News Archive

We recently welcomed Greta and Ettore, two students from Duca d’Aosta Salvemini high school in Florence, for a three-week internship with the Academic Department. The experience formed part of the hands-on learning component of their curriculum and allowed them to explore the daily life of an international academic institution from within.

For Greta and Ettore, the internship was first and foremost an experience of discovery.

During their time at Syracuse Florence, they were introduced to the world of study abroad and gained a closer understanding of how an international academic program operates. They observed the many roles, responsibilities, and forms of collaboration that support students, faculty, and staff behind the scenes. Day by day, they became familiar with the rhythm of a professional office environment, where punctuality, communication, attention to detail, and respect for shared spaces all contribute to the smooth functioning of the community.

For students at this stage of their educational journey, an experience like this offers much more than practical training. It can become a first meaningful encounter with the culture of work: learning how to be part of a team, how to adapt to a professional setting, and how to contribute with responsibility and care to a shared goal.

Their internship also encouraged them to look at Florence from a new perspective. Through their work with the Academic Department, Greta and Ettore explored local volunteer associations, community engagement opportunities, and organizations active throughout Florence. In doing so, they encountered a city that extends beyond its familiar image as an international tourist destination. This perspective is central to the mission of Syracuse Florence. As a study abroad center, the University encourages students to move beyond the classroom and engage meaningfully with the city around them. Through field studies, internships, and community engagement, students are invited to take part in the life of Florence and to build relationships that deepen their understanding of the place in which they study.

As part of their internship, Greta and Ettore also contributed to the Villa Rossa Archive, a project of special significance to Syracuse Florence. They supported research related to the Gigliucci family, whose history is closely connected to Villa Rossa, the main building of the Syracuse Florence campus. By reading historical materials and gathering information, they contributed to the ongoing effort to preserve and share the legacy of the family, the villa, and the many stories that have shaped our presence in Florence.

The experience also offered a broader reflection on the role of experiential learning. Hands-on opportunities allow students to connect knowledge with real contexts and to understand that learning does not take place only through books, lectures, and exams. This can be especially valuable for young students who are still beginning to imagine their future paths. Time spent in a professional environment can help them recognize their strengths and become more aware of the many possibilities open to them.

At the same time, experiential learning is most powerful when it builds on a strong educational foundation. As Teaching and Learning Manager Dr. Laura Fenelli reflected, the European educational model remains deeply rooted in theoretical learning, critical thinking, and intellectual development. Far from being a limitation, this foundation helps students become more versatile, adaptable, and capable of approaching complex situations with curiosity and depth.

In this sense, Greta and Ettore’s internship was not simply an introduction to the workplace. It was an opportunity to see learning as an active process. Their three weeks at Syracuse Florence allowed them to discover not only how an international academic center works, but also how knowledge can move beyond the classroom and become meaningful action.

Inspired by a Syracuse Florence course, graduating senior James Kuhns is building a platform to connect American tourists with the city’s hidden artisans.

James Kuhns came to Florence two years ago as a study abroad student and after returning to the U.S. he couldn’t stop thinking about a leather jacket—one he’d watched craftspeople build from scratch at the Scuola del Cuoio. “I’ve been thinking about that leather jacket for two years,” he said. “I need to go back.”

Now a business graduate of Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Kuhns returned to Florence in April for ten days, funded by two university grants, to interview Florentine artisans for his senior thesis. His goal was to design a digital platform that helps American tourists find and connect with the city’s authentic craftspeople.

The project traces back to Syracuse Florence where Kuhns took “Made in Italy: Business, Craftsmanship, and Branding Success” with Professor Simone Anselmi—a course that took students to La Marzocco espresso machine factory, jewelers in the city center, and the leather school he still thinks about. “All of these experiences really allowed me to see into the beating heart of Florence,” he said. “That being those artisans.” Anselmi has stayed closely involved, helping Kuhns build connections and shape his ideas over the past five months. “You need to have an idea that art and business can be connected,” Anselmi said. “Otherwise, you can’t appreciate this town.”

A Slow Dying Breath

The thesis opens with history—from the guild era and the Renaissance through the fashion shows of the 1950s—before arriving at an urgent present. Rising rents have pushed artisans from Florence’s historic center to peripheral neighborhoods tourists rarely visit. Only 3.3% of Italy’s 260,000 artisans are under 35, leaving an aging demographic with few people to inherit their craft. “It’s not an overnight thing,” Kuhns said. “It’s like the slow dying breath.”

Tourism, paradoxically, is part of the problem. Anselmi put it bluntly: visitors arrive on short itineraries, stick to the Duomo-to-Ponte Vecchio circuit, and often leave having bought fake “Made in Italy” goods without ever encountering a real workshop. “Tourism is going up and the artisans are not taking any benefit,” he said. Kuhns calls this the “Disneyfication” of Florence—marketing that funnels tourists toward a handful of landmarks and away from the living city. “It’s not necessarily the tourist’s fault,” he said. “That’s all the marketing they’ve seen.”

The Platform

Kuhns’s answer is a platform—part TripAdvisor, part cultural guide—that would map verified, authentic artisan workshops so visitors can cut through the souvenir noise. His target is neither the day-tripper nor the ultra-wealthy collector, but the middle: curious American travelers willing to venture a few blocks off the tourist circuit. “Those are the artisans that are suffering the most,” Anselmi said. “Authentic, fantastic—but struggling.”

The project has already survived one pivot: an earlier idea to sell artisan goods overseas collapsed when new tariffs made it unworkable. “Not everything works out the first time,” Kuhns said. The pivot sharpened the focus—instead of bringing Florence to Americans at home, help Americans find Florence when they’re already here.

When James spoke with us, he was on day two of ten, already deep in fieldwork—interviewing a bag maker, cold walk-ins to workshops, connections built through Anselmi and former colleagues. “I could read all the literature,” he said, “but I don’t know until I talk to them.” The early conversations had confirmed his hunch: younger artisans are passionate but lack the marketing infrastructure to reach new customers. He hopes the app can fill that void.

“There’s a true piece of heritage and Italian culture that is slowly dying,” he said. “How do we breathe some life into that?” He had eight days of interviews still to go. And, presumably, a leather jacket to finally buy.

What if studying Classical Mythology meant racing through the Uffizi in search of a sarcophagus, or taking a selfie with a mythological statue at the Pitti Palace? That’s the premise behind the #100Myths Project — a semester-long adventure designed by Stefania Berutti that turns Florence itself into a classroom.

The project grew out of a practical challenge: museum visits are too short to cover everything. Rather than rush students past the artwork, Berutti designed a series of scavenger hunts that sent them exploring on their own — identifying mythological characters in vases, statues, and paintings, and photographing themselves alongside the finds. The results were immediate: students who seemed disengaged in the classroom lit up in the galleries, racing up staircases and debating details on ancient vases.

The final assignment pushed things further: each team had to write an original story featuring mythological characters from Florence’s museums, then turn it into a scavenger hunt for their classmates to play. Both teams set their stories in contemporary Florence — no AI, just their own creativity. One team even ventured into the Boboli Gardens; a site never covered in class. They had made the city their own.

A scavenger hunt may sound frivolous, but Berutti sees it as a way to drive students to slow down, read captions, and look carefully at works of art they might otherwise walk past. Creative writing does something similar: over eight years of leading writing labs tied to archaeology and ancient history, she has watched students use storytelling to forge a genuine connection with ancient cultures — feeling the responsibility of giving old myths new meaning.

The #100Myths Project was made possible thanks to a Syracuse Teaching Innovation Fellowship, with support from Director Sasha Perugini and Assistant Director Rachael Smith. In September, Berutti will host a webinar to share her tools with colleagues — because whether the lens is Art History, Mythology, Fashion History, or Ancient History, Florence’s museums have something to offer every discipline. The #100Myths Project could become a model for interdisciplinary teaching across the Syracuse faculty.

Photos by Sasha Laurenzo.

Food Studies professor Olivier De Maret led ten days of immersive learning across the island

This May a group of Syracuse Florence students traded the familiar cobblestones of Tuscany for the sun-drenched markets and volcanic hillsides of Sicily. From April 30 to May 9, they traveled the length of the island as part of Culinary Crossings, a Signature Seminar designed and led by food studies professor Olivier De Maret that used cuisine as a window onto centuries of Mediterranean history, culture, and exchange.

The seminar was exclusively food-focused unlike a previous travel seminar led by De Maret in collaboration with retired photography professor Stefania Talini. “This time around we focused on getting to know the people that make up the island’s food system,” he said.

Markets, Farms, and Family Tables

The ten-day itinerary moved students through some of Sicily’s most distinctive culinary landscapes. In Palermo, they dove headfirst into the city’s legendary street food culture with a guided tour of the Ballarò market — one of the oldest and most vibrant outdoor markets in southern Italy — complete with tastings. De Maret remarked on the contrast to Florence: “Especially the energy we witnessed in Palermo’s outdoor markets, as well as the kindness, openness and hospitality Sicilians showed us.”

From Palermo, the group traveled east to the island’s rolling interior, stopping at the Azienda Agricola Fiumefreddo near Troina before continuing to the Baroque city of Siracusa, where they were based for four nights. Days out of Siracusa brought visits to the Bonajuto chocolate factory in Modica — Sicily’s legendary chocolate-making center, where the ancient Aztec-influenced method of cold-processing cacao has been practiced since the 1700s — as well as a cooking class in Noto and a visit to Il Biviere, an organic citrus farm in Lentini.

The seminar concluded near Etna, where students visited the Fattorie Romeo del Castello in Randazzo, a historic wine and farming estate on the volcano’s northern slopes, before a final dinner together in Taormina.

“Transformed by These Experiences”

The highlights of the trip were the two farm visits: Fiumefreddo and Romeo del Castello. “In both places, we were warmly welcomed into family homes and involved in daily activities,” said De Maret. “Besides learning new skills such as gardening, we felt the care and joy put into the production, preparation and sharing of food in very intimate contexts. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that most of us were transformed by these experiences — including the families hosting us.”

Why Sicily?

The choice of Sicily as a destination was itself pedagogically significant. De Maret sees the island’s cuisine as a kind of living archive of the Mediterranean world — layered with the influences of Greek, Arab, Norman, Spanish, and Italian cultures that have passed through over millennia. “Sicily and its cuisine provide a fascinating lens through which to approach these exchanges,” he explained, “and reflect on what makes Italian cuisine Italian, if anything.”

That question — deceptively simple, endlessly complex — was central to what he hoped students would take away. “The multiplicity of meanings associated with Sicilian cuisine, and how the history of the island and contemporary interests shape it,” De Maret said of the seminar’s core lessons. Beyond the specifics of Sicilian food, he hopes the experience planted a more lasting habit of mind: “I hope that students now see the value of thinking through food in order to understand the world and their place in it — and that they will keep thinking critically about broader social and cultural processes at play in kitchens and beyond.”

Culinary Crossings: Food Culture, Identity and the Mediterranean is offered as part of the university’s Signature Seminars initiative, which supports faculty-led travel courses that extend classroom learning into the field.

We are proud to share that Professor Laura Fenelli, SU Florence’s Teaching and Learning Manager and instructor of the class Walking Florence, recently took the stage at this year’s Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino — Italy’s largest and most celebrated international book fair — where she presented a talk entitled Art Saved by Girls: Education, Exclusion, and Empowerment of Women Artists from the Renaissance to the Modern Era. Her title was a play on this year’s theme “Il mondo salvato dai ragazzini” (The world saved by kids).

“In 1971, Linda Nochlin asked: why have there been no great women artists? The answer lies not in a lack of talent but in the denial of access to art academies. This event is dedicated to the young women who, from the Renaissance through the modern era, sought — and sometimes found — a place in art education, thereby safeguarding the right to create art for themselves and for future generations.”

The Salone del Libro, now in its 38th edition, welcomed over 254,000 visitors across five days, bringing together readers, authors, and publishers from around the world in Turin. It was Professor Fenelli’s first appearance at the fair — and her first time presenting publicly from a project she has been developing, before an audience that turned out to be larger than expected.

Reflecting on the experience, Professor Fenelli shared:

“It’s been a week since my trip to Turin, but the excitement is still very much alive. My first time at the book fair, my first time as a speaker, the first time I spoke out loud — in front of a larger-than-expected audience — about the project I’m working on. Above all, thanks to everyone who came to listen, because there’s nothing better than sharing your passions with an attentive audience.”

Professor Fenelli’s talk is part of a broader research project for a high school textbook that she is working on with Loescher, one that bridges her deep expertise in Italian art history with a commitment to amplifying overlooked voices — themes that enrich her teaching here at Syracuse Florence.

We congratulate Laura on this wonderful milestone and look forward to following her work as it continues to grow.

Far more than a mere academic exhibition, our Final Art Show is a truly special moment in which our entire community comes together to celebrate the culmination of months of dedication, growth, and creative exploration.

As guests wander through the gallery, the atmosphere comes alive with shared curiosity. Visitors lean in closely, carefully examining the intricate details of portraits, evocative sketches, and striking illustrations that immediately capture the eye. The true highlight of the evening, however, lies in the dialogue the exhibition inspires. Our student artists have the unique opportunity to stand alongside their work and guide the audience through their creative process. They share the inspirations behind their pieces and explain the deliberate choices that shaped their vision: from the emotional weight of a particular color palette and the subtle storytelling held within a delicate gradient, to the structural meaning conveyed through a bold form or line.

Every piece on display serves as a window into a student’s inner world, revealing each artist’s highly individual way of perceiving and interpreting the reality around them. Driven by a profound need for self-expression, our students channel their experiences, ideas, and emotions into tangible forms.

For spectators, the experience becomes deeply immersive. As the senses are awakened, each artwork invites us on a meaningful journey, one that challenges our own perceptions and leaves us inspired long after the exhibition ends.

An Environmental Design alumna from the class of 1989 reflects on navigating Italian life without Google Translate, a meaningful return to Villa Rossa, and how a semester abroad planted the seeds for a 27-year career in art education.

What was your home school and major when you studied here in 1989?

Home school was the College of Human Development at Syracuse University. I was majoring in Environmental Design (Interiors). 

Why did you choose to come to Syracuse Florence?

I had many friends who had done the program abroad the year before and wanted to experience the same. I was so interested in the architecture and Italian culture since I am 1/2 Italian. Sad story is a had 2 friends on the Pan Am 103 flight. Those friends were returning from abroad in London just months before. 

Do you have any funny/touching stories about adjusting to Italian culture when you lived here?

Trying to fumble our way through the language with no Google Translate was hysterical. Learning how to grocery shop. Something about how you lined up with your carts in alternating directions?  Exchanging Lira for Francs, deutsche marks and Schillings when traveling. Getting to see mass with Pope John Paul II on Father’s Day. 

You married past and present during your recent return to Florence, painting around sketches you had created while a student here. How did your study abroad experience influence your career and life afterward?

I did work as an Interior Designer for 12 years but was being pushed away from the creative process and more into project management. I switched to being an art teacher 27 years ago. The best thing that is still with me is the importance of my sketchbook. I use the term “visual notetaking” with my students even to this day. 

What was it like returning to Villa Rossa?

Returning was amazing. I had all sorts of happy feels. I was so young, had barely traveled, and was in awe of Florence and Italy in general. I am very eager to return. Would love to teach there if you ever needed someone! 

Advice for current students?

Advice…stay on top of your work. Sketch EVERYWHERE. Experience it all. Sites, food, people. It goes by so fast. It’s an amazing opportunity to be there. Do not take any of it for granted. 

Two students from very different backgrounds found the same thing on the SAB — a genuine way to shape the program they were living.

Study abroad is a shared experience — but rarely a uniform one. The Student Advisory Board at Syracuse Florence exists to bridge that gap, gathering the full range of student perspectives and turning them into real change.

This past semester, Matheus Miziara Brocchi (USC) and Austin Russell (Colby College) did exactly that. Together with SUF administration, the SAB piloted a new campus app, revamped pre-departure materials and orientation, developed video campus tours, and established an anonymous student tip line to keep feedback flowing throughout the year.

I interviewed students from various friend groups at the beginning, middle, and end of the semester — to understand what had to be changed and what worked.
— Matheus Miziara Brocchi

Austin gathered input from friends, classmates, and calcetto teammates, channeling it toward a stronger orientation and more I-Explore events. “Without their input, orientation wouldn’t have changed for the better,” he says. For Matheus, the experience also shifted how he saw the staff. “They care so much more than we’d like to think as independent young adults.”

Both are clear on whether future students should apply. “The time commitment isn’t too much,” says Austin, “and you get to work with people who genuinely want to improve student life.” Matheus puts it plainly: “Apply, apply, apply.”

Applications for the Student Advisory Board open each semester.

“You never know what might happen, the friends you might make, and the incredible community you will join.”

David Higdon’s career has taken him from the courts of professional tennis to the fairways of golf, and now to the cutting edge of competitive gaming. Today, he is serving as pro bono Chief Communications Officer for USA Esports, a new national body pursuing United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee accreditation. This year, USA Esports will field 16 teams representing the country at the inaugural Esports Nations Cup in November. Alongside that work, Higdon is deepening his commitment to the family business — the Higdon Running brand built around his father Hal, who turns 95 this year. The family is expanding their digital offerings, refreshing their brand, and enhancing the widely used “Run with Hal” training app at HalHigdon.com.

But before the boardrooms of Monte Carlo, the press boxes of major sporting events, and the front offices of the NFL, there was Florence. In the interview below, Higdon reflects on how his time with Syracuse Abroad in Firenze first ignited a lifelong passion for global exploration — and set the course for everything that followed.

You’ve had some wild travel experiences, as you told The New York Times in 2009. Did your time in Florence fit into that?

I blame my global wanderlust on my incredible experience in Firenze with Syracuse Abroad. While I traveled as a youngster across the U.S., visiting all 50 states eventually, SU was my first immersion experience in Europe. The program opened my eyes to global opportunities, and I’ve since explored both personal and professional experiences around the world.  

What was your home school and what did you study while you were here at Syracuse Florence?

I matriculated at Kalamazoo College, an OG in academic foreign study, but they didn’t have an Italian track. Some K students and I convinced a French professor to teach us Italian (my mother’s parents were Italian), and we researched collegiate abroad programs and landed on Syracuse University due to its reputation and curriculum. Of course, I studied Art History in Florence.

What was your host family experience like?

Signora Tedesco didn’t exactly fit the quintessential home family mode. She was, let’s just say, “frugal,” so spaghetti con burro and pane were our meal staples. But the view from our room of Sante Croce church was incredible. Plus, while we didn’t have any surplus sustenance, we also didn’t have a curfew! 

Do you have any funny/interesting/touching memories of cultural shock/adjustment to living in Italy?

I decided to hitchhike on a Syracuse Abroad field trip rather than travel with the school bus, and I had no problem securing friendly rides and gabbing in Italian while in the Tuscany area. However, as night started to descend when I was in northern Italy, I found myself shivering on the side of a mountain road, wondering where I would spend the night. However, the SU bus came roaring up the hill and I was able to wave it down. A classmate in the back of the bus laughed and shouted: “Higdon told me to look for him en route! I thought he was kidding!!”

Another memory was walking to Piazza Savonarola from the Piazza Sante Croce area every morning and evening. It offered a tapestry of color, diversity, and beauty, from building architecture to food stands to the local residents. When you peel away from the touristy areas, which SU administration encourages and is reflected in its Villa Rossa home, you really immerse yourself in true Tuscan culture.  

What stands out about returning to Florence and Villa Rossa in 2024?

My nephew asked me to officiate his wedding in Tuscany in 2024, so I made sure to return to Villa Rossa with my wife Sharon when we were there. She loved the old-school Italian vibe and architecture, and I appreciate how Syracuse’s home had evolved while still maintaining its heart and soul. It’s a wonderful place to serve as a base to explore the city, country, and continent.  

You’ve built an impressive career as a communications strategist for sports organizations. Did your time in Florence have any influence on that?

Nearly all stops on my career path reflect my global ambitions triggered by Syracuse Abroad. Tennis, golf, esports, and NFL are all international businesses in which I’ve worked.

Needless to say, I’m a huge advocate for foreign study broadly and Syracuse Abroad specifically. My children Jake and Sophie both studied overseas (South Africa and Denmark), and they also lived in Europe part of one year when I was based out of Monte Carlo working in tennis. I regularly encourage all students, young and old, to consider studying and/or working overseas — and it’s never too late to do so!

By Valentina Brocchi

On April 23 Syracuse Florence opened the doors of Villa Rossa for a full-day training aimed at early-career professionals in the Student Services sector. As part of the professional development opportunities offered by the Forum on Education Abroad – an international association based in the U.S. committed to improving the quality and impact of education abroad – the Florence event gathered professionals in the study abroad sector from all over Italy, offering an invaluable chance to share practices and experiences and foster professional growth.

The workshop was led by two Syracuse Abroad colleagues: Seth Tucker, Director of Global Safety and Support at Syracuse Abroad, and Stewart Clegg, Assistant Director of Student Well-being at Syracuse University London. Drawing on content developed by both the Syracuse University Abroad Learning Institute (SUALI) and the Forum on Education Abroad’s Standards of Good Practice, the sessions offered practical training and insight into supporting U.S. study abroad students across diverse institutional settings. 

They covered topics such as providing quality student life advising, health and wellness programming, risk management, and crisis response. Sessions combined interactive activities, case-based learning, and expert facilitation to help participants develop an understanding of the student services profession in a study abroad context.

The workshop also brought together five Syracuse Florence staff members with colleagues from other Syracuse centers. It was a welcome opportunity to meet people with whom they collaborate closely, albeit at a distance.

“This training was particularly valuable for me,” said Syracuse Florence student advisor Martina Daniele. “It was designed for those who, like me, are taking their first steps in the world of study abroad, providing practical tools for professional growth. From my perspective, hands-on experience is essential, but it is equally important to take the time to pause, reflect, and deepen one’s understanding of best practices and procedures.”

Training participants received a digital badge, issued by the Syracuse University Abroad Learning Institute, to certify skills acquired through the program.