Haiti excellence

Here is another picture of excellence in Haiti. Guy Etienne who is a teacher at the College Catts Pressoir of Port-au-Prince, has been selected one of 10 finalists for the award for the best teacher in the world in 2015

Varkey Gems Foundation, a global education foundation, is set to award a $1 million prize to the best teacher in the world. Haitian teacher Guy Etienne is one of 10 finalists in the 2015 competition.

Etienne will be judged by a 67-member jury on three major criteria: how he inspires the minds of his students; how he makes contributions within his community, and how he motivates students to pursue teaching as a profession.

Read more here:
haitilibre.com

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Here is a picture of the Final National Digicel "Entrepreneur de l'année 2014" that took place on December 16, at Hotel Caribe in Haiti

This year, a short list of 85 finalists for 2014 EOTY has been prepared out of over 250 initial entries and the list reflects the changing face of a new Haiti moving on a journey to advancement and prosperity. This year the winners will be selected in a new way-- two finalists from each category will be selected from the west, and one from each category in the center, north and south Haiti. The theme of the award has been chosen as "A Voice for Entrepreneurs". The entrepreneurs will describe what they need to achieve success, how they achieve growth, what they can to contribute to the community and their vision for the future. Maarten Boute, the CEO of Digicel Haiti, has welcomed the rise in the number of women finalists (25% from an earlier 20%). The first twenty five finalists will be taken to an executive education program at Florida International University in Miami, focusing on finding new opportunities and achieving success.

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Here is a picture of Michaëlle Jean as she was elected new secretary general of la Francophonie.

A refugee from Haiti, Jean came to Canada in 1968. After graduation from university in Canada, she worked as a journalist and broadcaster for Radio-Canada and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation CBC.

Haiti's current UNESCO special envoy, the former governor-general of Canada, Michaëlle Jean, was named as the new secretary general of the French-speaking nation's union, la Francophonie.

In her assent to the post, she beat out others including the president of Burundi, a diplomat and writer from the Congo, and the premier of Mauritius. Before politics, Jean worked as a journalist on Canadian radio. Now, at 57 year-old, she will take the helm from former secretary general, president of Senegal,Abdou Diouf.

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Hundreds of applicants got whittled down to 20 short-listed Haitian bright-sparks, and from that heavily truncated list, Haiti's Ten Outstanding Young Persons for 2014 were named. They are, in no particular order: Lonick Garius, for business or economic affairs; Iléus Papillon, for cultural achievements; Samanda Leroy, for government or political legal affairs; Anne Martine Augustin, for academic achievement and leadership; Haveson Badine Florvil, for personal development and achievement; Elie Joseph, for medical innovation; Djenika Mars, for moral or environmental leadership; Chenet Caty, for voluntary work and humanitarian leadership, Daniel Tilias, for children's and human rights, world peace; and Jasmin Reginald Cherenfant, for technological and scientific development.

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Here is Mr. Jean Monestimewho was elected chairman of Miami-Dade County Commission.

He was unanimously elected as the first Haitian-American chairman of the County commission. Known as a progressive Democrat and champion of the poor, Commissioner Jean Monestime was elected on Monday, November 24, 2014, after Commissioner Audrey Edmonson withdrew her candidacy to become chair of the county commission. She thew her support to Monestime, siting that she wanted to unify the commission and the community

On Monday 24 November, 2014, a history was made when Jean Monestime, after being reelected on 26 August, 2014, as Miami-Dade County Commissioner came to swear in for the second term (he was first elected on November 2, 2010), he was unanimously elected by his peers to serve as the first Haitian-American Chairman of the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners. His two-year term as the Chairman will begin on 1 January, 2015. Jean Monestime is a former North Miami Councilman. He is the President of a full fledged real estate and insurance company named "Jacob Monestime & Associates, LLC" in North Miami. He works as a part-time adjunct professor of management at the University of Phoenix, a former Miami-Dade public school teacher and a small business consultant. He obtained his MBA degree from the H. Wayne Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship and was graduated in Finance from Florida International University. He has been a long time resident of District 2 where he lives with his wife Kettia and two sons.

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Here is a picture of Ralph Gilles. He is Senior Vice President of Design at Chrysler, credited for 2005 Chrysler 300

Ralph Victor Gilles is an American-Canadian automobile designer and the present President of the SRT Brand and Senior Vice President of Design at Chrysler Group LLC for Jeep/Truck Color & Trim and Specialty Vehicles. He was born on 14 January 1970 to Haitian immigrant parents. As an automotive enthusiast, he earned a Bachelor's degree in Transportation Design at the College for Creative Studies (CCS) in Detroit. Thereafter, he pursued a Master's degree in Business Administration at Michigan State. He used to teach at The School of Industrial Design at CCS between 2003 to 2005, and now serves as a member on its Advisory Board. Gilles became experienced in Chrysler by serving various designing roles since he joined the company in 1992. After the retirement of experienced Chrysler designer Trevor Creed, he became the Vice President of Design on 1 September 2014. He is now responsible for all the designing activities of Chrysler. Under his leadership, the company is pursuing for a more sensual look for its forthcoming products.

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Here is a picture of Actor Jamie Hector.

Jamie Hector is an American actor of Haitian descent who is well known for his portrayal of Marlo Stanfield on HBO's critically acclaimed series "The Wire". He began his career immediately after high school studies when he auditioned for a community theatre company and gave an award winning performance. While in college, he continued to book roles on television and films like, Third watch, New York Undercover, Law & Order, etc. After his college days, he took admission in the Lee Strausberg Theater Institute and his life took a turn with his selection in a short film named 'Five Deep Breaths". He played the lead role of Bannie, the film went on the official selection of many film festivals like, Cannes, IFP, Tribeca and Sundance and accumulated 16 awards. Presently, Jamie is a founder member of "Moving Mountain" that provides opportunity and trains, grooms and guides youths with talents in the creative arts.

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Here is a picture of Mr. Reginald Fils-Aimé, AKA Reggie. He is the current President and COO of Nintendo of America

An accomplished business executive with a Haitian root, Reggie Fils-Aime was born to Haitian immigrants, who moved to the United States due to the political view of his grandparents. He was hired by Nintendo of America in December 2003 as the Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing.

Fils-Aime became President and Chief Operating Officer of the video game company on May 25, 2006. Nintendo is one of the most influential in the industry and Japan's third most valuable listed company. It has a market value of over US$85 billion,

The President and Chief Operating Officer of the North American division of the hugely successful Nintendo franchise, Reginald Fils-Aim, was born in the Bronx, New York after his Haitian parents were forced to emigrate because of the political atmosphere in Haiti at that time. Before his current post, Fils-Aimé worked with VH1, where he met his current wife, and then began working at Nintendo where he would become the Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing before taking on his current role. In 2004 at an E3 press conference, he became a popular figure among gamers around the world following his appearance.

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Here is a picture of Mr. Meta Golding, a Haitian American rising actress. She became a major movie star after playing in films such as the Hunger Games and Catching Fire.

Always a dreamer, Haitian born beauty queen turned Italian figure skater turned actress Meta Golding is making a name for herself in some of the most popular movies and TV shows today. With credits including "Kiss the Girls", "On Edge", "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire", and "Criminal Minds" to name a few, this highly ambitious beauty seems on the direct path to stardom. Fluent in Italian as well as English and French, she holds degrees in International Relations and Theatre Arts from Cornell University. She also spends her spare time at a Mexican orphanage.

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In Canadian pro boxing, four are Haitian-American. Stevenson, WBC Light Heavyweight champ; Pascal, former WBC Light Heavyweight champ; Jean, IBF Light Welterweight champ, and Stiverne, WBC Heavyweight challenger.

Stevenson is a belter and a knockout machine; Pascal showy and athletic; Jean quick and forceful; Stiverne a heavy, aggressive puncher. Jean spoke about his match with Peterson. Knowing fight fans will heckle him, he claims it will ". . . give me more rage and energy to perform . . ."

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