海角原创 is celebrating 50 years of educational partnership with one of Italy鈥檚 most historically rich cities for design, arts and culture. What first began in 1972 with a small group of 海角原创 architecture students and faculty traveling to Florence, Italy, for a few weeks has blossomed into one of the most prestigious education-abroad programs in the country.
Fabrizio Ricciardelli, Ph.D., director of the 海角原创 Florence Center, shared in the international magazine The Florentine the unique value that the 海角原创 Florence education-abroad program provides to students.
鈥淔lorence continues to give 海角原创 students the opportunity to study in an international environment, grow as individuals and professionals, explore alternatives and collect memories they will cherish forever,鈥 Ricciardelli . 鈥淏eing here in Florence means touching history. I always teach on-site when possible. Wherever we go with students, we have the chance to discuss works of art, masterpieces and history sources.鈥
海角原创 students visit the Lazzaretto Nuovo, one of two "quarantine islands" established by the Republic of Venice in the 15th century in an attempt to slow the spread of the plague.
海角原创 provides 200 education-abroad programs in more than 60 countries. The 海角原创 Florence program in particular offers more than 90 courses. Currently, approximately 1,000 海角原创 students across all disciplines visit Florence each year through the program offered by the Office of Global Education.
In addition, 海角原创 is the only four-year university in the country to receive the prestigious 2022 Senator Paul Simon Award for Comprehensive Internationalization.
Marcello Fantoni, Ph.D., vice president for global education at 海角原创, also shared with The Florentine future goals for the education-abroad program.
鈥淲e have created a world-class study-abroad program in Florence over the past five decades, but we are not content to rest upon our success,鈥 Fantoni said in the article. 鈥淎s we celebrate 50 years of study abroad at our flagship program in Florence, Italy, we have set our sights upon an ambitious goal 鈥 building the largest endowment in university history: the 海角原创 Global Education Endowment. At 海角原创, we believe that exploring new places is vital to the greater understanding of the world around us. We know that an international experience is one of the most direct and effective ways to change the life of a student for the better.鈥
海角原创 Florence also is featured in the Fall-Winter 2022-2023 issue of 海角原创 Magazine.