Tag Archives: Mike Veselka

A sixth-generation Italian American with a profound connection to her roots, Carla Simonini, Ph.D., arrives in Chicago next month to lead Loyola University’s Italian-American Studies program. Complimenti! It took five years, a massive fund-raising campaign that netted $500,000 and a historic commitment by Loyola University of Chicago, but our metropolis finally has an Italian-American studies program to call its own. Though the program is based at Loyola, which matched the $500,000 to create a $1 million endowment, organizers say it also belongs to the local Italian-American community, which will be invited to participate through a variety of outreach efforts. These …

Past UNICO National President Tony Fornelli; the Rev. Thomas Regan, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Past UNICO National President Mike Veselka; local historian Dominic Candeloro; and Art Lurigio, associate dean for faculty at Loyola’s College of Arts and Sciences, celebrate the first installment of UNICO National’s $25,000 pledge toward the fundraising drive to create an endowed chair of Italian American Studies at Loyola University in Chicago. The drive is only $65,000 shy of its $500,000 goal. http://luc.edu/italianamerican/