By Jenna Lanzaro, class of 2013 at The College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey.

For Jenna Lanzaro, studying abroad in Italy has done more than just allow her to get to know her Italian-American heritage. This college student from Commack, N.Y., was struck by the relaxed feel of Italy, which contrasts with the fast pace of her home state.

This observation helped her win the third place $100 scholarship in University Language Services’ spring 2012 study abroad scholarship contest.

Jenna’s Photo

Jenna’s photo was taken in Italy, where she studied Italian at Florence University of the Arts in 2011. More specifically, the picture was taken in a lemon grove called Il Giardino di Cataldo, located in Sorrento.

During this time in her trip, she began to learn to live in the moment and enjoy her surroundings, which she attested was one of her goals when considering studying abroad in Italy. The peaceful lemon grove was not just refreshing and beautiful, but also a reminder to live in the moment, according to her description of her photo.

Her Future in Italy

Jenna expects to graduate from The College of New Jersey in 2013, but before that time comes, she will return to Italy to be a student teacher. She will live in Rome while teaching English to students at an international middle school.

Though Jenna has enjoyed Italy and plans to explore it even more in the fall, she still wants to see more of the world. In fact, she mentioned, “I have an insatiable travel bug now! I’d love to explore South America or Asia.”

Of course, everyone is subject to feeling homesick at some point while traveling. Jenna claimed she was missing her home toward the end of her trip but was able to stick to her goal of enjoying the moment before returning home.

Teaching English in Italy

With Jenna’s majors being English and secondary education, and her minor being creative writing, her desire to teach the language in another country is only natural. This opportunity should allow her to not only use her newfound Italian language skills, but also delve even deeper into the English language itself.

“I think that teaching English in a foreign country will expand my understanding of (and passion for) the language,” she said. “I also firmly believe that studying abroad has made me a more compassionate, curious, and creative individual, which I hope to use to present myself as a potential employee.”

Whether she continues down the career path as a teacher or eventually decides to take a different route, this attitude should serve her well, especially if she plans to travel more in the future. It appears that her experience studying abroad has taught her a lot so far, and her additional trip in the fall will likely help even more.

“Open-mindedness is so important to me, on both a personal and professional level, and I think that can best be achieved through immersion in another culture,” Jenna added. “In such a globalized and interconnected world, we need to expand beyond our own range of vision.”

This can be an important lesson to students or recent graduates planning to enter any field.

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