Villa Rossa Love Story: Cheryl and Scott Bakos
To mark this romantic month, we are sharing stories of love that blossomed out of study abroad experiences at Syracuse’s Villa Rossa in Florence. This is the first in the series. By Cheryl Bakos We first crossed paths in Syracuse on the night of the 1987 NCAA championship—a moment charged with excitement, though neither of…
When the Arno Rose: A 1966 Flood Survivor Returns to Villa Rossa
By Michelle Tarnopolsky Last October, Laurie Kassman walked through the gates of Villa Rossa for the first time in six decades. As an alumna of Syracuse Florence’s fall 1966 program, she had witnessed one of the most devastating natural disasters in Italian history—the Great Flood that submerged Florence on November 4, 1966. Now, she returned…
A New, More Accessible Welcome at Villa Rossa
Syracuse University Florence celebrated an important step forward for campus accessibility on January 19, inaugurating the new entrance to Villa Rossa at its Piazza Savonarola location. The ceremony marked the completion of renovations that significantly reduce architectural barriers and improve access for students, faculty, staff, and visitors. The work was made possible through the exceptional generosity of…
Breaking Barriers in the 1960s: The Story of Garland Jeffreys, Syracuse Florence’s First Black Student
In the early 1960s, Garland Jeffreys became what is believed to be the first Black student at Syracuse Florence. That semester would prove transformative for the young man from Brooklyn, who later became a celebrated rock and soul musician—collaborating with legends like Lou Reed, writing songs covered by everyone from Rickie Lee Jones to John…
Florence Alumna Publishes Research on Counterfeit Fashion and Hip-Hop Culture
Jacquelyn Trotman, a Syracuse University student who studied in Florence last spring, has achieved a notable academic milestone with the publication of a paper in the Syracuse Honors Research Journal: “Dapper Dreams: Gucci and the American Hip Hop Scene, 1980s-1990s.” Trotman’s paper originated as a final project for Professor Chiara Faggella’s course DES 300.2 (Bellissima!…
Saints, Scholars, and Pizza: Graduate Students Launch Florence Experience
On January 20, the six graduate students who recently arrived at our campus for their year-long residency in Florence, all members of the 2026 cohort of master’s degree candidates in Italian Renaissance Art, attended a special lecture at the Villa Rossa by Alison Fleming, professor of art history at Winston-Salem State University. In her lecture,…
Professor Chiara Faggella Presents Book on Fashion History
In November, Professor Chiara Faggella, who teaches Italian Fashion and Food Stories and the design course Bellissima! Unraveling the Threads of Italian Fashion, was invited to be featured at an event at the Accent Global Learning Florence Study Center to present her book, Becoming Couture: The Italian Fashion Industry after the Second World War, published by Manchester University Press.…
