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The Center for Italian Studies was created in 1978 by the University of Pennsylvania President Martin Meyerson and by the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences Vartan Gregorian, with the endorsement of the Republic of Italy. It was the first such center in the United States.
The Center's mission is to support Penn's faculty and students in their research and pedagogy, while engaging the latest trends in Italian Studies, including topics of literature, music, theatre, art, film, history, politics, economy, and society; to broaden the impact of Penn-based Italian Studies beyond Penn’s campus; to foster relationships between Penn and the following constituencies: Philadelphia’s Italian-American community, governmental entities representing Italy in the U.S., research centers and cultural organizations promoting Italian issues in the U.S.