Two Wheatley Students

Receive Honorable Mention Recognition

At the Italian Poetry Contest

  Caitlin Calio and Maria D'Iorio were both awarded Honorable Mention for their recitations at this year's Italian Poetry Contest, sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of Italian (AATI). The competition was held on Friday, March 25, 2011 at SUNY at Old Westbury.  Both girls are students of Mrs. Susan Vasselman.  Caitlin, a student in Italian III, was recognized for her recitation of the poem "Piove" by Ada Negri. Maria, a level IV student, received honorable mention for her recitation of "Memoria" by Natalia Ginzburg. Mrs. Vasselman stated, "I am so pleased that my students accepted the challenge to participate on this level of interscholastic competition." Students are rated on their interpretation of the poem, poise, pronunciation and intonation. Joan Anderson, the Curriculum Associate for Foreign Language in the East Williston School District, added that this is quite an honor. "We are all very proud of Caitlin and Maria and how they represented our Italian program." The competition draws more than 400 students from schools across Long Island. Other participants from The Wheatley School included Dana Calabrese, Dex John Iannone, Isabella D'Iorio, Jacqueline LaGinestra, Alexa Parker and Elizabeth Quinn.

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Wheatley students, Maria D'Iorio (left) and Caitlin Calio (right), photographed with their Italian teacher, Susan Vasselman (center), both received Honorable Mention in the Italian Poetry Contest sponsored by the American Association of Teachers of Italian