Student Danielle James receives the Marisa Antonini Award

The Marisa Antonini award has been established to honor passion for the Italian language, culture, or art. Danielle is planning to develop a partnership between her sorority and a local elementary school, with the aim of exposing the children to Italian authors and other aspects of Italian culture. Danielle writes about how her schooling experience has influenced her relationship with Italy:

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“When I came to Chapman, I chose to take Italian for my language requirement to both challenge myself academically and to learn more about my heritage. My great-grandmother on my mother’s side was from Castiglione di Carovilli, and I grew up learning family recipes that had been passed down from generation to generation, such as my Nana’s pizzelles, but that was the extent of my knowledge of my Italian heritage. After taking a trip to Italy in ninth grade, I became fascinated with the culture and language, but unfortunately, Italian wasn’t offered at my high school. When I discovered that Chapman offered Italian, I jumped at the new learning opportunity. The extra-curricular opportunities offered through both the Italian department and the Italian Club, in addition to the Italian classes I have taken, have really allowed me to immerse myself in the Italian culture, and my time in the program has sparked my interest to study abroad on the Semester at Sea next fall, which is set to stop at several cities in Italy.”

In the photograph Danielle James.

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