Board Of Directors
The Italian Language Foundation board members are leaders in the educational arena and the Italian-American community, and have a deep-seated commitment to the language and culture of Italy.
Margaret I. Cuomo, M.D.
President
Margaret I. Cuomo, M.D. is Co-Founder and President of the Italian Language Foundation. She is a member of the Committee to establish the AP Program in Italian, Chair of Lago del Bosco, the Italian Language Village, and a member of the National Advisory Board of Concordia Language Villages. Dr. Cuomo is also a member of Princeton University’s Advisory Council for the Department of French and Italian.
Dr. Cuomo is an honoree of the Association of Italian American Educators (2003, 2005) and the National Organization of Italian American Women (2004). In 2011, she was awarded the “Commendatore dell’Ordine della Stella della Solidarietà Italiana,” the “Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity,” by Giorgio Napolitano, president of Italy.
Louis A. Tallarini
Chairman
Mr. Tallarini is the President of Real Property Investors, Inc., a national real estate development and real estate finance company with diversified holdings in the commercial real estate and commercial real estate mortgage industries. Mr. Tallarini is former President and an active Member of the Columbus Citizens Foundation.
Lawrence Auriana
Mr. Auriana is the co-founder of the Federated Kaufmann Fund and has served as both President and Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Columbus Citizens Foundation.
Alfred Catalanotto
Mr. Catalanotto is the successful owner, operator and CEO of five high-profile quick service restaurants in New York City’s most heavily trafficked commuter hubs. He is a proud Italian American who served as a Board Member of the Columbus Citizens Foundation, and was Chairman of the Columbus Day Parade for over 15 years – working with notable Grand Marshals that included: director Franco Zeferelli; former Joint Chief of Staffs General Peter Pace; racing legend Mario Andretti; Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia; and celebrity chef Lidia Bastanich.
Claire L. Gaudiani
Since 2004, Claire L. Gaudiani served as Clinical Professor at The George H. Heyman, Jr. Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising at New York University’s School of Professional Studies. She stepped down from teaching at NYU in 2019. She has also served for 10 years as director of The Declaration Initiative, designed to advance the quality of life of those in the bottom 10 percent of the US income distribution.
Prior to 2004, Gaudiani was a Senior Research Scholar at the Yale Law School where she worked to complete a book entitled The Greater Good: How Philanthropy Drives the American Economy and Can Save Capitalism.
Dr. Gaudiani served from 1998-2001 as President of Connecticut College. Under her leadership, Connecticut College quintupled its endowment and rose in the influential U.S. News and World Report survey from No. 41 to the mid-20’s. Applications for admission rose a total of 40 percent over the last five years of her service.
Dr. Gaudiani holds a Ph.D. and master’s degree in French literature from Indiana University and a bachelor’s degree, also in French, from Connecticut College. Dr. Gaudiani served for five years as the volunteer president of the non-profit New London Development Corporation. She has served on the boards of numerous for-profit and not-for-profit enterprises including The Henry Luce Foundation, MBIA Inc., the Shubert Theatre, the Connecticut Center for School Change, Connecticut Legal Services Advisory Board, Public Radio International, and Citizens Bank. See detailed bio.
Elia Mannetta
Elia Mannetta is an international consultant in the fields of economic development and security. He has taught at high school and university level and lectures on topics related to Italian and Italian-American history and culture. He is an exponent of the Order of Sons of Italy in America. Since 1993, he has been a special adviser to the President of the Italian National Salvation Society. Since 2001, he has served as co-founder of the International Conference on Transport Safety.
Hon. Eugene Nardelli (Ret.)
Judge Nardelli is a retired Associate Justice of the Appellate Division, First Department, of the Supreme Court of the State of New York and a past President of the Columbus Citizens Foundation.
Anthony Scaglione Sr.
Anthony Scaglione Sr. is the Founder of DiReggio Advertising, a successful family-owned, full service creative agency he founded in 1988, located in Westchester County, New York. His company specializes in servicing financial institutions with his first client including a wide variety of clientele and Fortune 500 companies in both the United States and Latin American markets.
Anthony’s talent and experience at developing effective brand strategies, corporate identity platforms, and integrated marketing programs have been the key factors in the agency’s continual growth. Born in Calabria, Anthony emigrated to Argentina, where he spent his childhood and moved to New York as a teenager and found his love for art and design. He speaks Italian and Spanish fluently. Anthony has spent most of his career contributing to his community and advancing his passions for culture, music and art. In his passion for Italian, he convenes regularly with a group of Italian professionals, the DaVinci Circle.
Salvatore Zizza
Mr. Zizza is president of Zizza & Co. Ltd. and former President of the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF).
Team
Magaly Rivera
Strategic Consultant – Programs & Fundraising
Jefferson L. Wilson Public Relations, US
Dr. Marta Muggianu
Consultant, Italy
Dott. Domenico “Mimo” Ragozzino
Press & Public Relations, Italy