A Brief History of the Italian Language in San Vito
How did San Vito become the only place in the world where the teaching of the Italian language is incorporated into the curriculum of public schools?
It is a long history, filled with people who, over the years, contributed to achieving this remarkable milestone. It is important to remember that San Vito was founded beginning on February 28, 1952.
What was originally a colony gradually became a town, the town became the administrative center of the canton, and the population continued to grow. Many families eventually emigrated and, as the years passed, there was a growing need to prevent the Italian language from disappearing in San Vito.
One of the first major steps was the establishment of the Dante Alighieri Society of San Vito in 1983, thanks to the vision of Don Vito Sansonetti and the Italian-Costa Rican community. To this day, the Dante Alighieri Society remains one of the main institutions dedicated to the teaching and preservation of the Italian language in San Vito.
However, Don Vito did not stop with this initiative. He was also a strong supporter of introducing Italian into public schools. An extremely important figure in this process was Angelo Papili, the son of a pioneering family, who became the first coordinator and one of the main creators of the Italian language program.
These efforts began to produce significant results in 1995, when the Costa Rican Ministry of Public Education expanded its national foreign-language teaching program at the primary-school level.
Later, in 1997, the Higher Council of Education approved the inclusion of foreign languages — including Italian — in the curriculum for the first and second cycles of primary education and authorized pilot programs.
Finally, in 1998, Italian was officially incorporated into the curriculum of several schools in San Vito, with its own educational program and five lessons per week. Italian thus evolved from a mainly voluntary program promoted by the Dante Alighieri Society into an official part of Costa Rica’s public education system.
Today, Italian is taught in the following schools:
- María Auxiliadora
Teachers: Eyleen Mojica Gómez / Nelson Solís Monge - Jaime Gutiérrez Braun
Teacher: Gerlin Guadamuz Sandí - Tres Ríos
Teacher: Nicoletta Quesada Consumi - Linda Vista
Teacher: Gerlin Guadamuz Sandí - La Isla
Teacher: Mónica Velásquez Carvajal - San Joaquín
Teacher: Jackeline Soto Cubilla - Barrio Canadá
Teacher: Anny Castro Jiménez - La Amistad
Teacher: Eyleen Mojica Gómez - Sabanillas
Teacher: Jackeline Lara Fonseca - Adele Clarini
Teacher: Yamileth Lara Fonseca
However, this story did not end with the primary schools. Another major step was taken with the creation of the Liceo Italo-Costarricense in 2003, thanks to the efforts of Angelo Papili, Stefano Cesare, Deputy Minister of Education Wilfrido Blanco Mora, and the support of the Italian Embassy through Ambassador Gioacchino Trizzino.
The school became a national point of reference for the teaching of the Italian language and culture at the secondary-school level. Among the Italian teachers who have worked there are:
Paula Mesén Cabezas, Simona Hernández Perozzi, Nairy Carpio Segura and Angelia Quirós Abarca.
It is a long history shaped by visionary people who, through dedication, sacrifice and perseverance, succeeded in creating and strengthening one of the greatest legacies that a community can leave to future generations: education
Teacher: Fabiàn Chinchilla Mèndez