2008 Woodie Awards
Director of Italian Institute Selected
Cesarina Miceli
Issue date: 11/20/03 Section: News
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After a national search, the Director of the Coccia Institute for the Italian Experience in America at MSU has been selected.
As her first experience at MSU, Dr. Gina M. Miele, of Middletown, will serve as head of the Institute, which began on Oct. 20.
"I am honored to be selected for this prestigious post. To my Director's position, I bring a love and a professional passion for the dissemination of knowledge about Italian-America heritage, culture and literature," said Miele.
Miele's duties include contacting other institutions and organizations interested in promoting Italian-American studies. The Institute is open to all ethnic groups. "We want to embrace all organizations and find a unique place for ourselves," Miele said.
In addition, Miele will introduce speakers onto campus to educate MSU students and the public about the Italian language and culture. She hopes to highlight the cultural perspectives of Italians by organizing film festivals, art exhibits and musical performances. Cultural programming will be offered to the public to educate and entertain even the community outside the University.
Miele mentioned MSU's three-week summer program, the Scuola Pinocchio, which teaches children the Italian language and culture. Miele said. "We are hoping to grow that program." The Scuola Pinocchio currently enrolls seven to 10 people, and Miele's goal is to increase participation to 30 to 40 students and hopefully get multiple age groups involved.
"We're new; the beautiful thing about that is, we can extend our arms everywhere," said Miele.
Miele is highly qualified for the position of Director at the Italian Institute. Teaching Italian language and literature, Miele served as the Lead Teaching Fellow for the Harvard Study Abroad Program in Calabria and Sicily in 2002. She was also a Senior Thesis Advisor, Coordinator for Teaching Fellows, a Teaching Fellow and a tutor at Harvard. Miele has also translated for companies in New York City and Massachusetts. Her focuses of study include Italian-American literature and history, Italian and Italian-American folklore and Dance studies.
As her first experience at MSU, Dr. Gina M. Miele, of Middletown, will serve as head of the Institute, which began on Oct. 20.
"I am honored to be selected for this prestigious post. To my Director's position, I bring a love and a professional passion for the dissemination of knowledge about Italian-America heritage, culture and literature," said Miele.
Miele's duties include contacting other institutions and organizations interested in promoting Italian-American studies. The Institute is open to all ethnic groups. "We want to embrace all organizations and find a unique place for ourselves," Miele said.
In addition, Miele will introduce speakers onto campus to educate MSU students and the public about the Italian language and culture. She hopes to highlight the cultural perspectives of Italians by organizing film festivals, art exhibits and musical performances. Cultural programming will be offered to the public to educate and entertain even the community outside the University.
Miele mentioned MSU's three-week summer program, the Scuola Pinocchio, which teaches children the Italian language and culture. Miele said. "We are hoping to grow that program." The Scuola Pinocchio currently enrolls seven to 10 people, and Miele's goal is to increase participation to 30 to 40 students and hopefully get multiple age groups involved.
"We're new; the beautiful thing about that is, we can extend our arms everywhere," said Miele.
Miele is highly qualified for the position of Director at the Italian Institute. Teaching Italian language and literature, Miele served as the Lead Teaching Fellow for the Harvard Study Abroad Program in Calabria and Sicily in 2002. She was also a Senior Thesis Advisor, Coordinator for Teaching Fellows, a Teaching Fellow and a tutor at Harvard. Miele has also translated for companies in New York City and Massachusetts. Her focuses of study include Italian-American literature and history, Italian and Italian-American folklore and Dance studies.