Aug 30th – SEPT 6th 2026

Italian Summer School in Puglia

Discover Noci, a hidden corner of Puglia perfect for a total linguistic and cultural immersion. Advance your Italian in small native-led classes (max 6), then bring your skills to life through curated language and cultural adventures.

Too late for this summer?

Check out our 2027 dates and destinations

see what awaits you

Summer School 2025: snapshots

Our Teachers

Meet the teachers

ELEONORA DE ANGELI

Ciao! I’m Eleonora, I’m from the coast of Tuscany and I am so proud to be a co-founder and teacher at Don’t Forghetti.

EDUCATION:

I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Translation and Conference Interpreting from the University Scuola Superiore per Mediatori Linguistici di Pisa, as well as a Master’s Degree in Conference Interpreting and Translation from the University of Strasbourg. In both programs, my language combination was Italian, English, and German.

In 2017, I began formal training in teaching, attending several specialized courses and engaging in continuous professional development and workshops over the next five years. Additionally, I have earned two Teaching Knowledge certificates from Cambridge University.

WORK EXPERIENCE:

I began my career as a freelance translator and interpreter while still pursuing my degree, a job I continue to this day. Shortly after, I became a Project Manager for international trade shows in Milan, where training interns sparked my interest in teaching. This led me to start my education as a language teacher and move to Germany, where I taught for five years and became a certified language examiner. As I love international environments – I have worked with people from over 50 countries – I moved to Spain in 2022 and then to New York City in 2023 to teach at language schools. Later that year, I transitioned to full-time freelance teaching.

Now back in Italy, I am also a Lecturer in Translation at the University Scuola Superiore per Mediatori Linguistici di Pisa.

MARIA LUIGIA GENTILE

Ciao! I’m Maria Luigia, and I come from the province of Bari, in beautiful, sunny Puglia. I am a proud co-founder and teacher at Don’t Forghetti.

Education: In a past life, I was a passionate slavist: I earned an Honours Degree in Slavonic Studies at the University of Sheffield in the UK and a Master’s Degree from the University of Oxford.

Later, however, I developed a passion for teaching Italian and pursued the DITALS certification in Italian language instruction at the University for Foreigners of Siena.

And because one can never learn enough, I’m currently enrolled in a Master’s program in Innovative Language Teaching at the University of International Studies in Rome.

Work Experience: I started teaching somewhat for fun or out of curiosity during my university years, until it became my full-time job. My first teaching role was in Siberia for a summer internship. After graduating, I returned to Russia, where I worked for three years at a center for Italian language and culture in St. Petersburg.

The COVID pandemic forced me to reinvent myself as an online tutor but it also gave me the opportunity to specialise in digital and interactive teaching.

At the beginning of 2023, I packed my suitcase once again and flew to New York to teach at a school in Manhattan, where I met my colleagues and friends Tonia and Eleonora — and the rest is history! 🙂

TONIA DEL PRETE

Ciao! I’m Tonia from Napoli and I am thrilled to be co-founder and teacher of Don’t forghetti.

Education: I graduated from the University of Naples “L’Orientale” with a bachelor’s degree in linguistic and cultural mediation and a master’s degree in Italian language and culture for foreigners, which I completed with honours. In 2022, a few months after graduating, I obtained the CEDILS certification (certification of teaching Italian to speakers of other languages) and completed the courses to become an examiner for CILS and CELI, both certificates of Italian language competence for second or foreign language learners. I later completed a second-level postgraduate course (Master) in teaching Italian as a second language (L2) at the University of Naples “L’Orientale”, graduating with honours.

Work experiences: I started teaching Italian as a foreign or second language in 2019, while I was completing my master’s degree. Since then, I have taught online for an Italian school based in Moscow and for a language school based in Belgium. Thanks to my education and professional experience, in 2022 I obtained a sponsorship to teach Italian in New York, where I lived and worked until 2023. This is where I met Maria Luigia and Eleonora, and where Don’t Forghetti was born. Since the end of 2023, I have been working as a freelance online teacher while continuing to develop Don’t Forghetti as a co-founder. I also worked for six months in Slovakia, further enriching my international teaching experience.