News - July 13, 2007

Taking Theory to the Fields



Twenty-four students enrolled in SUF’s Italian Mafia class packed their bags and took theory to the fields, in Corleone, Sicily, accompanied by U.S. Consul General Nora Dempsey and the Vice President of the Region of Tuscany Federico Gelli. Also accompanying the group were professors Natalia Piombino and Alick McLean, as well as SUF Director Barbara Deimling. This most unusual field study was organized so that students see—and experience—first-hand the effects that the Mafia has had on this small yet famous Sicilian town. Paula Zaander, a SU student, said she much appreciated how the summer course “incorporated experimental learning in a traditional academic context.” SUF students worked alongside their Italian peers in fields confiscated from the Mafia by the Italian government, in collaboration with the volunteer organization Liberarci delle Spine (Freedom from the Thorns), helping in the cultivation of vineyards.

SU student Meghan Brewer summed up her experience: “By removing us from the classroom and giving us the opportunity to become involved in the struggle against the Mafia, we gained a deeper and more personal understanding of the subject matter.”

The group was videotaped by SUF staff member Brenda Cooke on Friday, as they worked steadily under the Sicilian sun.

While Thursday and Friday were spent working in the fields, the entire group spent Saturday exploring the ancient beauty and fascination of nearby Segesta and Monreale, led by SUF Professor Alick McLean.

A high point of the four-day trip was the press conference held on Sunday, which lasted well over two hours thanks to the large attendance and interest of the Italian press. Presenters were, amongst others, Giuseppe Lumia, Vice President of the National Anti-Mafia Commission, Federico Gelli, Vice President of the Region of Tuscany, Nora Dempsey, Consul General of the United States, Antonino Iannazzo, Mayor of Corleone, and Barbara Deimling, Director of SUF.

The conference was followed by a surprise visit for all--the house formally owned by the Mafia boss Bernardo Provenzano and confiscated by the Italian government, was handed over to the Liberarci volunteer group to be renovated and used as their new headquarters in Corleone, thus allowing the volunteers to have headquarters 'all their own.'

SUF students Meghan Brewer and Paula Zaander developed a PowerPoint presentation, which sums up the experiences of the group, wishing to share it with future students enrolled in this extraordinary program.

City of Florence Awards Official Recognition of SUF Volunteer Program

The Mayor of Florence, Leonardo Domenici, has officially recognized SUF’s Volunteer Program by awarding Syracuse University in Florence the title "Patrocinio del Comune di Firenze."  This official and authoritative move acknowledges the importance of the educational value that this program has for Florence and its youngest citizens.

The SUF Volunteer Program was initiated in 2004. SUF students volunteer to work in public elementary schools in the city of Florence and its region, to read American children books to school children, playing out the story and engaging the children in a number of educational activities. The program is under the direction of Italian Professor Vittoria Tettamanti, who developed the didactic model of “Story Telling,” and who each year selects which books to read and prepares the relative didactic materials.

  Over the course of three years, the Volunteer Program has grown tremendously, and its success has spread through the thousands of school children and school teachers who have come in contact with the SUF Volunteers.

  The upcoming academic year will feature the book Because Little Bug went Ka-Choo! by Rosetta Stone (alias Dr. Seuss), which will be read to school children from grades three to five. SUF will also offer the readings to pubic libraries, and invite some of the school children to the SUF Campus where the "Story Telling" will be done, to acquaint the students with an American University located in the city of Florence.

“The Volunteer Program has contributed much to the reputation of SUF within the community, and the recognition of the Mayor of Florence has given official and public visibility to this important work done by SUF students.” SUF Director Barbara Deimling

Focusing in on Contemporary Visions in Art


Renee Billingslea

Susan Felter

David Pace

Syracuse University in Florence (SUF) is proud to launch the inaugural exhibit of Contemporary Visions: Encounters with Art, an initiative developed in collaboration with the SUF Studio Arts Department. This exhibit and lecture series engages students and the interested public with the contemporary art world, presenting works by practicing artists and creating a dialogue about artistic issues of the twenty-first century. The inauguration of each exhibit is accompanied by an artist's lecture and discussion which will take place in the gallery space, providing a context for the dialogue.

This new initiative is inaugurated with an exchange exhibit with faculty colleagues at Santa Clara University, an institution that has a long and rich tradition of academic partnership with SUF. In the spring of 2007, SUF Photography Professors Stefania Talini and Francesco Guazzelli, together with their colleague Maurizio Berlincioni, presented their work at the Gallery of the Department of Art and Art History at Santa Clara University. This fall SUF is honored to present an exhibit of the photography faculty from Santa Clara University: Renee Billingslea, Susan Felter, and David Pace.