(L to R) Mark Rotella, Teresa Fiore, Maria Laurino and Erica Moretti

Laurino’s (2024) is an investigative work into an adoption program run by the Vatican, which between 1950 and 1970, sent almost 4,000 Italian children to the U.S. These children were initially labeled as “war orphans” and then simply “orphans”, despite the fact that they were not orphans. Her work, based on archival research and interviews conducted in Italy and the U.S. with adoptees, adoptive families, birth mothers, priests, social workers, etc., shows that in reality these children were the offspring of unwed mothers. Often struggling economically, these women were deemed unfit to raise their children or lured into thinking that their children would be taken care of for a while and then returned. In the most chilling cases, they were told their children had died, when in reality they were taken to the U.S. to be raised by Italian American families who were unaware of the full story.

After an introduction about the genesis and development of this project, Maria Laurino was in conversation with Italian cultural historian Erica Moretti, who explored the deep extent to which the Italian American community was involved in assistance programs in support of Italy after WWII. Dr. Moretti highlighted the fact that the support program was international and covered several areas related to refugees, POW’s etc who were forced to relocate by the war. She also discussed how the adoption program involved entities and intermediaries other than the Catholic Church, thus demonstrating the complexity of this practice that was driven by good intentions but ultimately produced loss, grief, and identity disorientation, all of which surface in Maria Laurino’s research.

Maria Laurino and Professor Teresa Fiore (center) with students from the Honors Program class on adoption.

Students from the Italian American in Film class participated after watching a documentary that Maria Laurino mentions in her book: Pia’s story: My Brother, My Sister, Sold for a Fistful of Lire (1998) by Belgium-based Basile Sallustio, about an elderly Italian woman who searches for her siblings who were adopted in the U.S. with the support of the Catholic Church. A clip from the movie highlights the secrecy of the system that she has to challenge over and over again until she is able to meet her siblings. Students in the Honors program class titled “The Meanings of Adoption” read Laurino’s book in its entirety and were inspired to ask questions about the role of translation in the encounters with Italian birth families, the agency of women in economically depressed conditions, and the role of Catholic spiritual values in this story. One of the students, Nour Shalash, remarked: “It’s the first time that as students we get to hear in person the author of one of the books we are covering in class! Learning about the motivations behind the project and the long time devoted to its completion directly from Maria Laurino has added even more value to this fascinating book.” The broader audience contributed with questions about the complications entailed in the search for original identity documents, and they also shared first-hand recollections of the days in which similar practices of forced adoption took place in the U.S.

The event was co-organized and sponsored by the Inserra Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies and the Coccia Institute for the Italian Experience in America, in collaboration with the Italian Program in the World Languages and Cultures Department. “It’s been a pleasure to work with my colleague Mark Rotella at the Coccia Institute to bring an author whose interests continue to speak to both our missions on campus” Dr. Fiore remarked. “I am particularly appreciative of the time Maria Laurino spent with the students after the event, and of the possibilities that Dr. Moretti’s research opens to continue a conversation on important topics related to the US-Italy relationships after WWII.”

Maria Laurino was born and raised in northern New Jersey. She�� is the author of the national bestselling memoir Were You Always an Italian?, an exploration of how stereotypes and class prejudice influenced Italian-American identity; the memoir Old World Daughter, New World Mother, a meditation on contemporary feminism; and The Italian Americans: A History, the companion book to a national PBS documentary.

Tue. March 25, 2025 6pm�� – SBUS (School of Business) 140
For info and to reserve a seat, see webpage

Introduced by: Mark Rotella (Coccia Institute)
Moderated by: Teresa Fiore (Inserra Chair) and (FIT – Fashion Institute of Technology)

Jointly organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies��and the Coccia Institute for the Italian Experience in America, in collaboration with the Italian Program (Department of World Languages and Cultures).

Congratulations to this year’s Dean’s Recognition Award winners!

Research

The Research Award recognizes faculty members for their significant contributions to advancing knowledge within their field. Criteria typically includes quality, impact, and originality of research findings, as well as notable publications, grants, and collaborations.

2024 Winner: Daniela Peterka Benton, Associate Professor in Justice Studies

Service

The Service Award recognizes staff members for their outstanding commitment to service within CHSS and the broader community. Criteria includes leadership in academic governance, professional service, community engagement, and contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

2024 Winner: , Director of Operations and Administrative Affairs, College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Teaching

The Teaching Award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated excellence in pedagogy and educational impact. Criteria includes innovative teaching methods, student engagement, mentorship, and contributions to curriculum development.

2024 Winners

, Professor, English

, Associate Professor, Sociology

, Assistant Professor, Psychology

, English, Special Teaching Category

, Instructional Specialist, Writing Studies

, Adjunct, Linguistics

What resulted was a robust discussion about the mixed emotions and Rotella, also a professor of creative writing, pitching an opinion piece to The New York Times. “They thought it had enough legs, and even after Tommy DeVito was benched for the next few games, they decided to go with it,” he says.

Rotella wrote about his initial ambivalence-turned-pride about Italian-American culture in “The Hand Gesture Heard Round the World” in The New York Times on January 6. Ultimately, Rotella liked that DeVito had given an old-school gesture a modern twist and made it his own, coming to the conclusion that the gesture is “proof that my culture is as robust and relevant as it’s ever been.”

After publication, the professor’s inbox and phone were flooded with emails and texts. “I couldn’t believe how much it had resonated with Italian-Americans and even non-Italian Americans,” Rotella says. “This is something that even within the Italian-American community or any immigrant communities, you’re going to have different people feeling different ways about their culture. So, I’m glad to have this open conversation about it.”

While the majority of the feedback was positive, there were a few people who felt his piece perpetuated Italian stereotypes.

He took it all in stride. “An opinion piece is an opinion piece,” Rotella says, “It’s meant to spark conversation.”

The piece not only sparked conversation but it scored Rotella multiple media touchdowns, including features and appearances on NY 1 and NPR’s Here and Now, ultimately coming full circle with a video on the Times Opinion TikTok account.

The NPR segment resulted in a much deeper conversation “about the history of anti-Italian sentiment in the United States,” Rotella says.

While Rotella is no stranger to being published — he’s authored several books, written dozens of newspaper articles and served as senior editor of Publisher’s Weekly for almost two decades — he’s glad an article about a fellow Italian-American’s hand gesture struck a chord and garnered media attention.

“Part of my mission is to bring the Coccia Institute into a larger, general conversation,” he says, “Also, I’m always thrilled when �鶹��ý���� is entered into the conversation.”

Meanwhile, DeVito and his hand gesture even made it to the Super Bowl — in a pizza ad, of course.

�鶹��ý���� students and faculty show their Italian pride at Prudential Center on Italian Heritage Night with the New Jersey Devils.

Rotella’s Italian pride is often on display, as evidenced on Italian Heritage Night with the New Jersey Devils, when he took 40 students and faculty to Prudential Center in his role for the Coccia Institute. The Institute was recognized on the Jumbotron.

Next up for Rotella is his annual Red Sauce, a docuseries on food which he produces in collaboration with faculty and film students in the School of Communication and Media. The next episode will air March 4 at Presentation Hall.

Story by Staff Writer Sylvia A. Martinez. Photo by University Photographer Mike Peters.

Read an excerpt below and the full essay, “The Hand Gesture Heard Round the World,” on .

“Yes, the gesture is old-school, imported from the old country and a remnant of the traditions of an immigrant generation. But in its evolution and popularity, I’m seeing how it connects us not only with the generations that came before us but with our new culture, too. Italian American culture is in constant conversation with its own traditions, and with the rest of American culture. You can see this with Italian food, such as the recent embrace of artisanal, Neapolitan-style pizza, which shows how our staples can be widely adopted even as they grow and evolve. So raise those pinched fingers. They’re proof that my culture is as robust and relevant as it’s ever been.”

Please join the Coccia Institute for the Italian Experience in America at MSU and under the tent in Watchung Plaza in �鶹��ý����, as we present an outdoor family afternoon with children’s book author Dan Yaccarino and his newest book, “The Longest Storm.”

Dan Yaccarino will read and conduct creative activities—a perfect event for kids of MSU faculty, staff, and students.

From acclaimed author-illustrator Dan Yaccarino comes a heartwarming family story that will resonate for everyone who’s experienced the Covid-19 quarantine — or other kinds of hardship and loss.

No one knew where the strange storm came from, or why it lasted so long. The family at the center of this timely story has to hunker down together, with no going outside – and that’s hard when there’s absolutely nothing to do, and everyone’s getting on everyone else’s nerves.

This classic in the making will lift hearts with its optimistic vision of a family figuring out how to love and support one another — even when their everyday world is shrunk beyond recognition.

Children all over the world know Dan Yaccarino from his children’s books, Parent’s Choice Award-winning animated TV series “Oswald” (Nick Jr), Emmy-winning “Willa’s Wild Life” (NBC and Qubo), and character designs for “The Backyardigans” (Nickelodeon), as well as his many illustrated toys, games, and other children’s products. In addition to his own stories, Dan’s bold, stylized illustrations add wit and energy to the work of such distinguished authors as Margaret Wise Brown, Jack Prelutsky, and Kevin Henkes. Dan’s internationally recognized art style has earned him a large following in Japan, exhibits in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, and Bologna, and a visit to the White House. He is also a contributing children’s book reviewer for the New York Times.

Of the book, Rotella says, “What emerges for Cohen in this warmhearted memoir is a love for his son beyond hockey, as well as the acknowledgment that ‘there is little to match the intoxication of seeing your child do something well.'”

or find it in print in the supplemental Book Review section on Sunday, January 17.

Italics is a monthly presentation in the CUNY Presents timeslot that features prominent Italian Americans in the arts, business, government, sports, academia, and more. Each episode explores various aspects of the Italian diaspora, Italian-American history and traditions, contemporary Italian-American life, and takes a projected look at the future of the Italian-American community.

Rotella joins the Coccia Institute from Publisher’s Weekly, where he has been Senior Editor since 2006.�� Rotella is an internationally recognized writer on the Italian American Experience, including his books Stolen Figs: And Other Adventures in Calabria, (Farrar, Straus & Giroux / North Point Press, 2003) and Amore: The Story of Italian American Song (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2010) as well as the��introduction to the reissue of Carlo Levi’s classic memoir��Christ Stopped at Eboli (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2006). ��He has published nearly four dozen articles in a wide array of outlets including The New York Times, New York Times Book Review, The L.A. Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Minneapolis Star Tribune, Vanity Fair, Saveur Magazine,��and NPR.org and has appeared on National Public Radio outlets across the USA (on flagship shows such as All Things Considered and the Leonard Lopate Show), CBS’s The Insider, Entertainment Tonight, and ABC News.

“I am thrilled to be leading the Coccia Institute for the Italian Experience in America, working closely with Dean Peter Kingstone and the wonderful Coccia family,” says Rotella. “The Coccia Institute has been highly recognized throughout New Jersey, New York, and the country. I am excited to build on the excellent work done by Dr. Mary Ann Re to continue extending the scope of the Institute on a national and international scale. I look forward to working with old and new colleagues in the �鶹��ý���� community to continue advancing the growing interest in Italian and Italian American fields of study.”

Rotella’s appointment comes on the back of his cultural credentials as an observer and writer of the Italian American experience and a strong and inclusive vision for continuing and building on the Coccia Institute’s regional reputation as a center of engagement and learning about the Italian American experience.

Rotella is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Creative Writing Program at �鶹��ý����.�� In addition, he has taught Creative Writing at Goucher and Lehman Colleges as well as in the MFA Program at Columbia University. Rotella’s own experience as a first-generation college student has helped him connect with students at �鶹��ý���� and informs his own passion for contributing to their education.�� He will continue to offer his expertise to the students of �鶹��ý���� as part of his new role at the Institute.

Rotella joins the University with the enthusiastic support of President Susan A. Cole, Provost Willard Gingerich, the outgoing Director, Mary Ann Re, and Elisa and Elda Coccia.��We are excited about Mark’s appointment and look forward to a successful tenure at the helm.