On Saturday, March 29, 2008 we passed by the NECTFL Conference which took place on March 27th -29th at the Marriott Marquis Hotel on Broadway in Manhattan. NECTFL, the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, is a non-profit organization which serves foreign language students, educators, and the community in general, dedicating itself to promoting cultural exchange through the knowledge and teaching of foreign languages by means of studying abroad. Attending the conference amongst the many organizations and institutes were the Italian Embassy in Washington, DC, the Italian Consulate of  New York, the Italian Cultural Institute, the Italian Trade Commission, IACE (Italian American Committee on Education), and also Eduitalia, an association active for the past two and a half years, located in Florence, Italy as well as in New York. While at the conference, we took a moment to speak with Emmelina De Feo, the USA Manager for Eduitalia.

How was Eduitalia formed and what is its main purpose?

“From its inception, Eduitalia has promoted Italian culture overseas. Through our active participation in various worldwide conferences and expos, and together with our Guides, we are able to present the wide educational offering available for those who wish to go and study in Italy. Our main purpose is to disseminate Italian culture in the field of Study Abroad at an international level, and to encourage cultural tourism to Italy, as well as to facilitate the arrival of students and foreign researchers by aiming at the quality of education, the excellence of the educational structures, and the organization of the bureaucratic system which governs this field. The Eduitalia Guide project gained the sponsorship of the Italian Ministry of Culture, while in 2007 its patronage was recognized by the Ministry of International Trade and Commerce and the Guide’s preface was signed by the Italian Foreign Minister, Sen. Franco Danieli.

Italy is second to none when it comes to the quality of educational offerings, yet it suffers from long-standing disregard and is frequently overlooked in the inter-cultural marketplace. What has resulted is a number of isolated initiatives lacking in strength and systematic approach.

What was missing was an active tool of promotion and information distribution able to interact efficiently with both international and Italian academic institutions, which is what Eduitalia seems to be offering...

Eduitalia was founded to fill this gap, building a bridge between Italian schools and universities and the vast community of cultural exchanges. The means that the members of the Association are offered a capillary distribution of illustrative and promotional material; a continuous support and direct participation in the most important events; a unitary and therefore stronger representation in pertinent institutional agencies and a constant update of market trends. Another important outcome is the direct organization of initiatives to encourage the exchange of views among educational operators and a better projection of the image of Italy’s educational system. Italian universities and schools, both public and private, need visibility. To promote their quality standards, Eduitalia allows these programs to become familiar with the ‘education market’, to connect with the best international institutions, the most prestigious schools, outstanding researchers and all of the sector’s operators. This is achieved most successfully with a single voice, a single strategy and a common mission. It is with these goals in mind that EDUITALIA believes that joining the association is the opportunity to bring a fresh perspective and a new strength to the Italian culture and to all of its protagonists in the study abroad marketplace.

“Eduitalia's official website is www.eduitalia.org and can be viewed in Italian as well as in English. Our email address, for both the US and Italy is [email protected]”.