FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact:   Elissa Ruffino (NIAF) 202/939-3106 or elissa@niaf.org

(WASHINGTON, DC – June 13, 2005) Eighty Italian American students recently traveled to the regions of Tuscany and Liguria, in the central part of Italy, between May 18 and June 2, 2005, to participate in The Gift of Discovery, an educational and cultural program, sponsored by the National Italian American Foundation (NIAF).

The Foundation’s all-expenses-paid program increased the participants’ understanding of Italy and their Italian heritage. More than 600 Italian American students between the ages of 18 and 23 applied to the Foundation’s Gift of Discovery program.

In its fifth year, the 10-day Gift of Discovery trip included: an underground tour of Rome and tours of an Etruscan museum and tombs and a visit to Cave di Marmo (a marble quarry). It included excursions to the Italian Riviera towns of Cinque Terre of Corniglia, Riomaggiore, Manarola, Monterosso, and Vernazza. Participants also visited La Spezia, Lucca, and Pisa.

The round-trip airfare between the U.S. and Italy, accommodations, meals, escorted tours, and transfers (valued at $1,800) are financed by NIAF with sponsorship from Parco Nazionale Cinque Terre.

The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) is a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC and dedicated to preserving the heritage of Americans of Italian descent. Visit our web site atwww.niaf.org