CONNECTICUT ITALIAN TEACHERS ASSOCIATION 

Immediate Past President 

Gina Gallo

ginagallo@bristolk12.org

Gina Gallo believes that language teachers are superhumans who make the world a better, brighter, and more compassionate place. Gina is a proud SCSU alumna and Italian teacher at Bristol Central High School. She is currently enrolled in an amazing Italian Literacy and Cultural Studies program at UCONN. Gina is a lifelong learner of Italian, a Latin newbie, and a lover of Spanish. Gina's goal is to maintain and grow Italian programs across the state.

President  

Lorena Snell

lsnell@sheltonpublicschools.org

Lorena has been an Italian teacher at Shelton High School for 15 years. She is the Advisor of the SHS Italian Club and co-founder of "La Casa Italiana" Summer Italian Camp. Her love for the Italian culture and language started at home with her Italian-born parents. She loves sharing her personal experiences and family stories with her students. These moments help keep her connected to her     ancestors and allows her to educate her students with her first-hand, real-life experiences. Lorena hopes that all of her students will be able to appreciate and love Italian culture as her heart does.

Vice President

Teresa DiCarlo

 teresa.m.dicarlo@gmail.com

Teresa DiCarlo has been teaching Italian and French for over 13 years in various districts.  She is a lifelong lover of Italian language and culture ever since she first traveled to Italy at the age of nine.  She is currently teaching Italian at Our Lady of Mt Carmel in Waterbury - a school where all students study Italian!  She also teaches at the Italian Culture Center of Education in Wethersfield.  Although she misses encouraging her high school students to be global citizens and traveling abroad with them, she has a newfound passion for teaching elementary Italian with lots of singing, dancing, and storytelling! 

Regional Vice President 

Stephanie Sanzo

stephanie.sanzo@gmail.com

Stephanie Sanzo has been a World Language educator for over 13 years. Her love of languages at family gatherings with her big Italian Canadian family, so she started taking Italian in elementary school at a local heritage language school (where she now teaches herself!). Her love of learning and teaching languages has taken her all over the world. She has taught in secondary schools in Connecticut and overseas, and now works with current and future educators in Master’s of Education and teacher preparation programs.

Secretary 

Louisa D'Amore

 ldamore@westportps.org

 Louisa has been an Italian teacher at Staples High School in Westport since 2007.   After graduating from college, she followed her heart and moved to Italy for 7 years, splitting her time between Roma, Firenze and Sorrento. Louisa is the advisor for the Circolo Italiano at SHS and has been collaborating with Centro la Tenda, a community center for at-risk children in Napoli, since 2006. Louisa is an advocate of world language studies and believes that acquiring a second language is the cornerstone to future international relations and creating well-rounded and worldly young adults. 

COLT Representative

Rosy Pitruzzello

pitruzzellor@plainvilleschools.org

Rosy Pitruzzello is a current Ph.D. candidate at UConn, ILCS. She has taught Italian and French at the Middle School of Plainville for 5 years, and then at Plainville High School where she now teaches all levels of Italian (1 through 4) and is the INHS Advisor. She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Foreign Languages and Cultures at the University of Catania (in Sicily) in 2006 and, after relocating to the USA in 2013, she completed her Masters in Italian Languages and Cultures at Central Connecticut State University in 2016. Academically, her main interests include language and linguistics, culture and translation and how these all combine, interact and complete one another. Personally, Rosy loves to spend time with family and friends and enjoys staying in the kitchen and trying out new and traditional family recipes.