Assumption College Student Spends Semester in Rome

CRANSTON, RI — Alyssa Ruggieri, of Cranston, is spending her fall semester studying in Rome and within a walk of of St. Peter's Basilica.

She is among 17 Assumption College students at the school's Rome campus.

The idea, school officials say, is to use the city and the entire country of Italy as a living classroom. The students live in a residential neighborhood and mix with the population.

"The semester-long program offers students the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in the culture and history of the region," according to the press release.

"Thus far this semester, Ruggieri has traveled to Sorrento and will visit other cities in Italy such as Florence, Naples and Venice," the school said.

"As a Catholic liberal arts institution, Assumption College has remained dedicated to the education of the whole student by providing to them opportunities both inside and outside of the classroom," said Francesco C. Cesareo, Ph.D., president of Assumption College. "This transformative experience in Rome, Italy, which enables students to live and study together in a tight-knit learning community, allows them to grow personally and intellectually as they explore the birthplace of the classic liberal arts tradition that influenced the development of Western Civilization."