Based for a quarter century in the sleepy Tuscan town of Siena, the Italian Language Study Abroad program moved to Rome this fall in a change praised by administrators but which drew mixed reactions from students. The Art History Foreign Study Program will make the same move two years from now, as the College seeks to consolidate its Italian study abroad prorams in a single city.
The Italian LSA Program, which was previously located in Siena, has already moved its base to Rome as of the this fall, while the Art History FSP is scheduled to first take place in Rome in the spring of 2005.
The change was initiated by a group of faculty from the Art History, Classics and Italian departments who desired to create a united center for study abroad. Professor Keala Jewell, Director of Italian Studies, explained that this group's aim was "to streamline and consolidate the programs in one place." Unification of the program locations will hopefully result in new opportunities for the departments to work together and provide new interdisciplinary course offerings, she said.
Jewell said that the decision to move the Italian LSA to Rome from Siena also stemmed from the fact that "Rome offers a lot more diversity and variety." The Italian LSA has been centered in Siena for approximately 25 years, but an increasing number of American programs have been invading the relatively small town in recent years. Jewell said she believes that the "different cultural climate" of Rome will be beneficial to students on upcoming Italian LSA trips.
The approval process for the move took several steps. First, the Italian and French departments brought forward a proposal, which was then presented to both the Committee of Off Campus Activities and the Humanities Divisional Council.
Both committees approved the proposal; the Committee of Off-Campus Activities, which contains two student representatives, voted unanimously in favor of it. During the approval process, the different committees examined various factors including the curriculum, the well-being of students, and the way that the programs would work together.
The infrastructure for the programs will combine the old curriculum with the new city location. The LSA classes, which are language intensive, will not be altered significantly; however, the LSA+ courses will be more tailored to the city of Rome. Art history courses also will be more focused on Italian artwork located in Rome. The professors teaching courses in the new Dartmouth College Rome Center consist of a mix of both former and newly-hired faculty members.
John Tansey, Dean of Off Campus Programs, said that faculty members were supportive of the move. "The reaction [of the departments and faculty who run the programs] has been very positive," he said.
Jewell expressed that although "it has been a bit hard to say goodbye to the familiarity of Siena ... we're really enthusiastic about the new opportunities in Rome."
Students who attended the Siena LSA and Florence FSP trips in past years expressed mixed opinions about the decision to move the programs to Rome. Danielle Colen '04, who participated in the Siena LSA in the spring of 2003, supports the decision, commenting that she would have rather studied in Rome than in Siena. "Siena was filled with too many international students which made it very difficult to immerse myself in Italian life," she said.
Curt Monaco '04, on the other hand, participated in the Siena LSA in the fall of 2002 and feels that Siena is a better immersion experience than Rome. "I don't remember speaking a word of Italian when I was in Rome, because everyone spoke English," he said.
Juliana Murray '05 said that she was very upset about the decision to move the Siena LSA program to Rome. Murray said that while Rome is spread out and often a stopover for international travel, she felt more like she was living than visiting in Italy during her time in Siena. She explained that Siena was a better place to hold the LSA because "the focus of the town is rooted in cultural history ... the people have an intense pride for their city that is completely lacking in Rome."
