PRESS RELEASE, April 13, 2021, New York, NY

The Italian Language Foundation recently qualified for a matching grant from the Francesco & Mary Giambelli Foundation, and matched a $125,000 donation from the Foundation. The Italian Language Foundation (ILF) is dedicated to the promotion and support of Italian language education nationally. It motivates and rewards students of Italian from middle school through college and offers free professional development workshops to teachers of Italian, and rewards outstanding teachers. Awards for Excellence are offered to qualifying AP Italian students.

Margaret I. Cuomo, M.D., President of ILF, notes: “With the generous support of the Francesco and Mary Giambelli Foundation, and all our donors, the ILF is expanding its programs for students and teachers of Italian. Internships for students of Italian, AP Italian exam prep webinars, and new teacher workshops enhance the learning and teaching of all Italian nationally.

Louis Tallarini, Chairman of the ILF, sees a positive trend in the diversity of students that enroll in AP Italian in the USA and Canada. “Through our goal of preserving the AP Italian program at the high school level,” Mr. Tallarini stated, “we are able to award excellence to an incredibly diverse group of students.

Roughly one-third of the AP Italian students in the US are Hispanic, and Italian language study is also incredibly popular with Asian-Americans. It’s wonderful to support such a multicultural group of students who are linked by their study of the Italian language.”

Angelo Vivolo, a Trustee of the Francesco and Mary Giambelli Foundation, had this to say about that Foundation’s matching grant: “The Giambelli Foundation carries on the legacy of philanthropic giving that Francesco and Mary Giambelli established during their lifetimes – and we are so happy to support the Italian Language Foundation in their strategic approach to keep study of the Italian language alive and well.”

For further information, and to support ILF’s efforts, please visit the website of the Italian Language Foundation at www.italianlanguagefoundation.org.

MORE ABOUT THE ITALIAN LANGUAGE FOUNDATION The Italian Language Foundation is dedicated to promoting and sustaining Italian language education in the United States and supporting the College Board’s Advanced Placement (AP) program in Italian Language and Culture. The Foundation is a not-for-profit 501 (c) (3) corporation qualified by the Internal Revenue Service to receive tax-deductible contributions.

PRESS CONTACT: Jefferson Wilson, Marketing & Communications, Phone:(347) 581-6722, Email: [email protected]

Written by Margo Sorenson, author of over thirty traditionally-published books for young readers. Margo Sorenson spent the first seven years of her life in Spain and Italy, devouring books and Italian food and still speaks (or tries!) her childhood languages. Her most recent Adult/YA novel, SECRETS IN TRANSLATION (Fitzroy Books, October 2018), takes place in Positano, with plenty of Italian countryside highlights. www.margosorenson.com

Bari? Who goes to Bari? It’s not on the usual tourist’s agenda—so “boring”! But, as a five-to-seven-year-old, living there, my senses were always on high alert with the wonderful sounds and sights and tastes.

Hearing the warm sounds of Italian swirling around me and seeing castles, like Castello Svevo and Castel del Monte, were a part of everyday life. Picnicking on rocky beaches (I had no idea there were sandy beaches!) next to the Adriatic, with my favorite mortadella sandwiches (no peanut butter in Italy!) was a weekend outing. If my parents, who grew up on peanut butter in the U.S., wanted peanut butter sandwiches, we’d get a gallon can of it from the U.S. Navy ships in the port, but mortadella was perfect for me.

It was fun going to the Port of Bari, because my parents rented me a little car that I could “drive” around the port. Once a year, the Festa di San Nicola would light up the entire port of Bari.

For this celebration for the patron saint of sailors, (his relics were brought by sailors back to Bari in the 11th century), many decorated boats sailed into the harbor, and one boat transported the relics around the port. The fact that holy “manna” appeared upon the relics, I took for granted.

On Saturdays, instead of going to the movies, (a typical activity in the U.S.), we would go to the opera, which was, in Bari, a pastime of ordinary people, not “high-society people.” Seeing a real elephant lumber across the stage in “Aida” made me gasp in amazement. Opera singers were rock stars, and when we went to the Albanese luggage store in Bari, I was in awe, hoping we might catch a glimpse of Bari-born, famed opera star, Licia Albanese. We were told it was owned by her brother—but, I never had a sighting. The hit song drifting through the air in Bari was Nilla Pizzi’s “Papaveri e papere,” and it became my favorite childhood song. Our grandchildren now sing it, with their amiable grandfather contributing the quacking sounds like the duck, at their request.

Sometimes, we would take a day trip to Alberobello. On our drive through the countryside, we would pass houses with strings of garlic and red peppers hanging from doorways and window ledges, and tomatoes drying on the roofs. The scent of fresh tomatoes on the vine brings all that vividly back to me. I loved the looks of the trulli; they looked as if elves could have lived in them.

One of our favorite vacations was to drive to Messina, take the ferry to Palermo, and stay in Taormina. I will always remember visiting the royal palace in Palermo and seeing the King of Sicily’s red-velvet-covered toilet seat! We’d picnic at the ancient ruins of the Greek theater in Taormina, with a view of snowy Mt. Etna, and, in town, I would get a ride on a brightly painted Sicilian carreta, a model of which sits on my desk today. In our hotel’s restaurant, we would dine late, as is Italian custom. Once, some American tourists came over to our table and gushed to my parents about how well-mannered a child I was, even at the “extremely late” hour. I was completely puzzled. Late? It wasn’t even ten o’clock, yet!

So many of my vivid memories are linked to the melodic sounds of Italian, and the sights and sounds and tastes of my special childhood in Bari come flooding back, when I’m lucky enough to hear it spoken.

Written by Dominic Amara, for the Italian Language Foundation

As I strolled down the hall I continued to recite my course selections for freshman year:. “Geometry, Foods, Info Processing, World History… Geometry, Foods, Info Processing, World History.” As I repeat them for what seems like the hundredth time, one question plagues me the entire length of the hallway. “What language are you going to take?” Often students reply, “Spanish”, as it is practically required in middle school across the country, but as I kept thinking I was drawn to a different path. When I first had thoughts of enrolling in Italian, I was a bit hesitant to say the least. After taking nearly four years of the Italian language at my high school, much to my surprise, I’ve gained more as a student and as a person than I could have ever thought possible. 

Italian was extremely difficult and frustrating in the beginning; I had barely any base knowledge of the language, the rules were confusing, and I was a poor reader. It took me a while to learn the true beauty of the course; it wasn’t just in the words and sentences but in the lifestyle, in the culture and the essence of Italia. We ventured into music, history, art and so much more. With every activity I gained lessons that transformed my character. I learned patience and hard-work from the career of Leonardo Da Vinci, we learned about patronage and the importance of art with the reign of the Medici, and most recently we connected classical literature to the Covid-19 pandemic. We delved into the importance of family, and the meaning of true happiness.

I may not be able to listen, read or write like the perfectionist in me would like,  but I realize that isn’t at all what taking Italian is about. I have learned to communicate my thoughts, ideas and opinions in an authentic way. We’ve read about ten or more stories, watched at least five films, and done so many hands on activities I can’t even count. Through every activity we’ve gained more lessons and more knowledge regarding not only Italian lives but our lives as well, from stereotypes in all cultures, to the mysteries of our families’ immigration. The amount of substance behind each lesson stretches farther than I could have ever imagined when I first told my eighth grade teacher, “um I think I’ll go with… Italian.”

Written by: Matthew Marcantonio, an Italian student at Bristol Central High School 

I may look like every other high school student, but there is much more to me than a typical American teen. Ciao, mi chiamo Matthew Marcantonio I am a first generation Italian American born and raised in Bristol, Connecticut. The Marcantonio family comes from a small farming village in Italy called Limosano in Campobasso. My grandfather traveled Europe to support his family and then decided to chase the American dream. My father, his twin sister Clelia and his siblings Nick and Gino all moved to New Britain, Connecticut to start “una vita nuova”. This “new life” that they were searching for took root in Bristol, CT with me and my 3 brothers. We grew up on pasta dinners, soccer games and family reunions; never forgetting our past. 

I chose to take Italian so I could build a stronger connection with my family. I am the kind of student who gives 110% every day, all day. Because of my commitment to education I’ve been a recipient of the All Academic soccer award and the Coccia Foundation Italian Achievement awards.  I’ve maintained a 4.0+ GPA and  I am a proud  member of the National Honor Society, the Business NHS  and the Italian NHS.

My Italian teacher has truly been a great influence throughout my high school experience and her lessons in Italian have opened a door onto future career goals. I hope to pursue a degree in business, and with the guidance of my Italian teacher I am drawn to the idea of international business with a focus in Italian. Throughout this tough year we’ve studied multiple themes. The theme that resonated with me the most was immigration. As a first generation Italian American, I am directly affected by immigration. Through self reflection and discussions in class, I am reminded of the struggles my father and my grandparents faced. Another theme that stuck with me is the topic of identity. Since I am moving on to college I can mold my identity to my liking and my teacher, Mrs. Gallo has certainly molded parts of my identity that will stay with me forever.

In the future, I plan to go to college and use the numerous amounts of advice that was taught to me in italiano. I plan to pass this knowledge on to my future children to be sure to preserve a strong sense of family, history and tradition from Limosano.