Benvenuti!
The Melbourne Branch of the Dante Alighieri Society was established in 1896. Part of a global organisation committed to promoting Italian language and culture internationally, Dante Melbourne links Victoria to the heart of Rome. As the oldest branch of the Dante Alighieri Society in an English speaking country, we are a dynamic and ever-evolving part of the local and international Italian community.
NEWS
2024 BORSE DI STUDIO ANNOUNCED
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The Dante Alighieri Society Melbourne congratulates the winners of the 2024 Scholarships for teachers of Italian: Enrique Espinel (Galen Catholic College in Wangaratta) and Ellie Murphy (Hoppers Crossing Secondary College). Enrique and Ellie have shown deep commitment to Italian teaching in Victoria and the panel believes the scholarships will make an important contribution to their teaching careers and have a lasting impact to their students and school communities.
The Dante Alighieri Society of Melbourne, with the financial support of the Italian Australian Foundation, provides two international travel scholarships of $8,000 each for the teachers to travel to Italy to study Italian with one of the Dante Alighieri societies in 2024. The winners were selected from a exceptionally strong field of applicants and the Society thanks all teachers and their supporting schools for their interest; we are encouraged by the level of passion for Italian language in the community.
“The Dante Alighieri Society in Melbourne exists to celebrate and promote Italian language, culture and literature. We are grateful to the Italian Australian Foundation for providing the financial support to enable these two important scholarships to be provided. This “training the trainer” program will provide many ripples of benefits in the years to come and I am confident it will provide unforgettable experiences for Ellie and Enrique and help strengthen the teaching of Italian in Australia.” – Dr Dominic Barbaro AO, President Dante Alighieri Society Melbourne
“The Italian Australian Foundation is pleased to support this initiative for teachers, which will enable them to travel to Italy and study intensive Italian courses, form new networks and strengthen the ties between Australian and Italy. We are impressed by the calibre of teachers who applied and we are confident Enrique and Ellie will return to Australia with rich experiences that will greatly benefit their school communities.” – Rhonda Barro, President Italian Australian Foundation
“I love teaching Italian, and I love what Italian can teach my students. My favourite moments are students noticing something new or different about the Italian language on their own, and excitedly telling me or a friend; and watching friendships grow from shared interactions and challenges in senior language classes. I adore watching students push past expectations, like my Year 11 student from Myanmar who was a finalist at the Poetry Recitation Competition, reciting a poem beautifully in her fourth (!) language. At Hoppers Crossing SC, very few students are from an Italian background, and Italy/the Italian language seem very far from their life and experiences. This is a perception I am working to change, and I believe an opportunity to study in Italy will be instrumental in my ability to do this.” – Ellie Murphy, Scholarship recipient
“I am very passionate about teaching languages and I speak Spanish and English fluently. Italian is my third language and I also speak French from my time studying abroad in France. I was born in Venezuela and my mother tongue is Spanish. I am thrilled to be given this opportunity to study Italian and be immersed in the Italian culture. I wish to continue to work on my Italian to become more confident in my writing and speaking proficiency and accuracy. By doing this, I expect to be able to teach senior Italian levels at Galen Catholic College in Wangaratta.” – Enrique Espinel, Scholarship recipient
About the Scholarship Recipients:
Ellie Murphy is a passionate educator with a love for languages and a commitment to fostering cultural understanding among students. She has been teaching for 5 years and is currently the Key Learning Area Leader for Languages at Hoppers Crossing Secondary College.
Ellie will study a 40 hours intensive course in Florence from September 2024, explore the cultural institutions, complete a Tuscan Cuisine cooking course, attend conferences by ALMA Edizioni on methods of teaching Italian as an L2/additional language, and ISLA (Insegnanti Italiano Lingua Seconda Associati).
Enrique Espinel has been teaching Italian for seven years in both primary and secondary school settings across Victoria, NSW and the Northern Territory since completing my Master of Teaching in 2015. Most of his experience has been in regional Australia, including his current position as an Italian Teacher at Galen Catholic College in Wangaratta.
Enrique will undertake the 60 hours intensive course in Bologna for three weeks in September 2024. The intensive course of the school of Bologna consists of 4 hours of study each day and provides complete immersion in Italian language study, full of interesting and motivating activities.
The Dante Alighieri Society of Melbourne, with the financial support of the Italian Australian Foundation, provides two international travel scholarships of $8,000 each for the teachers to travel to Italy to study Italian with one of the Dante Alighieri societies in 2024. The winners were selected from a exceptionally strong field of applicants and the Society thanks all teachers and their supporting schools for their interest; we are encouraged by the level of passion for Italian language in the community.
“The Dante Alighieri Society in Melbourne exists to celebrate and promote Italian language, culture and literature. We are grateful to the Italian Australian Foundation for providing the financial support to enable these two important scholarships to be provided. This “training the trainer” program will provide many ripples of benefits in the years to come and I am confident it will provide unforgettable experiences for Ellie and Enrique and help strengthen the teaching of Italian in Australia.” – Dr Dominic Barbaro AO, President Dante Alighieri Society Melbourne
“The Italian Australian Foundation is pleased to support this initiative for teachers, which will enable them to travel to Italy and study intensive Italian courses, form new networks and strengthen the ties between Australian and Italy. We are impressed by the calibre of teachers who applied and we are confident Enrique and Ellie will return to Australia with rich experiences that will greatly benefit their school communities.” – Rhonda Barro, President Italian Australian Foundation
“I love teaching Italian, and I love what Italian can teach my students. My favourite moments are students noticing something new or different about the Italian language on their own, and excitedly telling me or a friend; and watching friendships grow from shared interactions and challenges in senior language classes. I adore watching students push past expectations, like my Year 11 student from Myanmar who was a finalist at the Poetry Recitation Competition, reciting a poem beautifully in her fourth (!) language. At Hoppers Crossing SC, very few students are from an Italian background, and Italy/the Italian language seem very far from their life and experiences. This is a perception I am working to change, and I believe an opportunity to study in Italy will be instrumental in my ability to do this.” – Ellie Murphy, Scholarship recipient
“I am very passionate about teaching languages and I speak Spanish and English fluently. Italian is my third language and I also speak French from my time studying abroad in France. I was born in Venezuela and my mother tongue is Spanish. I am thrilled to be given this opportunity to study Italian and be immersed in the Italian culture. I wish to continue to work on my Italian to become more confident in my writing and speaking proficiency and accuracy. By doing this, I expect to be able to teach senior Italian levels at Galen Catholic College in Wangaratta.” – Enrique Espinel, Scholarship recipient
About the Scholarship Recipients:
Ellie Murphy is a passionate educator with a love for languages and a commitment to fostering cultural understanding among students. She has been teaching for 5 years and is currently the Key Learning Area Leader for Languages at Hoppers Crossing Secondary College.
Ellie will study a 40 hours intensive course in Florence from September 2024, explore the cultural institutions, complete a Tuscan Cuisine cooking course, attend conferences by ALMA Edizioni on methods of teaching Italian as an L2/additional language, and ISLA (Insegnanti Italiano Lingua Seconda Associati).
Enrique Espinel has been teaching Italian for seven years in both primary and secondary school settings across Victoria, NSW and the Northern Territory since completing my Master of Teaching in 2015. Most of his experience has been in regional Australia, including his current position as an Italian Teacher at Galen Catholic College in Wangaratta.
Enrique will undertake the 60 hours intensive course in Bologna for three weeks in September 2024. The intensive course of the school of Bologna consists of 4 hours of study each day and provides complete immersion in Italian language study, full of interesting and motivating activities.
PRIMARY SCHOOL POSTER COMPETITION AWARDS
Congratulations to all the 2023 Primary School Poster Competition participants, the youngest members of our Dante club.
It was a very special day at the University of Melbourne on the 19 November as the next generation of Italophiles is inducted. The musical performance by Ms Nicolle Cheriton and Mr. Jose Mesquita, Stella Mansswr, Spandan Dhakal, Maya Mikhael, Abdul Kassem, Leila Yang, Rani Matti and Hussain al Badri was a special highlight! Big thanks to Jessica Gallito and Imogen Lazarus for all their work in coordinating the competition.
FOUNDATION
Primo Premio: Luca De Fazio, CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program
Secondo Premio: Eloise Gannon, Glenferrie Primary School
Terzo Premio: Coco Moller, Northcote Primary School
GRADE 1
Primo Premio: Holly Udovicich, CoAsIT Dopo Scuola Program
Secondo Premio: Zac Smith, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Terzo Premio: Glenferrie Primary School, Augie Schall-Riaucour
GRADE 2
Primo Premio: Lauren Kam, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Secondo Premio: Inaaya Rahman, Glenferrie Primary School
Terzo Premio: Audrey Newcomb, St. Peter Julian Eymard Primary
GRADE 3
Primo Premio: Riisa Izuhara, Glenferrie Primary School
Secondo Premio: Finley Durkin, Blackburn Lake Primary School & Zoe Qin, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Terzo Premio: Trisha Agarwal, Glenferrie Primary School
GRADE 4
Primo Premio: Leah Hardy, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Secondo Premio: Melissa Wang, Blackburn Lake Priamry School
Terzo Premio: Giulia Zampaglione, Associazione Culturale L’Aurora & Maisy Coghlan, Dorset Primary School
Terzo Premio: Eloise Newcomb, St. Peter Julian Eymard Primary
GRADE 5
Primo Premio: Stella Grant-Reilly, Northcote Primary School & Lola Schmidt, Northcote Primary School
Secondo Premio: Siena Helsham, Associazione Culturale L’Aurora & Valentina Courtis, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Terzo Premio: Matti Valenti , CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program & Jasmine Passeri, St Oliver Plunkett Primary
GRADE 6
Primo Premio: Leila Yang , Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Sophie Woodburn, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Secondo Premio: Tereza Toma, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Zara Lovrek, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Terzo Premio: Stella Mansswr, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Summer Bullock, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Mia Paschos CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program
Teacher’s Choice
Siena Helsham; Gia Nguyen; Sarah Gebeyehu; Claudia Orifici; Xavier Monitto; Austin Leung; Felicia Chiu, Heatherhill; Stella Grant-Reilly; Alana Nguyen; Christina Tabash; Joanne Suthakaran & Addison Li.
It was a very special day at the University of Melbourne on the 19 November as the next generation of Italophiles is inducted. The musical performance by Ms Nicolle Cheriton and Mr. Jose Mesquita, Stella Mansswr, Spandan Dhakal, Maya Mikhael, Abdul Kassem, Leila Yang, Rani Matti and Hussain al Badri was a special highlight! Big thanks to Jessica Gallito and Imogen Lazarus for all their work in coordinating the competition.
FOUNDATION
Primo Premio: Luca De Fazio, CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program
Secondo Premio: Eloise Gannon, Glenferrie Primary School
Terzo Premio: Coco Moller, Northcote Primary School
GRADE 1
Primo Premio: Holly Udovicich, CoAsIT Dopo Scuola Program
Secondo Premio: Zac Smith, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Terzo Premio: Glenferrie Primary School, Augie Schall-Riaucour
GRADE 2
Primo Premio: Lauren Kam, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Secondo Premio: Inaaya Rahman, Glenferrie Primary School
Terzo Premio: Audrey Newcomb, St. Peter Julian Eymard Primary
GRADE 3
Primo Premio: Riisa Izuhara, Glenferrie Primary School
Secondo Premio: Finley Durkin, Blackburn Lake Primary School & Zoe Qin, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Terzo Premio: Trisha Agarwal, Glenferrie Primary School
GRADE 4
Primo Premio: Leah Hardy, Blackburn Lake Primary School
Secondo Premio: Melissa Wang, Blackburn Lake Priamry School
Terzo Premio: Giulia Zampaglione, Associazione Culturale L’Aurora & Maisy Coghlan, Dorset Primary School
Terzo Premio: Eloise Newcomb, St. Peter Julian Eymard Primary
GRADE 5
Primo Premio: Stella Grant-Reilly, Northcote Primary School & Lola Schmidt, Northcote Primary School
Secondo Premio: Siena Helsham, Associazione Culturale L’Aurora & Valentina Courtis, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Terzo Premio: Matti Valenti , CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program & Jasmine Passeri, St Oliver Plunkett Primary
GRADE 6
Primo Premio: Leila Yang , Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Sophie Woodburn, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Secondo Premio: Tereza Toma, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Zara Lovrek, St. Oliver Plunkett Primary
Terzo Premio: Stella Mansswr, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Summer Bullock, Roxburgh Rise Primary School & Mia Paschos CoAsIt Dopo Scuola Program
Teacher’s Choice
Siena Helsham; Gia Nguyen; Sarah Gebeyehu; Claudia Orifici; Xavier Monitto; Austin Leung; Felicia Chiu, Heatherhill; Stella Grant-Reilly; Alana Nguyen; Christina Tabash; Joanne Suthakaran & Addison Li.
HIGH SCHOOL POETRY RECITAL COMPETITION AWARDS 2023
The President of the Dante Alighieri Society Dr Dominic Barbaro with the Consul General of Italy in Melbourne Ms Hanna Pappalardo and some of the winners of the Poetry Recital competition at Melbourne University.
1480 students from 42 schools competed this year and 37 winners were selected. We congratulate them and all the participants!
Read the story in Il Globo.
YEAR 9
First Place: Aiden Lowry, Olivia Lupacchini, Prasati Pokharel, Roberta Sutera
Second Place: Giselle Iannarella, Jona Klempel, Gianna Recidocruz
Third Place: Madeleine Caruso, Amelia Kovacevic,
YEAR 10
First Place: Hayley Dufff, Sarah Vozzo, Phoebe Whitworth
Second Place: Sarah McKean, Ethan Scollo, Angelina Zhu
Third Place: Samarth Gupta, Ava Licciardi,
YEAR 11
First Place: Sienna Ganci, Diego Lamilla
Second Place: Amelia Banks, Abbi Kelly, Hazel Di Muccio, Georgia Vellas,
Third Place: Mia Castricum, Isabella Hunt, Dylan Rayen
YEAR 12
First Place: Jemima Tabacco, Miles Verschuur
Second Place: Anna Maria d'Onghia, Emma Iacuone, Sienna Perez-Quintela, Angus Pollerd
Third Place: Izzy Hunt, Ravneet Kaur, Isabella Petrone,
1480 students from 42 schools competed this year and 37 winners were selected. We congratulate them and all the participants!
Read the story in Il Globo.
YEAR 9
First Place: Aiden Lowry, Olivia Lupacchini, Prasati Pokharel, Roberta Sutera
Second Place: Giselle Iannarella, Jona Klempel, Gianna Recidocruz
Third Place: Madeleine Caruso, Amelia Kovacevic,
YEAR 10
First Place: Hayley Dufff, Sarah Vozzo, Phoebe Whitworth
Second Place: Sarah McKean, Ethan Scollo, Angelina Zhu
Third Place: Samarth Gupta, Ava Licciardi,
YEAR 11
First Place: Sienna Ganci, Diego Lamilla
Second Place: Amelia Banks, Abbi Kelly, Hazel Di Muccio, Georgia Vellas,
Third Place: Mia Castricum, Isabella Hunt, Dylan Rayen
YEAR 12
First Place: Jemima Tabacco, Miles Verschuur
Second Place: Anna Maria d'Onghia, Emma Iacuone, Sienna Perez-Quintela, Angus Pollerd
Third Place: Izzy Hunt, Ravneet Kaur, Isabella Petrone,
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS' AWARDS ANNOUNCED
For over 20 years the Dante Alighieri Society of Melbourne has been running the University Students’ Prizes of Excellence Program.
We thank the generous individuals, families, and organisations for their support and for sharing our mission to celebrate and promote Italian language and culture.
ABOUT THE AWARDS
The awards are made to students who have achieved outstanding results in their studies in Italian across the four universities. They are chosen by the lecturers of each institution.
The awards include: prize money, 12 month membership for the Dante Alighieri Society and this year, a copy of Una donna una rosa, the latest collection of poems by the well-respected Italian Australian poet Mariano CORENO.
DR SOCCORSO SANTORO PRIZE – THE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
The Dr Soccorso SANTORO Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at the University of Melbourne who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
The Dr Soccorso SANTORO prizes are generously sponsored by the Santoro family, which has been involved with Società Dante Alighieri since at least 1931, when Dr Soccorso SANTORO became President of the Society – an office he would hold until 1959. To this day, Dr Soccorso SANTORO is fondly remembered by many also for his dedicated work as a general practitioner for the Italian migrant community in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Soccorso’s son, Dr George, his wife Susan, George’s grandson Max and their family proudly continue to uphold Soccorso’s legacy in the cultural field.
Winners:
Margaret Oravecz
Cristina De Simone
Serfina Nouri
PROFESSOR COLIN McCORMICK & MRS JOSEPHINE McCORMICK PRIZE – MONASH UNIVERSITY
The Professor Colin McCORMICK & Mrs Josephine McCORMICK Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at Monash University who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
Professor Colin Angus McCORMICK founded the Department of Italian Studies at the University of Melbourne in 1959, where he lectured until his retirement in 1981. He is well remembered, both in academic and in community circles, for his passion and capacity in promoting the Italian language and culture. Professor McCORMICK was for many years Vice President of Società Dante Alighieri, Melbourne. His late wife Josephine was also an enthusiastic member of the Society. This prize is generously sponsored by their children, who wish to honour their parents’ legacy by contributing a special encouragement for people who are studying Italian.
Winners:
Maria Hinen
Luca Aldo Brown
Chloe Pandaleon
ITALIAN CLUB CAVOUR PRIZE – AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
The Italian Club Cavour Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students of the Australian Catholic University, who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
The Italian Club Cavour, founded in Melbourne in 1917, shares with the Dante Alighieri Society the commitment to encouraging people to study the Italian language and culture and to develop and maintain connections with Italy. The club is very supportive of the Society’s activities and contributes generously to many of its programs for schools and universities.
Winners:
Dalemaree Florentine Willcocks
Sharon Croxford
Elizabeth Grace Brigid Mills
DANTE ALIGHIERI SOCIETY, MELBOURNE, PRESIDENT’S PRIZE – LA TROBE UNIVERSITY
Dante Alighieri Society President’s Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at La Trobe University who have achieved outstanding results in Italian. This prize was set up almost 20 years ago by the former long-serving President of Società Dante Alighieri, Thomas HAZELL, AO.
Winners:
Claudia Gelsi
Claudia Pironi
Amelie Milazzi
Thank you to our sponsors: The Santoro Family, The McCormack Family and the Italian Club Cavour.
Thank you to our partner universities and the staff:
University of Melbourne: Dr Vita GIORDANO, Ms Elisabetta FERRARI & Mr Matthew ABSALOM
Monash University: Dr Barbara PEZZOTTI
Australian Catholic University: Dr Anna MENICUCCI
La Trobe University: Dr Brigid MAHER & Dr Gregoria MANZIN
We thank the generous individuals, families, and organisations for their support and for sharing our mission to celebrate and promote Italian language and culture.
ABOUT THE AWARDS
The awards are made to students who have achieved outstanding results in their studies in Italian across the four universities. They are chosen by the lecturers of each institution.
The awards include: prize money, 12 month membership for the Dante Alighieri Society and this year, a copy of Una donna una rosa, the latest collection of poems by the well-respected Italian Australian poet Mariano CORENO.
DR SOCCORSO SANTORO PRIZE – THE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE
The Dr Soccorso SANTORO Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at the University of Melbourne who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
The Dr Soccorso SANTORO prizes are generously sponsored by the Santoro family, which has been involved with Società Dante Alighieri since at least 1931, when Dr Soccorso SANTORO became President of the Society – an office he would hold until 1959. To this day, Dr Soccorso SANTORO is fondly remembered by many also for his dedicated work as a general practitioner for the Italian migrant community in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Soccorso’s son, Dr George, his wife Susan, George’s grandson Max and their family proudly continue to uphold Soccorso’s legacy in the cultural field.
Winners:
Margaret Oravecz
Cristina De Simone
Serfina Nouri
PROFESSOR COLIN McCORMICK & MRS JOSEPHINE McCORMICK PRIZE – MONASH UNIVERSITY
The Professor Colin McCORMICK & Mrs Josephine McCORMICK Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at Monash University who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
Professor Colin Angus McCORMICK founded the Department of Italian Studies at the University of Melbourne in 1959, where he lectured until his retirement in 1981. He is well remembered, both in academic and in community circles, for his passion and capacity in promoting the Italian language and culture. Professor McCORMICK was for many years Vice President of Società Dante Alighieri, Melbourne. His late wife Josephine was also an enthusiastic member of the Society. This prize is generously sponsored by their children, who wish to honour their parents’ legacy by contributing a special encouragement for people who are studying Italian.
Winners:
Maria Hinen
Luca Aldo Brown
Chloe Pandaleon
ITALIAN CLUB CAVOUR PRIZE – AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
The Italian Club Cavour Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students of the Australian Catholic University, who have achieved outstanding results in Italian.
The Italian Club Cavour, founded in Melbourne in 1917, shares with the Dante Alighieri Society the commitment to encouraging people to study the Italian language and culture and to develop and maintain connections with Italy. The club is very supportive of the Society’s activities and contributes generously to many of its programs for schools and universities.
Winners:
Dalemaree Florentine Willcocks
Sharon Croxford
Elizabeth Grace Brigid Mills
DANTE ALIGHIERI SOCIETY, MELBOURNE, PRESIDENT’S PRIZE – LA TROBE UNIVERSITY
Dante Alighieri Society President’s Prize, awarded each year by the Dante Alighieri Society, Melbourne to three students at La Trobe University who have achieved outstanding results in Italian. This prize was set up almost 20 years ago by the former long-serving President of Società Dante Alighieri, Thomas HAZELL, AO.
Winners:
Claudia Gelsi
Claudia Pironi
Amelie Milazzi
Thank you to our sponsors: The Santoro Family, The McCormack Family and the Italian Club Cavour.
Thank you to our partner universities and the staff:
University of Melbourne: Dr Vita GIORDANO, Ms Elisabetta FERRARI & Mr Matthew ABSALOM
Monash University: Dr Barbara PEZZOTTI
Australian Catholic University: Dr Anna MENICUCCI
La Trobe University: Dr Brigid MAHER & Dr Gregoria MANZIN
Dante Alighieri Society and CoAsIt New Memorandum of Understanding Signed
The Dante Alighieri Society of Melbourne and Co.As.It Italian Assistance Association have entered into a formal Memorandum of Understanding to cement our work together and promote Italian language and culture in Melbourne and beyond. This will mean the two organisations will coordinate a program of language courses, prizes, scholarships and events that will strengthen Italian culture in Melbourne. Read the article in Il Globo
