Rockhouse Hotel and Foundation has provided over US$1 million in community projects benefiting children.
Negril All Age School
The total renovation of the Negril All Age School was the Rockhouse Foundation''s inaugural project. Thirty years ago Negril''s only public elementary school served just 100 students, many of them children of fishermen and farmers whose simple lifestyle had defined the community for generations. Presently, the school enrolls over 500 children, a five-fold increase reflecting Negril''s growth as a tourist destination and magnet for thousands of Jamaicans seeking steady work. And yet, until the Foundation intervened, the physical plant had literally stood still in time. The renovation redressed decades of over-crowding, deferred maintenance, poor ventilation, inadequate wiring, and leaky roofs.
During the summer of 2004, and then again two years later in 2006, the Foundation took advantage of the brief eight-week summer vacations a very compressed window to complete the extensive renovations and improvements. A remarkable team consisting of craftsmen, sub-contractors, Rockhouse staff, vendors and volunteers from the local community combined efforts and contributed to the following improvements:
•Construction of 1200 sq. feet of new classroom space
•Total upgrade of electrical wiring and fixtures
•New custom furniture
•Re-roofing of existing buildings
•Re-surfacing of entry/play area
•Installation of security fencing around the entire property
•New windows and doors with security grill work
•Painting entire interior and exterior surface
•Renovation of library/technology center
•Construction of new classroom space for over 70 first graders
•Expansion of the Negril All Age School''s library and technology center, created by the Foundation. It now houses nearly 750 volumes and 14 computers for use by over 500 first through ninth graders as well as a variety of teacher development programs
•Creation of playing fields for the older children, accommodating soccer, cricket, netball and basketball
•Creation of a staff room for teachers
•Renovation and expansion of the Principal''s office
•Re-painting of the entire facility
•Increased storage capacity for educational materials donated to both schools
•A new dining pavilion and kitchen (shared by both schools)
•Improved storage space and toilets (shared by both schools)
During the course of the renovation, the Rockhouse Foundation and the Rockhouse Hotel invested approximately US$160,000 in the Negril All Age School Project. The project generated a tremendous amount of local enthusiasm and support and became a model for relationships the Foundation has built. The Foundation worked closely with the School principal, its teachers, the local school board and community groups, the Negril Chamber of Commerce, the Ministry of Education, and the local Member of Parliament, each of whom lent their full support to the project.
The success of the project is shared with other organizations, most notably the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which made a significant financial contribution to the Foundation. In addition, the U.S. Embassy in Kingston donated ten late model computers to the School''s new technology and literacy center, and through the Foundation''s partnership with the Peace Corps, the School is assigned an experienced technology volunteer every two years.
In an unforeseen use of the newly renovated facilities, the School emerged unscathed after providing temporary shelter to over 150 people when Hurricane Ivan ravaged Negril in 2004.
We are dedicated to long-term, meaningful partnerships. At the Negril All Age School the results of our capital investment are palpable. At the Negril All-Age School and the Negril Basic School, we support the children and their community''s pursuit of excellence, while assisting in the maintenance of high quality facilities. To that end, the Foundation sponsors the following:
•Supporting good nutrition: Each day, the Foundation feeds up to one hundred children who would otherwise start school on an empty stomach. Lunch is additionally subsidized to ensure that all students have access to an affordable healthy and balanced meal;
•A school supplies program: The Foundation provides much needed classroom materials to teachers, as well as cleaning and maintenance products to the facility to ensure a productive environment which is also safe and clean;
•Assistance with water and electricity bills: As a result of the Foundation''s investment in infrastructure and the expansion of the facility, utility costs have increased substantially over the years. With no accompanying increase in support from the Ministry of Education, the Foundation provides important support for this gap;
•Maintenance support: The Foundation underwrites ongoing major maintenance of the school, ensuring that our investment in the school and its many benefits to the children are protected. We substantially subsidize the salaries of a maintenance worker and a grounds man and additional one-off repairs, including plumbing, electrical and structural issues;
•Operational support: To improve the student to teacher ratio at the Basic School, the Foundation provides financial assistance that has allowed the school to hire a much needed additional teacher.
Negril Basic School
At the back of the property upon which the Negril All Age School is located is Negril Basic School. As the only public Pre-K in Negril, and because of its proximity the Basic School is the primary feeder for the All Age School and share many of the improved facilities described above in common. As the children departed for summer vacation, heavy equipment began clearing trees and debris in preparation for the Foundation''s second major project: transformation of the Basic School into a stand-alone pre-school with new furnishings and materials that now enable staff to better meet the developmental and pedagogical needs of Negril''s three to five year olds. Specific improvements include:
•Separate play ground area
•New age-appropriate furniture and additional early childhood education supplies
•New blackboards
•New lighting and ceiling fans
•Indoor partitioned areas for age specific play and learning
•Increased storage capacity for educational materials donated to both schools
•A new dining pavilion and kitchen (shared by both schools)
•Improved storage space and toilets (shared by both schools)
In addition, construction of a new playground for the Negril Basic School will begin in the coming months. Students of the Basic School do not currently have a dedicated play area or equipment to complement improved conditions in their indoor learning space. Accordingly, we will create a new play structure and surrounding play area, complete with outdoor toys, balls, tricycles, hula-hoops, etc.
We are dedicated to long-term, meaningful partnerships. The Negril Basic School which serves children ages three through five and is the primary feeder for the Negril All Age School. For many years, sub-standard roofing, poor structural integrity, wiring and furniture were a discouraging backdrop to hundreds of children''s first introduction to school. At the Negril All Age School and the Negril Basic School, we support the children and their community''s pursuit of excellence, while assisting in the maintenance of high quality facilities. To that end, the Foundation sponsors the following:
•Supporting good nutrition: Each day, the Foundation feeds up to one hundred children who would otherwise start school on an empty stomach. Lunch is additionally subsidized to ensure that all students have access to an affordable healthy and balanced meal;
•A school supplies program: The Foundation provides much needed classroom materials to teachers, as well as cleaning and maintenance products to the facility to ensure a productive environment which is also safe and clean;
•Assistance with water and electricity bills: As a result of the Foundation''s investment in infrastructure and the expansion of the facility, utility costs have increased substantially over the years. With no accompanying increase in support from the Ministry of Education, the Foundation provides important support for this gap;
•Maintenance support: The Foundation underwrites ongoing major maintenance of the school, ensuring that our investment in the school and its many benefits to the children are protected. We substantially subsidize the salaries of a maintenance worker and a grounds man and additional one-off repairs, including plumbing, electrical and structural issues;
•Operational support: To improve the student to teacher ratio at the Basic School, the Foundation provides financial assistance that has allowed the school to hire a much needed additional teacher.
The Rockhouse Foundation''s Roots
Commitment to the community is a cornerstone of the Rockhouse Hotel''s vision since its establishment. In the early years, prior to formalizing its programs with the Rockhouse Foundation, the community endeavors were focused on the inner city in Kingston, Jamaica''s capital city.
The Trenchtown Development Association (TTDA) is a community-based, non-profit group formed in Kingston in 1995 to promote peace, self-reliance and the redevelopment of a neighborhood which experiences high levels of violence and poverty. Trenchtown was home to Bob Marley prior to his recording success, and in addition to promoting the world famous culture and history of this inner-city neighborhood, TTDA''s objective is to maximize the community''s resources and develop programs to ensure all members of the community have access to education and health facilities. In the years before the formation of the Foundation, the Rockhouse Hotel worked with the TTDA to realize the success of the following projects:
•Assisted in fundraising for furnishings at the Victory Basic School, including the purchase of classroom desks, chairs etc.
•Contributed to establishing the Trenchtown Cultural Yard included procuring photographic materials and other items for exhibits, purchasing kitchen equipment and supplies for the restaurant, production of a promotional video, providing emergency funding for phone bills, car insurance etc.
•Coordinated with Russell Simmons'' charity, Rush Philanthropic Art Foundation, to bring a multimedia and documentary photography program conducted by the Brooklyn based Red Clay Arts to Trenchtown children
•Provided paint and supplies for a community housing rehabilitation program
•Provided emergency funding in the community for school supplies, food, medical care etc.
Additionally, the Hotel helped the TTDA create broader awareness of their cause and source new funding by promoting their story to magazine editors and introducing their good work to potential donors.
Closer to home, the Rockhouse Hotel began its first project at the Negril All Age School: the rehabilitation of the Reading Room. The Hotel funded the purchase of materials and labor for the painting, tiling, electrical installation of lights and fan, and secured the room with new doors. The Hotel also became the sole sponsor of the school''s breakfast program, providing a daily cooked breakfast for up to 100 children who would otherwise start the day without a meal. This program, which continues to this day, was previously funded by US AID whose three year commitment was expiring.
At the end of 2003, the owners of the Hotel invited key early supporters of its charitable work to join them in forming the Rockhouse Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) organization.