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Dr. Arnold Lisio ���Ĵ�ý�56, ���Ĵ�ý�61M (MD) grew up hearing stories about Italy from his Italian father and Italian American mother. Though he wouldn���Ĵ�ý�t actually visit Italy until his early 30s, he was quickly hooked.

Arnold recalls the importance of that first visit. ���Ĵ�ý�Up until that point, I had only seen Italy through motion pictures and photographs, which just wasn���Ĵ�ý�t the same as actually being there,���Ĵ�ý� he says. ���Ĵ�ý�I remember one particular moment when I was sitting in a little piazza having coffee with a friend of mine. Suddenly, I realized something very important. It was one of the first times I wasn���Ĵ�ý�t having to do anything yet I was accomplishing something���Ĵ�ý�I was experiencing the beauty of this amazing country.���Ĵ�ý�

���Ĵ�ý�After experiencing the richness of the culture, I wanted to share my love for Italy with students at my alma mater, the University of Rochester,���Ĵ�ý� he says. ���Ĵ�ý�I wanted them to have an opportunity to live and study in a country where beauty, art, history, and spirituality are a part of daily life.���Ĵ�ý�

Arnold and his wife, Anne Lisio, have done just that. They���Ĵ�ý�ve supported the University���Ĵ�ý�s Italian studies programs for more than 10 years. Their recent $2 million gift from them endows the Lisio Program in Italian Studies, ensuring that undergraduates will always have opportunities to enhance their understanding and appreciation of Italy���Ĵ�ý�s language, art, culture, and history.

The Lisios’ generosity specifically supports, but is not limited to, student scholarship prizes, summer fellowships, and faculty and program grants for such programs as the University���Ĵ�ý�s Arezzo program, the San Martino Field School, the Roman Structures program, and a new experiential summer learning program in Procida, off the coast of Naples. Their generosity has the potential to support a wide variety of other Italian studies-related programs, too.

���Ĵ�ý�All of the University���Ĵ�ý�s Italian programs are important, and the faculty involved are excellent,���Ĵ�ý� adds Arnold. ���Ĵ�ý�Each instructor is passionate about his or her field of study and each has such a tremendous depth of knowledge. I���Ĵ�ý�ve experienced it first hand, and can only imagine how students benefit and learn from them.���Ĵ�ý�

The Lisios have been to Italy more than a dozen times, and met some students in Procida in the summer of 2017. ���Ĵ�ý�I was so impressed with them,���Ĵ�ý� adds Arnold. ���Ĵ�ý�I saw such intelligence and enthusiasm for living and studying in another country.���Ĵ�ý�

Arnold recounted one particular inspiring moment when he and his wife went out to eat with a group from the University. A young man���Ĵ�ý�a student from the group���Ĵ�ý�broke out in Italian song, which prompted the entire restaurant to erupt in applause.

���Ĵ�ý�There are always surprises to be had in Italy,���Ĵ�ý� says Arnold. ���Ĵ�ý�You can experience something special any time of the day, from an unexpected song in a crowded restaurant to the way the setting sun casts shadows on the Leaning Tower of Pisa to the chance opportunity to participate in the daily routine of monks���Ĵ�ý�all of which I have experienced and treasured.���Ĵ�ý�