POSTCARDS & PROSECCO

SORRENTO, ITALY

EDITION 02   SEPTEMBER 2018

JACKSONVILLE UNIVERSITY IN ITALY

Spanning three centuries, Sant’Anna has stood as a source of learning, light, and leadership for the Sorrento community in the Campagna region of southern Italy. Located high above the Bay of Naples, jetting out on a cliff facing Mt. Vesuvius, Sorrento, sits 30 miles south of Naples. Now, through a new partnership with Jacksonville University, Sant’Anna is poised to become a leader in high quality global educational experiences.

JU on the cliffs of Sorrento, Italy

LEGACY OF SANT’ANNA

The legacy of Sant’Anna is shrouded in generosity, compassion, and commitment to the educational needs of a community. The expansive property originated in the 1800s as a private residence. At the owner’s request upon his death, the estate was bequeathed to the Roman Catholic Church. In response for such generosity, the Church sent the Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception of Ivrea to care for the educational needs of the Sorrento community.

For more than 150 years, the Sisters of Charity served the diverse educational needs of the Sorrento community; establishing an orphanage, teaching nursery school through high school, and educating teachers. The school closed its doors in 1994. A few years later, with permission from the Vatican, Cristiana Pannico, founder and owner of today’s Sant’Anna Institute moved into the historical building, bringing new life, leadership, and learning yet again into the property. This time, with Pannico’s vision, expanding the legacy of learning to include international students.

Towering high above Marina Grand, Sant’Anna shines brightly.

Today, towering over a majestic cliff, high above Sorrento’s Marina Grande, the impressive five-story building includes classrooms, offices, and two floors of newly renovated student residences. The rooms overlooking the sapphire blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea and pastel colored fishing village of Marina Grande are again bustling with activity.

The watercolored fishing village of Marina Grande.

The stone-walled walkway leading through the gates of Sant’Anna delights the senses meandering through brightly colored gardens, rose-scented arch ways, and tidy rows of Sorrento’s native aromatic lemon trees. The organic garden is lovingly tended as it has been for centuries, providing fresh fruit, seasonal vegetables, and flowers to the Sant’Anna community.

Lemons and wisteria line the pathway to Sant’Anna.

MY LEAP OF FAITH

As the Executive Director of Global Teaching and Learning, and Professor of Communication, I’ve lead study abroad programs at JU for more than a decade and a half. I am a passionate advocate for quality study abroad programs. Time and again, I witness the transformation that takes place when a college student steps out of the familar and into the unknown.  I believe education remains the one great hope for vibrant democracies throughout the world. For me, study abroad is an integral part of education, necessary to prepare students for life in an increasingly global community.

Villa Rufolo in nearby Ravello.

When done right, study abroad has the power to promote peace, replacing fear of the unknown with understanding, illuminating shared values, and cultivating respect for differences. Study abroad affords students the opportunity to experience engaged learning while increasing knowledge through understanding.

Enjoying the view along the Amalfi Coast.

My students have used their time abroad to produce award winning projects honored by the Florida Chapter of the Associated Press and the National Council for Undergraduate Research. During the Summer of 2017, at the end of a family vacation in Venice, I made a last-minute decision to stay behind, and travel alone for the nearly 500 miles south to Sorrento.

After a few minutes on the property, and an initial meeting with owner, Cristina Pannico, I recognized the opportunities for collaboration between JU and Sant’Anna could be far greater than simply my summer program. I knew I found something extraordinary and set to work to share it with the JU community.

This view was waiting for me upon my arrival at Sant’Anna.

In the fall of 2017, Pannico visited JU, touring the campus and meeting with President Tim Cost. In March of 2018, I travelled to Sorrento, and spent my sabbatical at Sant’Anna studying Italian and facilitating the partnership. Later that month, Dr. Christine Sapienza arrived with the documents making the collaboration between Jacksonville University and Sant’Anna official.

Dr. Christine Sapienza, Provost and SVP of Academic Affairs at Jacksonville University with Cristiana Panicco, Owner and Founder of the Sant’Anna Institute.

As the university of record, JU oversees the instruction and coursework provided at Sant’Anna, ensures JU academic standards are maintained, and awards university credits and transcripts to all students throughout the world earning academic credit through Sant’Anna classes.

DOLPHINS IN SORRENTO

In May of 2018, less than one year after the initial meeting between Pannico and myself, the first group of JU Dolphins arrived in Sorrento. The three-week May-mester included two courses. I taught Communications, Culture, and the Amalfi Coast, and Professor Ginger Sheridan taught Photography: The study of Displacement and Discovery.

Enjoying the golden light in Sorrento with my students Sylvia Dean, Class of 2019 and Sara Ann Wicks, Class of 2018

A second group of students followed in June, completing course work, including Sant’Anna signature courses: History of the Mafia, Archaeology and the Cities of Fire, and Italian Language. In addition, the summer program featured a new JU International Internship in Sorrento, with students from a variety of majors interning in the community while earning discipline specific academic credits.

History of the Mafia students travel to Naples with Dr. Aterrano and Dr. Novellino.

Over the course of the next academic year, JU will continue to pilot new programs. These additions include graduate and undergraduate courses in Health Sciences, International Internships, two Summer Sessions, the Freshman Welcome Program, and full semester programs in the Spring and Fall.

This extraordinary partnership provides undergraduates, graduate students, and the greater JU community with well-organized and innovative engaged learning opportunities. Collectively, this JU signature program pairs critical thinking and vibrant learning experiences while preparing students for success in an increasing global world. From the bluff high above the St. Johns River to the cliffs of the Sorrentine peninsula, JU’s shared commitment to educational excellence, through service, learning, and leadership has found a new home in Sant’Anna and Sorrento, Italy.

Sunset in Sorrento and Marina Grande.

The study abroad programs are open to JU students and full time college students in good standing enrolled at other colleges and universities. For more information about how you can study abroad in Sorrento, click the link here.

I look forward to seeing you in Sorrento!

POSTCARDS & PROSECCO

AMALFI, ITALY

EDITION 02   JUNE 2018

1. The town of Amalfi lends its name to the impossibly steep and beautifully blue 30 mile area known the world over as the Amalfi Coast.
   

   The city that gave its name to Italy’s most famous coast.

2. Amalfi was the original Italian Naval superpower. During the 11th and 12th centuries, the Maritime Republic of Amalfi was rich and powerful, controlling the important sea-faring trade routes of the Mediterranean and North Africa. While the rest of the Italian peninsula was still bartering, Amalfi was minting its own gold coins and trading throughout the Mediterranean.

Views, vistas, and the sea

The Watch Towers of Amalfi still stand today.

3.  Throughout the famous Amalfi Coast you’ll find a series of strategic watch towers. The tower system was designed to keep a watchful eye on the sea and help keep residents safe. Pirate like invaders plagued this area of Italy for centuries. Secret codes and a fire burning on top of the tower warned the community to seek shelter and flee into the mountains before the invaders arrived. Today the towers still stand, including some that are now private homes and rentals.

Strategic watchtowers like this one, still stand throughout the entire Amalfi Coast.

Amalfi’s watchtower

 4.  Despite its close proximity to Naples and the Sorrentine Peninsula, Amalfi feels like another world–in part because of its successful trade throughout the Mediterranean. Trade helped make Amalfi rich and left an indelible mark on this coastal region of Italy. You can still see the influence today as you walk the streets lined with the pockets of Arab-Sicilian architecture. The domed white washed buildings, narrow passage ways, and covered walkways are all borrowed techniques compliments of Greece and North Africa.

Narrow passages designed to create shade run throughout Amalfi.

The bell tower of Amalfi features majolica tiles

5.  For many travelers, it is the highly recognizable Duomo of Sant’Andrea that defines Amalfi. Here too, you’ll see the influence of other cultures throughout the region. Standing as a glistening testament to Amalfi’s rich past, the Duomo of Sant’ Andrea dates back to the 9th century (with additions and changes throughout the centuries). The highly recognizable striped façade is the most recent addition to the cathedral and was completed in the 19th century.

Blown away by Amalfi and the Duomo

The “new” part of the Duomo was completed in the 19th century.

At the top of the stairs before you enter the cathedral, this beautiful breezeway awaits.

6.  Climb the stairs and walk through the breeze way to entry the Chiostro del Paradiso. Here you’ll find interlaced Romanesque arches and 120 columns. Completed in 1268 the Chiostro del Paradiso was a final resting place for the cities elite. Considered one of the most interesting structures on the Amalfi Coast, the Chiostro del Paradiso features a four-sided portico with cross vaults, pointed arches, twin columns and woven arches rich with Moorish influence.

Majolica tiles grace Amalfi’s bell tower.

The Moorish style cloister in the corner of Duomo.

7.  There are many beautiful details throughout the cloister and sometimes the stories they tell are fascinating–like this one in the corner of the portico. Here you’ll find a painting completed by a student of Giotto. You may recognize similarities between the beautiful blues and those of the magnificent Chapelle Scrovegni in Padua. The painting is unsigned, and no one can say for certain who the artist is. However, there may be another reason why this painter remained anonymous. The artist, who clearly was not a fan of the French Anjou rulers of Naples, took artistic license with his work. Look closely and you’ll see the soldiers responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ in this painting are not Roman, but French Anjou!

Re-writing history and making a political statement.

8.  For centuries, Amalfi was powerful, wealthy, and important. The blue and white cross of Amalfi is one of the four nautical crests featured on today’s Italian maritime flag. In the end, it was not an invader or another empire that changed the course of Amalfi, but the same sea that elevated Amalfi to greatness violently caused its dramatic demise.

9.   In 1343, a large portion of the city fell into the water following a tsunami and earthquake.  Around the same time, the plague was sweeping through the region. The devastation was so significant the city that ruled the Mediterranean would never regain its prominence.

10.  If you think Amalfi is special, you are not alone. In 1997 the entire Amalfi Coast became part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Majolica tiles grace Amalfi’s bell tower.

Gilded details from Amalfi’s Golden Age