Local Schools Chiefs' Enjoy Travel Perks

Records and interviews show that some school chiefs took nine, 10, even 12 weeks of paid leave in the last fiscal year for vacation, personal matters and professional travel to such destinations as Florida, Europe and Asia.

Hatrick III spent 49 weekdays from July 2007 through June 2008 traveling the nation and the world in pursuit of reinvigoration and professional growth.

They and their critics diverge on this question: To effectively run a large school system, with dozens of schools and thousands of employees, how often is it necessary to be in the office'

Graphic | Here is a breakdown of the work schedules of 11 area school superintendents on the 261 weekdays from July 1, 2007, to June 30, 2008.



Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/19/AR2009021903330.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Gordon Ramsay criticised as he wins Michelin stars for restaurant in ...

"I've had a belly-full of the French coming over here and telling us how s*** our food is," he exclaimed shortly before the launch.It appears he has fulfilled his promise to teach France a few lessons about haute cuisine - winning two out of a maximum of three stars - although Michelin will only confirm his rating when it officially announces this year's winners and losers on March 2.

The award for his Trianon restaurant means it is now considered to offer "excellent cuisine" and be "worth a detour".However, the stars failed to impress François Simon, the famously waspish critic of Le Figaro and inspiration for the terrifying food writer Anton Ego in the Disney-Pixar animated film, Ratatouille."It's great for Gordon Ramsay, as he's someone who works very hard and has a great deal of talent and has perfectly understood how international gastronomy functions," he told The Telegraph."But," he went on, "it's as if you invited me to dinner and offered me a pre-prepared dish you bought from a shop.

It was fine, but I'd already eaten the same thing in Tokyo and all his restaurants in London," he said.However, he recommended the 75-seat Veranda brasserie, which was "very good and has a view on the park."Mr Simon has long been disparaging about Michelin, which he says prefers the "marketing cuisine" of jet-setting super-cooks like Mr Ramsay and Alain Ducasse to real "chefs d'auteur" - those who "are in the kitchen every day, pop their head out to check everything's ok and create a culinary moment - with unity of time, place and person."A spokesman for Mr Ramsay said: "We would of course be delighted to be awarded two Michelin stars but are waiting for the results to be announced on 2nd March.

"Gordon is very involved in all aspects of the running of his restaurants and has full faith in team at Gordon Ramsay at Le Trianon and all of the restaurants within the group."Michelin also came under fire from Mr Simon for reportedly preparing to heap the maximum three stars on the restaurant at the Hotel Le Bristol in central Paris.



Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/4594468/Gordon-Ramsay-criticised-as-he-wins-Michelin-stars-for-restaurant-in-France.html

Sénégal: Nouveau modèle économique - toujours le statu-quo

Le premier protocole signé à Abidjan entre la compagnie aérienne Air France et les agences de voyage, en Côte d'Ivoire, mais qui devait être entériné avant-hier lors de l'assemblée générale de la Fédération inter-africaine des syndicats d'agences de voyage et du tourisme (Fisavet) de l'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Centre tenue à Dakar n'est pas fait.

Selon le président du syndicat des agences de voyage du Sénégal, les vendeurs de billets d'avion exigent au préalable l'application de la décision de justice rendue par la Cour d'appel de Dakar condamnant la compagnie aérienne française.

Nous demandons l'application de la décision de justice avant de passer un Nme qui va tourner autour de 6 à 7 %', souligné hier M.

Le Nme a provoqué une levée de bouclier des agences de voyages de l'Afrique de l'Ouest et du Centre.



Source: http://fr.allafrica.com/stories/200902100550.html