Spring 2022
Each of the symposium’s two thematic days (March 18 and April 8 – 9:45am-4:15pm EST) feature roundtable discussions, keynote sessions, and reflection sessions for undergraduate and graduate students.
Friday March 18, 2022: “Racial Justice and the Black Mediterranean,” including a keynote discussion with Camilla Hawthorne and Angelica Pesarini, moderated by Simone Brioni and Teresa Fiore
Friday April 8, 2022: “Language, Identity and Representation in Transnational Italy,” including a keynote discussion with Amara Lakhous and Ubah Cristina Ali Farah, moderated by Ron Kubati and Loredana Polezzi
Co-organized by Elena Bellina (University of Rochester) and Eleanor Paynter (Cornell University) through the Central New York Humanities Corridor (LLC35) and co-sponsored by the 鶹ý’s Inserra Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies; the AAIS Critical Race Studies Caucus; Cornell University‘s Migrations initiative, Einaudi Center for International Studies, Institute for European Studies and Department of Romance Studies; the University of Rochester’s Humanities Center and the Department of Humanities in the Eastman School of Music.
The workshop draws on the vast array of dishes that are the result of the influence of Spanish and Latin American cultures and products in those areas of Italy that were under the Spanish Empire (Milan as well as Naples and Sicily). The event is linked to a broader project about these influences in film, literature, etc. called Memoria presente.
Led by: Giuseppe de Falco, Federica Heiman (), and Hank Zona ()
Sat. March 26 5pm
Linked to the NEH-awarded project “Memoria presente”
Organized and sponsored by the In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at 鶹ý
VIRTUAL EVENT in Italian with simultaneous interpretation into English
Sun. May 29, 2022 2:30pm EST (8:30pm in Italy)
Kola is seven years old and intensely observes a green apple on a window sill. Outside everything is white, covered with freshly fallen snow. The roofs of the city are barely visible. The city overlooks a river: it is the Volga, in the middle of the Russian winter. Kola is an orphan and lives with his sister in an institution. His is a history of poverty, hardship, neglect, and abandonment. That child, who is now thirty years old and lives in Sicily, tells his story in this book. .
Organized and sponsored by the In collaboration with the Italian Program and the Russian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at 鶹ý
Fall 2021
(online event)
Thur. Oct. 14, 2021 4-5:30pm
Introductory remarks: Katia Paz Goldfarb (Associate Provost for Hispanic Initiatives and International Programs), and TBA
Presenter and moderator: Teresa Fiore (Inserra Chair)
Respondent: Ashly Espinoza (DePaul HS, MSU graduate in Italian)
Presented in connection with National Hispanic Heritage Month 2021
Linked to the NEH-awarded project “Memoria presente”
Organized and sponsored by the at 鶹ý
In partnership with the Office of Hispanic Initiatives and the 鶹ý (MSUNER), Center of Pedagogy
In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures)
(in Italian with English subtitles) –
Nov. 6 through 15 (any time)
Access to the screening will be provided through the platform
Organized and sponsored by the at 鶹ý
In partnership with the (the Italian equivalent of the Oscar Awards)
In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures)
(online event in Italian with optional simultaneous interpretation into English)
Sunday Nov. 14, 2021 2-3:30pm EST (20-21:30 in Italy)
Speakers: (director and co-scriptwriter) and (co-producer, Rosamont)
With opening remarks by (Advisor to the President for Awards’ Innovation and Reform), Academy of Italian Cinema David di Donatello Awards
Moderated by: Teresa Fiore (Inserra Chair)
Organized by the at 鶹ý
In partnership with the (the Italian equivalent of the Oscar Awards)
In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures)
(in-person event at the 鶹ý campus: limited to 30 people, RSVP required)
Saturday Dec. 11, 2021 11am-12pm EST at the
Tour led by: (Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center)
Introduced by: Teresa Fiore (Inserra Chair)
Organized and sponsored by the at 鶹ý
In partnership with the Office of Annual Giving and Alumni Engagement
In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures)
Ongoing research projects
- An in-progress research and curriculum development project about the vibrant linkages between Italy and Latin America as part of century-long colonial and migratory experiences. The project is also connected to a teaching approach applied at MSU between 2019 and 2021: Italian for Spanish Speakers: A Trans-Language, Trans-Cultural, Trans-National Project (see also the )
- An in-progress research project about food practices and human mobility before and after 1943. Supported by the Angelo and Marie Cali Fund for Italian Studies and the Inserra Endowment at MSU.
Ongoing programs for college and high school students
July 5-21, 2022 (Mon-Thur 9am-1:30pm, plus Fri July 8 to make up for the 4th of July holiday)
- The only Italian program in the US designed in an intensive summer format for high school students on a university campus includes guest speakers and off-campus tours, a residential option, intern opportunities and a wide range of scholarships. A collaborative effort at all levels, the course relies on a network of high schools and the support of the Italian government and the Italian American community.
Credit for header image: Lucio Fontana (an Italo-Argentinian artist), “Concetto Spaziale, Attese -1960” ()