| Allergy vigilance
Kim Fitzpatrick's 5-year-old daughter is thrilled at the prospect of kindergarten starting Tuesday at the Carlisle Public School. She, however, is apprehensive. It's not that she doesn't think her gregarious daughter will fit in well and make new friends; it's the fear that one of them will innocently offer the child a snack that could send her into anaphylactic shock. Fitzpatrick, of course, is not the only parent who sees the start of school as a potentially frightening situation. According to the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, a worldwide nonprofit organization dedicated to education on the topic of food allergies, the incidence of food allergy has doubled in the past 10 years and now affects approximately 2.2 million school-age children nationwide. But rather than simply worrying, Fitzpatrick took a proactive approach over the summer.
Southeast schools study policy to trim administrative staff
Southeast Local School District is in the process of adopting an administrative personnel reduction in force (RIF) policy. "It's just simply good practice to have a policy that governs all personnel in your school district," said Southeast Local School District Superintendent Tom Harrison. Harrison explained that Ohio Revised Code and unions for both classified personnel and certified personnel dictate reduction in force procedures for teachers and workers such as food service workers. No policy is in effect for employees in administrative positions such as building principal or business manager. A draft proposal of such a policy received its first reading at the school board's meeting last Monday. The proposal suggests that a reduction in force may be implemented "to reduce the number of administrators upon the return to duty of administrators after leaves of absence, the suspension of schools, territorial changes affecting the district, decreased enrollment of students or financial conditions of the district." Should the school board find that a reduction in force is necessary for administrative personnel, the proposal states that replacements will not be employed for personnel that retire, resign, or whose contracts are not renewed for another reason.
A Life-long Passion for Food
While some school children enjoy skateboarding, video games, or dancing, Gino Arcuri always loved cooking. Gino grew up in New York where he worked in his father's deli. “My father [Guy] owned a deli and I used to love going there and helping when I was very little. I got the love for food from him. He taught me the way. He was a hard worker and a smart man," says Gino. “He was known as the cheesecake king and because of him I love making cheesecake. The last thing we did together was make a metropolitan cheesecake." With his initial interest in food inspired by his father, Gino pursued his love when his family moved to Florida. “When I was 18 we moved to Florida and I started working at hotels. We did a lot of banqueting and one of our biggest events was the Harley Davidson convention," says Gino.
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