News - April 24, 2009

Italian news team attends SUF storytelling session

Italian RAI3 news team attends SUF storytelling session

SUF students Brittney Cavaliere, Fordham University and, Kaitlin Walsh, University of Colorado at Boulder, recipients of the Outstanding Students Award for SUF's Volunteer Program, recently received yet another surprise: they were filmed in action by Italy’s Rai Tre news team as they did a SUF Storytelling session for the fourth grade class in an Italian elementary school. 

Cavaliere and Walsh ‘performed’ the storytelling of Dr Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham. Says Cavaliere, “We did about six sessions, and this one was the best. I was really nervous going into it because I knew I was going to be interviewed in Italian. I stuttered over my words, which got Kait laughing. Having fun with this is where our energy came from.”

The schoolchildren enjoyed the session so much they asked Walsh and Cavaliere for their autographs, begging them to come back soon for another storytelling session.

Says Vittoria Tettamanti, Coordinator of the SUF Volunteer Program, "The journalist was very impressed with how the kids reacted to what our students were reading to them.”

The film clip will soon be aired during Rai Tre's regional news segment 'La buona notizia,” or 'Good News.'

Sums up Cavaliere with a smile, “We were able to ensure that the kids had a great time while they learned new English words. It was well worth all the hours I put into the Volunteer program. Who would have thought that two American students would be on the Italian news for ‘giving back’ to their host country?”

SU Florence announces finalists in the Academic Excellence Award

SU Florence is pleased to announce the twelve recipients of this semester’s Academic Excellence Award in the categories of Outstanding Students. Says Internship Coordinator Debora Spini, “It was a very, very difficult selection this semester. There were so many outstanding students, it is really so rewarding to see these results in our program.”

Excellence was honored in five categories: the Internship Program, the Option II Program, the Volunteer Program, the Lettore per il Giorno, and the prestigious Coluccio Salutati Award. The names are as follows:

Internship Program:
Alexander Galicki, University of Southern California
Catherine La Pointe, Syracuse University 
Mary Ann Kowalski, Bryn Mawr College

Option II Program:
Charles Bufalino, Pomona College

Volunteer Program:
Kaitlin Walsh, University of Colorado at Boulder
Brittney Cavaliere, Fordham University

Lettore per il Giorno:
Connie Mak, University of Southern California
Jasper Guarnaccia, Skidmore College

The Coluccio Salutati Award, the highest SUF student recognition, honors students with high academic achievement and engagement with the Italian culture. Of the forty-eight students nominated by professors, thirty subsequently submitted an essay. Congratulations to:

Devin Moeser, University of Colorado, Boulder
Chloe Southern, Brown University
Sarah K. Walmsley, Williams College
Melissa Young, Syracuse University

These outstanding students were honored in an award ceremony during the campus-wide Student Day celebration on April 22.