Professoressa Joy Salvetti Wolfe has been a poet and teacher of the Italian language, literature and poetry for over 20 years. She was educated at the California State University, Sacramento, and the Università di Firenze in Florence, Italy. In 1981, she was awarded an academic fellowship from Rutgers University, which enabled her to pursue independent study in Florence, Italy. She received her M.A. in Italian Studies/Multicultural Education from Vermont College. Professoressa Salvetti Wolfe was the 2003 National Italian-American Foundation fellowship award recipient, which was national recognition for outstanding academic and professional accomplishments in the fields of Italian and Italian-American Studies. She will be completing her Ph.D. in Italian Studies, with a specialization in Italian and Italian-American Film/Literature, in January 2004.

Beyond her fulfilling involvement in academia, she has written numerous poems in both Italian and English. She wrote the poetry and prose for a photographic exhibit entitled Portraits of a People: Contemporary Italian-American Life in Sacramento, and has collaborated with various local artists and poets, such as Ronald P. Tanaka, whereby Tanaka's Japanese-American poems were translated from English into Italian. The Sacramento Sessions website houses these poetic translations. Her latest collection of poems is entitled "An Italian-American in Italy Circa 2003."

Currently, she teaches the Italian language, culture and literature at the California State University, Sacramento. In her own words, she envisions her continuing promotion and support of the instruction of Italian in our universities and schools as follows:

"I am dedicated to offering my students the education that was offered to me over 20 years ago. Learning the Italian language offers a rich center of knowledge and intellectual stimulation beyond the assimilation of a second language. Teaching allows me the opportunity to gift the student community the rich foundation on which they can build a successful and globally competitive career."

Updated 9/12/03