The National Observatory of the Italian Language

The National Observatory of the Italian language aims at promoting the diffusion and the teaching of the Italian Language in school and universities in the United States.

Chaired by the Ambassador of Italy Armando Varricchio, it gathers i.a. representatives of the Embassy of Italy in Washington and  the non-profit organizations entrusted by the Italian Government to promote the Italian Language and Culture throughout the U.S., major Italian and Italian-American associations, teachers and  faculty members of Italian and American universities. The Observatory is an open-ended and flexible platform and its composition is periodically updated .

For the list of members click here.

The National Observatory gathers twice a year  in order to define the strategies and tools for increasing the number of Italian Language  courses in the Unites States, the number of students taking the Italian AP exam (2,774 in 2016), promoting training opportunities for Italian Language teacher and  raise awareness and funding for scholarships and awards for dedicated students and teachers.  The Observatory approves an annual Strategic Plan, with specific timeslines and responsabilities and evaluates the results achieved. Such Strategic Plan is carried out by the local Observatories which gather periodically in Boston, Chicago Detroit, Filadelfia, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San  Francisco and Washington DC.

STRATEGIC PLAN 2017

GOALS:

1. Increase the quantity and quality of Italian courses in public and private US schools (independent, parochial, proprietary and home schools)
2. Maintain a positive growth trend in AP Italian exams
3. Continue to promote increasingly higher scores in AP Italian exams taken by students
4. Promote the passing of the AP exam to a university course in the US through support strategies for students interested in taking a Major or Minor in Italian