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.
President
Margaret I. Cuomo, M.D. is the daughter of the late Governor Mario M. Cuomo and sister of New York’s current Governor, Andrew M. Cuomo. 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.
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.
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.
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.
Nicolas Gravante
Mr. Gravante is one of the nation’s most acclaimed trial lawyers and a dedicated public servant. He has served as Chair of the Board of Trustees of Brooklyn Public Library for the past four years and as a member of the Board for 14 years. He is a Partner at Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, where he has served as the firm’s General Counsel, as Administrative Partner of the firm’s New York City Office, and as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee.
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.
Emilia Nuccio
Emilia Nuccio has spent most of her career in the domestic and international arenas of the entertainment industry. She is currently the President of Enoro Media. Most recently she was Senior Vice President of Sales for Dynamic Television, a company engaged in co-productions, financing and worldwide distribution of original television content. In the past, she has held senior executive positions at the BBC, TELEVISA and Westinghouse Broadcasting, now CBS. Born in Sicily and emigrated to the USA at 16, Emilia earned her undergraduate degree at Queens College and received a graduate Fellowship at Yale University to study Italian Language and Literature. Emilia is fluent in Italian, English, Spanish and has an excellent command of French and Portuguese.
Salvatore Zizza
Mr. Zizza is president of Zizza & Co. Ltd. and former President of the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF).
Enzo Pizzimenti
Mr. Pizzimenti is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of CClean Inc., a specialized building maintenance company that provides cleaning services to medical, corporate and educational facilities. Mr. Pizzimenti is the President of the Italian Center for Commercial Affairs (ICCA – USA), an organization devoted to promoting Italian culture and trade in the United States. Through ICCA – USA Mr. Pizzimenti fosters the art of Bel Canto.
Rosa Battisti Stella
Rosa practices real estate law and provides residential and commercial real estate closings, subdivision approvals, as well as commercial property management. She speaks Italian fluently, and is passionate about Italian language and culture. Rosa’s daughters study Italian in middle and high school. Rosa and her husband, Steven Stella, are active members of the Columbus Citizens Foundation.
Team
Jefferson L. Wilson
Director of Public Relations, USA
Magaly Rivera
Development Consultant & Strategic Planner, USA
Dr. Marta Muggianu
Consultant, Italy
Dott. Domenico “Mimo” Ragozzino
Press & Public Relations, Italy