Start Italian in Your School

Want to study Italian but your school doesn't offer classes in the language? Have you asked your school administrator to add Italian to the curriculum but haven't had any success? The Order Sons of Italy in America Adopt-A-School program is a national initiative designed to promote the study of Italian in public and private schools throughout the U.S.

OSIA works at the local, national, and international levels to promote the heritage and culture of an estimated 26 million Americans of Italian descent, the nation's fifth largest ethnic group according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Through their Adopt-A-School program OSIA urges all its chapters, members, and supporters to assist by working with their local school principals and boards, teachers, students, and parents to offer Italian language courses. OSIA chapters are also being encouraged to provide scholarships and grants for Italian language students and purchase Italian textbooks, tapes, videos and other necessary materials to donate to their schools.

"OSIA's efforts toward language promotion are at the forefront of the cultural movement to preserve our Italian American roots," says Robert Messa, OSIA national president. "Learning Italian is one of the best ways young Italian Americans can discover their heritage and those not of Italian descent can learn about the culture of the nation's fifth-largest ethnic group."

Italian Language Enrollment Report
The OSIA Italian Language Enrollment Report confirms that Italian is growing at a faster rate than Spanish, French, and German in U.S. high schools and universities. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Italian is the fourth foreign language most spoken in U.S. homes.

Using the most current data available from the Modern Language Association (MLA), from 1998 to 2002, at the nearly 3,000 U.S. colleges and universities surveyed, the number of Italian language enrollments by undergraduate students in two- and four-year colleges and by graduate students rose 29.6% (from 49,287 to 63,866). The combined data represents a 17 percentage point increase from the last MLA survey that covered Italian enrollments from 1995 to 1998.

Information Kit
OSIA members and non-members alike who are interested in starting or enhancing an Italian language program can send for the free Start Italian In Your School information kit (PDF) to guide them in their efforts. The kit contains a survey questionnaire to assess student interest in Italian and a cover letter to accompany the survey questionnaire. There is also information on how to mobilize the local Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and how to approach the school principal and foreign language supervisor. Other topics include how to find funding, how to approach the local media, and tools for teaching children Italian with a list of resources including books, tapes, CDs, and other materials. In short, it's a blueprint for starting an Italian language program at your school!