Annual Report 2017

A Year of Consolidation

Throughout 2017 the initiatives, programmes, and administration of the Institute of Italian Studies - Lakehead University have matured. As it began its second decade, the Institute consolidated its mission and mandate within the Lakehead University community and within Thunder Bay. Its fundraising initiatives - “Golfing for the Goal held in June and the “Culinary Wine Tasting & Dinner” - were as successful as they have ever been despite competition from other organizations within Thunder Bay staging similar events. To further promote the study of Italian culture, the Institute offered a graduate award to Lakehead University students in the amount of $15,000 every second year. In addition, it honoured its three-year commitment to the Cortona Project allowing Lakehead University students the opportunity to study in Italy.

New initiatives were introduced in 2017. The board of directors is exploring the feasibility of establishing a “Chair of Italian Studies” at Lakehead University similar to the Chair of Finnish Studies already a part of the university programme. Moreover, the Institute is in the process of acquiring the records of the Ladies Venet Society which has been in existence in Thunder Bay since the early 1940s. A new publication in the genre of children’s literature, titled “Tarentella to Thunder Bay” by one of our directors, Leah Nadin, will be available in the near future. In order to keep Canadians aware of the work of the Institute, its website, www.IISLU.com will undergo a major overhaul. This website will sure to become the first port of call for anyone wishing to explore the ways and means by which the Institute of Italian Studies - Lakehead University promotes Italian culture within Northwestern Ontario and beyond.