Blending excerpts from audiovisual archival material, literary sources, and original video-interviews with direct witnesses of the 1943 Allied Landing in Sicily, the presentation read a largely forgotten pivotal historical event of WWII through the lens of foodways. In Fiore’s approach, as a memory and narrative device, food allows for an alternate history of the liberation campaign through complicating both the myth of the Land of Abundance incarnated by the U.S. military forces and the image of a destitute Sicily that the Americans embraced.

Included in the Jerre Mangione Lecture Series and sponsored by the Center for Italian Studies, the lecture fostered a lively debate among graduate students and faculty alike with a mix of touching family recollections, intellectual curiosity towards the subject, and careful inquiry about the research methodology.

The event represented a powerful convergence of educational philosophies. Melenciano, who attended the gathering and spoke with the educators, later reflected on the unexpected resonance between Afrotectopia’s approach and Reggio Emilia principles: “A shared belief in pedagogy that begins as play — a rigorous yet porous method for imagination and inquiry,” she wrote. “Reggio Emilia centers the design of environments, forms of participation, and professional growth through organic, student-centered approaches. Values that deeply resonate with Afrotectopia. The creation of Black Metal, and much of Afrotectopia’s ethos overall, has been about designing the ‘container’ for imagination to thrive without a preset destination. Black Metal emerged from four aligned artists mind-melding and simply asking, ‘What’s possible?'”

Following the gallery experience, several participants who had traveled to Italy as part of an innovative Reggio Emilia immersion program (2024, 2025) at �鶹��ý���� shared reflections on how their international study informs their teaching practices. Through this program, designed and taught by Dr. Miele and Dr. Elizabeth Erwin (CEEL), two cohorts of MSU undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students have studied at the Loris Malaguzzi International Center in Reggio Emilia.

Miele has been engaged with progressive approaches to education, and Reggio Emilia in particular, since 2010. In 2016, she organized a widely attended panel on “The Reggio Emilia Approach: The U.S. School System’s Responses to an Italian Educational Philosophy” that drew educators from across New Jersey, covered extensively in La Voce di New York (, ). Saturday’s event attracted a similarly robust turnout, reflecting continued enthusiasm for child-centered pedagogy.

For more information about NJEEPRE, visit . The Age of Black Metal is on view at the George Segal Gallery through December 14.

Funded by the European Union’s Erasmus+ Job Mobility program, the visit brought Vittoria Zingaro and Adriana Gallo to campus to observe English for Business instruction and explore pedagogical approaches that bridge language learning with professional competencies. The partnership continues to evolve, with Prof. Enza Antenos, Director of the Language, Business & Culture BA program and the Department of World Languages and Literatures, scheduled to travel to the Dell’Acqua campus during Spring 2026 to consult on their English business program—also funded under the Erasmus+ grant.

Zingaro and Gallo participated in a comprehensive observation program spanning multiple business disciplines. Their week included courses addressing marketing creativity and strategy, business ethics and corporate social responsibility, international business operations, intercultural communication in professional contexts, and the capstone course that activates language competencies with business acumen in tangible ways.

“It was a pleasure to have Vittoria and Adriana visit my creative marketing class,” shared marketing professor Manveer Mann. “It’s inspiring to connect with educators from around the world who are passionate about effective instruction. I appreciated their engagement and interest in my pedagogical approach and the opportunity to discuss it with them and learn about the Italian cultural perspectives. I look forward to future opportunities for collaboration.”

The program extended beyond academic observation to include strategic professional engagements. Highlights included a faculty and administration luncheon that fostered cross-institutional dialogue, a meeting with Education Director Daniele Castellani at the Italian Consulate in New York to explore broader collaboration opportunities, and a corporate visit to Bindi North America Inc. in Kearny, New Jersey. At Bindi, the educators gained insights into Italian business operations in the American market, with the visit facilitated by Francesca Oliveri, a communications specialist at Bindi and an Italian alumna, further reinforcing the international connections that make such partnerships meaningful.

The Erasmus+ program is the European Union’s flagship initiative supporting education and training across Europe and beyond, facilitating professional development opportunities for educators and promoting cross-cultural understanding.

“The Erasmus+ program exemplifies the kind of meaningful international partnerships that enrich both our faculty and students,” noted Antenos. “By sharing pedagogical practices and building networks across the Atlantic, we’re preparing students for the truly global nature of contemporary business.”
The collaboration represents the growing internationalization of �鶹��ý����’s Language, Business & Culture program and its commitment to fostering educational exchanges that benefit students, faculty, and institutions locally and abroad.

Organized by CLaSE, in collaboration with the College of the Arts and the PCCHC (Passaic County Cultural and Heritage Council) the festival brought together, for the very first time, eight extraordinary Andean dance groups, two ensembles of traditional Andean music featuring authentic instruments, and over 350 attendees — including students, faculty, staff, and members of local communities. Adding to the vibrancy, more than four talented artisans showcased stunning arts and crafts from four different Andean countries, while student organizations filled the campus with engaging displays and activities.

The entire campus came alive with colorful flags, live music, and joy. Three friendly alpacas basked in the sunshine as children joyfully petted them and participated in a scavenger hunt that blended play with learning about the rich heritage of the Andes. The walkways were beautifully chalked with flags of six South American countries and fascinating facts about Andean traditions. Our dynamic MCs, Cristian Vergara and Jessica Montesdeoca, guided audiences through each performance, sharing the meaning behind the dances and the symbols represented on stage.

The stage opened with an inspiring performance by our special guest and artistic director, Pepe Santana, winner of the 2025 NJ Heritage Award, and his ensemble Inkhay, who transported the audience with traditional music from Ecuador and Bolivia. Later, they led an interactive workshop on Andean instruments that captivated participants of all ages.

One of the most touching moments of the day was the creation of a chakana (Andean cross) by our friends from the Kichwa Otavalo community, a moving ceremony that marked the spiritual heart of the event and symbolized unity, balance, and connection.

Attendees expressed deep emotion and pride, sharing how meaningful it was to see their cultures honored and celebrated on campus. Many artists and performers have already asked to return for the next edition, inspired by the warmth, appreciation, and enthusiasm that made this first festival such a triumph.

The Festival de los Andes was not just an event, it was a celebration of heritage, identity, and community spirit that will continue to echo for years to come.

This project builds on the successful efforts initiated in Fall 2023, where Dr. Kurze and his team began laying the groundwork for enhancing women’s participation in Guinea’s political sphere. Over the summer Dr. Kurze carried out a series of online seminars in preparation for the fall visit. The 2024 program will expand on these efforts, offering a series of comprehensive workshops designed to equip a cohort of 80-100 women with essential skills in negotiation, conflict resolution, resource management, and fundraising strategies.

Participants will also receive training in basic macroeconomic concepts, digital technology skills, and social media literacy. These skills are critical for newly elected representatives and public servants as they navigate the complexities of governance and public administration. The workshops will initially take place in the capital, Conakry, with subsequent sessions planned for various regions, including Maritime Guinea, Middle Guinea, Upper Guinea, and Forest Guinea.

A central element of the program is the “coach the coaches” initiative, where previously trained women leaders will mentor and train other members of their communities. This approach aims to ensure that the benefits of the program are widely disseminated across the country, promoting sustainable capacity building at different administrative levels.

The program addresses the persistent underrepresentation of women in political leadership in Guinea. Despite their proven leadership abilities, Guinean women face significant structural barriers, including discriminatory institutions and limited access to resources. By providing targeted training and resources, the program seeks to overcome these challenges and support women in their development as effective leaders.

La Guinéenne en Politique (LGP), a non-profit organization uniting female party members from across the political spectrum, will play a pivotal role in this initiative. LGP’s involvement ensures that the program is deeply rooted in Guinea’s political structures and that it contributes meaningfully to the ongoing efforts to promote participatory democracy in the country.

The $25,000 grant will be instrumental in expanding and deepening the initial efforts, allowing the program to reach and inspire more women as they pursue their political careers. This initiative represents a significant step toward achieving greater gender parity in Guinea’s political landscape and empowering women to become influential agents of change.

For more information about this program and to support this initiative reach out to Dr. Kurze’s at kurzea@montclair.edu.

Dr. Pascale LaFountain assembled a team of highly qualified and motivated students: Bianca Isabella Zárate González, a triple major in Language Business Culture, German, and Data Science; Noah Stevens, a Music Performance Violist with a minor in German; and Connor Gargiulo, a double major in German and Linguistics. Grosz’s granddaughter Diane Forman-Berg acknowledges, “They really helped me. I do not speak any German. I was so overwhelmed and wanted to get this job done right for the sake of my family’s legacy and future researchers,” Ms. Forman-Berg says. While Noah organized the handwritten musical scores, the rest of the team created scans, summaries, and translations of letters and other documents, preparing them for the team of Austrian scholars who returned in May to formally acquire the materials.

Among the narratives of artistic negotiations, the team found letters to and from Irving Berlin, Langston Hughes, Oscar Hammerstein and others, as well as a pocket watch and other artifacts. The team also translated many letters, as well as Nazi forms documenting the family’s assets and the dispossession of the family’s property in Vienna in 1938. Isabella Zárate recalls, “I was so surprised when I first saw the word ‘Entjudung’ [dejewification]. It’s one thing to learn about Nazis in class, but very different when the families affected are sitting next to you.”

Pages with swastikas at the top rationalize taking away the family’s home and include statements from a father apologizing for his late documentation because he was under the “Schutzhaft” [custody] of the Gestapo. When asked to translate an unusual note with a strange format, the team realized it was an inventory of the jewels that Wilhelm Grosz’s mother had secretly taken with her when she was forced to leave. In the middle of the translation mentioning a platinum duck pendant with a diamond in it, Mrs. Forman-Berg suddenly pulled this pendant out of her collar to show it to the translators.

As a growing expert in data science, language, and cultural studies, Isabella Zárate was in charge of making sure the team was maximizing the use of technology without compromising quality and precision. She describes, “We can use some text recognition software, but many of the handwritten materials are beyond what the software can recognize or they use vocabulary in a very particular way, and we want to be sure we are getting things right, so the work still requires a lot of attention to detail.”

Students in the �鶹��ý���� German program learn about fascist aesthetics, politics, and German history in courses such as the faculty-led “Nazi Cinema and Propaganda” travel course that takes students to Germany. This project allowed students to apply all of their linguistic and cultural knowledge to help community understanding of German and Jewish history. The project reminded Dr. LaFountain of a project she and Brian Concannon (German and Arabic double major, ‘23) did last year transcribing and translating letters from a Jewish family who had continued to correspond in German throughout the 1950s after some family members had resettled in the New York area and others had moved to Argentina. “These public serving translation projects are some of the most rewarding work we do, keeping memories alive and helping other generations not just read about, but feel the consequences of authoritarianism, war, and genocide.”

Grosz’s popular songs such as “The Isle of Capri” and “Harbour Lights” continue to be played today, as one can hear on shows such as “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” Thanks to the �鶹��ý���� team, Grosz’s family, scholars, and international audiences can learn more about the life that Grosz and those around him led as he created his timeless work.

Short url: tinyurl.com/RUMasks

Edited by Raúl A. Galoppe
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SUMMARY
A tribute to Henry W. Sullivan in celebration of his 80th birthday, this volume encompasses a wide spectrum of Hispanic literary scholarship to honor a prolific scholar whose contributions have been extensive, not only as a Golden Age Hispanist but also as a devoted Lacanian scholar, literary critic, translator, poet, novelist, playwright, and composer. The title of the collection comes directly from Sullivan’s recent study on tragic drama in the Golden Age of Spain. Even though the “ghost” he attempts to lay there is the critical controversy around defining and classifying tragedy among Spanish classic comedias, the label extends and applies to Sullivan’s lifelong commitment to the relevance of Spanish drama of the Golden Age within the universal canon, especially from an English-language perspective. Moreover, his arguments are easily applicable in defense of the Humanities and the significance of Literature amid the unwelcome structural changes in Academia.

Live Audio Description is the process in which audience members listen through an earphone and special receiver to a narration that describes the relevant visual elements of a performance without intruding on the dialogue of the performers. This narrator is usually somewhere in the theater watching the play through a live feed. It is a process that makes live performance accessible to those with visual impairments.

What separates this project from other live audio descriptions is that it is specifically designed for the visually impaired Spanish speaking community within New Jersey and New York.

This is the fourth year that the Department has partnered with Repertorio Español and Resident Director Leyma López. The relationship has been led by Dr. María José García Vizcaíno, the current Chair and Associate Professor of the Department. García-Vizcaíno is a trailblazer, being the first professor to offer a course in Spanish Audio Description (SPAN429), not only here at �鶹��ý���� but across all universities within the United States.

The process of audio-describing La dama boba took the students three and a half months to complete. They began by dividing the script and each writing their own audio descriptions, then meeting weekly as a group to provide feedback and rehearse their script. For this play, this year the team benefited from the expertise  of Dr. Galoppe, MSU professor whose area of research is precisely Spanish Golden Age theater. Thanks to his collaboration and involvement on this project, students were more conversant with 17th century terminology and contextual information necessary for the audio description.

There is also a unique feature that these students provide – a pre-show tactile experience. While hearing the described performance is important, it is also crucial to feel key elements of the production itself.

This year, the students created a miniature version of the stage, including a teaching map that one of the characters uses. This map had letters, and the students provided two versions, one with foam letters and the other in braille. They also provided a 17th-century-styled costume dress that included a ruffled collar, corset, hoop skirt, and intricate fabric, helping audience members envision the costumes of the play.

It is a very unique experience that we hope to continue. We hope to be able to provide audio description for more theaters across New Jersey and further advance accessibility.
– García-Vizcaíno