Paola Basile, Ph.D. | Faculty

What makes Lake Erie College a unique place?

Lake Erie College is unique because of its family-like environment and small class sizes that allow me the flexibility to teach a wide variety of courses in Italian and French Studies. This allows me to organize study trips abroad as part of my courses which are wonderful learning-experiences for the students that they couldn’t find at other schools. 

Degrees:

• Ph.D., Comparative Literature, Université de Montréal (Canada)

• M.A., French Studies, McGill University (Canada)

• "Laurea di dottore” with honors (Master’s degree), Modern Languages and Literature, University of Rome "La Sapienza" (Italy)

• Translator Diploma, Université de Grenoble (France)

Courses Taught:

• All level Italian Studies courses 

• All level French Studies courses

• International Studies and Study Tour Abroad courses

• English Honors courses

• Studies in World Literature

Research/Creative Activity Interests:

• My research is approached from an interdisciplinary and multicultural perspective, and my interests are as follows:

  • Comparative Literature (Italian/French/English) as it relates to the journey, otherness, identity, transformation, and discovery.

  • The intersection of Literature, Art, Culture, and Philosophy.

  • Dante’s Divine Comedy.

  • Film Studies.

  • Foreign Language Pedagogy.

  • Italian Regional Gastronomy.

Awards

• Numerous Grants awarded by the IACF, the Italian American Culture Foundation (2006-2020).

• Various "Faculty Awards" (Professional Development, 2005-present) to travel for conferences. Lake Erie College and the Doris Bray Endowed Faculty Enrichment Fund.

• Grants awarded every year by  "Il Cenacolo Italiano di Cleveland"  (Fournier Fund) from 2017 to present.

• Grant awarded in 2011 by the LEC Entrepreneurship Fund to invite on campus the international and well renowned artist Luca Buvoli.

• Grant awarded in 2010 by the Italian Consulate of Detroit and by the “Comitati degli Italiani all’estero” in support of Italian Culture activities at Lake Erie College.

• Grant awarded by the Northern Ohio Italian American Foundation (NOIA) to publish my book: "Explore Italy: Regional Cuisine, Culture, and Language" in 2023.

Professional Memberships:

• American Association for Italian Studies.

• Canadian Society for Italian Studies.

• Bridges Across Cultures.

• Northeast Modern Language Association.

• South Atlantic Modern Language Association.

Publications:

• Books and Textbooks: “Learn Italian with Pirandello”, 2015; “Imparare l’Italiano recitando: La Locandiera. Una versione creativa”,  2013;  “I folli voli di Ulisse”, 2006; “Battito d’ali”,  1995; "Explore Italy. Regional Cuisine, Culture, and Language. Il Centro", Cleveland 2023.

• Translated Books: Jimmy Cornell, “La passione per il mare”, from English to Italian, published in 2007. Bernard Moitessier, “Vela, mari lontani, isole e lagune”,   from French to Italian, published in 1996.

• Over twenty Articles (in Italian, in English, and in French) on topics related to my research interests (see above).

• Numerous Translated Articles and Book Reviews.

Career Accomplishments:

• Co-organized Italian Studies academic conferences in the United States, in Canada, and in Italy.

• Over thirty scholarly presentations (in Italian, in English, and in French) at academic conferences in the United States, in Canada, and in Europe.

• Taught at Universities in Canada (Université de Montréal

   & Concordia University) and in Switzerland (Franklin University).

• Vice-President of the Canadian Society for Italian Studies (2008-11). 

• Book Review Editor for "Quaderni d’Italianistica” (the official peer-reviewed journal of the Canadian Society for Italian Studies, 2011-15).

• Developed and led eleven successful study-tours abroad for LEC students

• Developed the Italian Studies major.

• Co-developed the French Studies major.

• Director of the annual IACF  (Italian American Cultural Foundation) Literature Award process from 2006-2020.