Internships and Scholarships

The Inserra Chair is committed to expanding opportunities for students studying Italian at Montclair through internships, scholarships, and other experiential learning initiatives. In collaboration with the Global Cultural Studies Department, the Montclair State University Foundation, and generous community partners, these programs provide financial support while helping students gain meaningful professional, cultural, and international experiences connected to their studies. Made possible through the generosity of Lawrence R. Inserra, Jr. and other dedicated supporters, these opportunities have empowered students to advance their academic and career goals while strengthening connections between the University and the broader Italian and Italian American communities.

Internships

Since 2016, the Inserra Chair, in collaboration with the Italian Program (Global Cultural Studies), has offered a vast array of pre-professional opportunities to students of Italian at Montclair. The current internship program focuses on Performing Arts and is taking students to an Italian UNESCO site in Agrigento (region of Sicily) in connection to an immersive show. Previous internship programs spanned from Summer 2017 and 2022 and focused on three areas: Italian Business/Made in Italy, Translation, and Teaching/Cultural Programming. Other internships have been offered ad hoc based on specific student projects, research initiatives, and collaborations with other institutions. All these programs have been made possible thanks to the generosity of our main donor Mr. Inserra, either through the main endowment or a targeted funding program, all designed to defray university costs for our students and provide them with financial support to advance their professional skills in work environments connected to their majors or minors.

Current Internship Program in Performing Arts (2025 and 2026)

Montclair students in Italian performance of Reawakening of the Gods in Risveglio

This internship program allows students to perform in a musical inspired by Greek mythology, titled Il Risveglio degli dei – The Reawakening of the Gods. Presented every summer at dawn in the enchanted archeological site of the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, the musical is a unique opportunity for students to be fully involved in the activities of the company (rehearsals, targeted classes, site visits, social gatherings, possible parallel shows) in Italian. This will constitute a full cultural and language immersion in a welcoming mid-size town where the students will become “locals” in a short period of time by enjoying the art, history, landscape, and gastronomy of the area. This internship is supported by the general Inserra Endowment and Savatteri Produzioni, with the logistical support of Nexo Sicilia in Agrigento, and the administrative help of the Office International Academic Initiatives.

Inserra Paid Internship Program 2017-2022

This program has counted on $10,000 a year in scholarships for internships, and included partnerships with notable Italian organizations and companies: the Italian Trade Agency in New York, Choose New Jersey in Princeton, Safilo in Secaucaus, NJ, IACE in NY and the Sferisterio Arena in Macerata (in collaboration with the local university). It has provided students of Italian with hands-on projects encompassing an international component. The program has supported two students with $5,000 scholarships in its first and second year of existence, and four students with a $2,500 scholarship each the third year. Overall, eight students have benefited from this program, which has expanded the possibilities for Italian majors looking to secure full-time jobs upon graduation.

Past Internships

  • Italian Business Internships at the Italian Trade Agency in New York and Choose New Jersey in Princeton (Italian Business and Made in Italy)
    • At both locations, the intern/s will have the following general responsibilities:
      • Assisting in project management re: international trade, marketing and consulting (providing information and services to Italian companies approaching the U.S. market, with special focus on those interested in the Tristate area)
      • Assisting in the creation of studies and reports based on available data
      • Assisting in event organization, media relations, and planning of business trips for a delegation traveling to Italy
      • Read about recent internship experiences: Alexis Ventre, Italian Trade Agency; Cristina Latino, Choose New Jersey,; Adriana Morsella, Choose New Jersey
  • Made in Italy Internship at Safilo Eyewear in Secaucus, NJ
  • Summer internship in Narni (Umbria) with The Italian American Committee on Education/Italian Consulate, NY (IACE) 
    • The internship is specifically linked to the IACE Summer Program in Narni (Umbria, Italy). Offered to middle and high school students, the program combines Italian language and culture classes with on-site visits as well as participation in the Narnia Music Dance Theater Festival and International Summer Training Program, which offer a rich program of events, workshops, and shows featuring internationally renowned performers.
    • The selected intern will have the following responsibilities:
      • Assisting in class activities and tours in Italy
      • Assisting with office work at IACE before and after the summer program
    • The winner for Summer 2019 was Francesca Oliveri, a major in Italian
  • Summer Internship in Macerata (Opera Surtitles and Audiodescriptions)
    • As part of a broader initiative about translation and pre-professional opportunities for students, the selected intern will work on the surtitling of live operas within a translation and accessibility project overseen by a team of experts at the Macerata Opera Festival and the University of Macerata. The intern is expected to work closely with this team and communicate effectively in Italian at the advanced level, both orally and in writing. Responsibilities will include: collaboration on the development of the surtitles (translation, editing, timing) and their deployment during live performances, as well as involvement in organizational aspects of the productions.

Ad Hoc Internship and Research Assistant Positions

The Inserra Chair has also involved Italian majors in research projects entailing travel abroad for video-interviews, exchange students of Italian Studies in the intensive summer program for HS students at Montclair, and HS students for Italian language data gathering related to the intensive summer program for HS students. In this case, it has partnered up with the titling agency Prescott Studio in Florence, the University of Graz Exchange Program at Montclair, and Montclair High School,

Past Offerings

  • Surtitling for Performing Arts Festivals
    • The intern will work hands-on with experts from Prescott Studio on audiovisual translation projects for prestigious festivals in Italy this summer such as the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma’s contemporary musical theater festival. The intern will be expected to work as part of the Prescott team and be able to communicate effectively orally and in writing at the advanced level in Italian while working on-site. Responsibilities will include: collaboration on the translation of texts, timing, editing and deployment during live performances of surtitles, involvement in organizational aspects of the productions and input on the promotion of the Company. This is a paid internship. Lodging in Florence will be covered for the whole stay, as well as transportation and lodging related to the off-site festivals. The intern will be expected to work 40 hours/week for 5 weeks.
  • Course intern and activity leader for the 2019 edition of the Summer Italian Intensive for high school students.
  • 2019 recipient: Sigrid Karner-Ruehl, a graduate student on exchange from the University of Graz, Austria. Sigrid supervised a group of students who resided on campus during the week, and implemented a variety of activities for them, from a visit to the Yogi Berra Museum, to trips to a local coffee place and pizzeria to learn how to make a cappuccino and a Margherita through the hands-on teaching of the Italian owners of Monclair-based Italian businesses.

Internship in Italian Language Learning Data

  • Lara Funderburk, a Montclair High School student of Italian, completed an internship with the Inserra Chair in Spring 2019 after attending the Summer Italian Intensive Course in 2018. Lara’s internship project was aimed at collecting information about the first two editions of the summer course (2017 and 2018) and, in particular, about the impact of the course on the students’ subsequent choice of studying Italian in the last year of HS or after their HS diploma.
  • Working under the supervision of Dr. Teresa Fiore (Inserra Endowed Chair), and alongside a HS teacher who serves as summer course coordinator, Patti Grunther, Lara Funderburk reached out to students to learn about their post-course paths. The information she gathered helped improve the entry and exit surveys of the 2019 edition of the course, in order to better represent the course as a platform for future commitment to studying the language via the AP Italian class and exam, as well as the choice of a minor or major in Italian after graduation.

Summer 2018, Fall 2019 Research Assistant - Food and Sustainability in Sicily, Faculty-led research project)

  • A fully funded food-focused research trip to Sicily for a student majoring, double majoring, minoring in Italian or pursuing the Post-BA Certificate in Italian at Montclair. Activities include: 
    • Completion of two research components under the supervision of faculty (interviews with elderly local residents about food practices in the mid-20th century and archival work in Racalmuto at the Fondazione Sciascia);
    • Attendance of a four-day class about food traditions, cooking, farming at the stunning Case Vecchie farm in the heart of Sicily, an example of traditional rural architecture hosting cutting-edge international projects about food sustainability (see Anna Tasca Lanza Sicilian Cooking School);
    • Themed visit of Palermo linked to Manifesta and Capital of Italian Culture programs (public spaces revolving around cultural cross-pollinations in food practices, botany, architecture, etc. prompted by migration and relocation – see for ex. the Botanical Garden).
  • The internship is linked to a research project supervised by Dr. Teresa Fiore, revolving around a study of food availability and practices in Sicily at the time of the U.S. troops arrival during WWII to assess their impact on local mores.
  • This internship and the broader international intercollege initiative connected to it reflect the Expand Reach and Amplify Impact commitment of Montclair State University’s mission: “Increase global engagement by creating international experiences, broadening access to Montclair programs and promoting a global mindset.”

These educational activities are integrated into the regular curriculum and have had a long-term effect on student success. In this sense, these experiences are in line with the 2014 Gallup/Purdue University study called Great Jobs, Great Lives which indicates that the three experiences that contribute to feeling prepared for life after college are:

1. Internships or jobs where students can apply what they learned
2. Active involvement in extracurricular activities (cultural events, clubs, etc.)
3. Working on a project that took a semester or more to complete

Graduates who participated in all three experiences had double the workplace engagement than those who did not take part (59% vs. 30%), in terms of actively pursuing goals and trying to improve their skills, communicating well with other employees and employers, and expressing a sense of satisfaction towards their job experience. Deep learning experiences coupled with steady academic and emotional support from faculty members produce long-term outcomes for college graduates.

Resources:

When Internships Don’t Pay, Some Colleges Will (Nov. 2, 2017, The New York Times)

 

Scholarships

The Inserra Chair is strongly committed to fundraising in the community in the service of students in the Italian Program at Montclair State University, and in collaboration with the Montclair State University Foundation/Advancement Office. Over the years, this effort has included a targeted and successful proposal to our main donor, Lawrence R. Inserra, Jr., which has led to the creation of a Scholarship Fund for paid internships with an international component. For several years, the Columbian Foundation has been a partner in supporting Montclair State University students of Italian as program assistants, and, as of recent, a large endeavor with the New Jersey Italian Heritage Commission has enhanced the outreach of innovative bridge programs with local high schools. Please read below for more information.

Columbian Foundation Scholarships

The Columbian Foundation. In 2018, the organization has renewed a generous $2,000 donation via the Inserra Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies. Charles DiLorenzo (Executive Secretary, Columbian Foundation) is pleased to meet every recipient in person and pays an annual visit to Montclair State University to bestow the donation to students.

“The renewed support coming from the Columbian Foundation is a reminder of the important role of the community in tangibly endorsing the field of Italian Studies and valuing its role in the education of American students. Montclair State University offers quality education at an affordable price, and such gifts further help students earn their degree. We are very grateful to the Columbian Foundation,” Dr. Teresa Fiore, Inserra Chair, states.

Scholarship Recipients

Francesca Oliveri, 2018-19

Emma Rush and Rosanna Coviello, 2017-18

Brittany Savill, 2016-17

Emma Rush, 2015-16

Emilia D'Albero, 2014-15 for Inserra Assistantship

Emilia D'Albero, 2013-14 for Inserra Assistantship

New Jersey Italian Heritage Commission

The New Jersey Italian Heritage Commission continues to show its generosity toward students of Italian at Montclair and in increasingly more tangible ways. After a donation of $1,500 in 2018, the NJIHC has become the leading provider of scholarships for the Summer Italian Intensive Course for College with a donation of $10,000 in support of the third edition of the course in 2019.

“The New Jersey Italian Heritage Commission is constantly in pursuit of our mission to educate and raise the awareness of our culture and positive achievements. The development and implementation of the Summer Italian Intensive Course for College Credit by the Italian Program and Inserra Chair in Italian American Studies at the University is an example of a perfect project that coincides with our mission and is inspirational in our vision: we commend Teresa Fiore, Patti Grunther and Marisa Trubiano for their untiring efforts to bring this project to fruition. We know that funding is a necessity for young students, so we seek ways to channel donations to programs such as this one,” Robert DiBiase, Chair of NJIHC, commented.

“I am profoundly grateful to the New Jersey Heritage Commission, in particular to Mr. Robert DiBiase with whom I have conducted a very interesting and productive conversation about teaching and learning Italian in New Jersey, both in the High School and the University system through a bridge program such as the Summer Italian Intensive Course for College Credit. This partnership reflects the overlapping of the mission of the Inserra Chair in Italian and Italian American Studies/Italian Program at Montclair State University and the New Jersey Heritage Commission for the promotion of Italian language and culture in our area,” Dr. Teresa Fiore, Inserra Chair, remarks.