JuniorSeme sterInRomeProgramFacul ty Dr. Elizabeth Lev Art and Architecture
Prof. Baishakhee Christina Pal Moral Theology and Apologetics
Already beloved by many Christendom students who have had the good fortune to enjoy some exposure to her lectures and tours, Dr. Lev is now the instructor of record for the Art and Architecture course. Lev is universally recognized for her competence as an art historian and is widely acknowledged as the preeminent English speaking tour-guide in Rome, being selected to give tours to a variety of dignitaries, including the former First Lady Laura Bush. After doing her graduate studies at the University of Bologna, she has resided in Rome and taught there for a variety of institutions and programs, including the University of St. Thomas and Duquesne University. She has authored a book entitled, The Tigress of Forli: Renaissance Italy’s Most Courageous and Notorious Countess, Caterina Riario Sforza de’ Medici, along with many articles for a variety of journals, including Inside the Vatican and First Things. She additionally was the host of a 10-part television series on the art of the Vatican Museums on EWTN and has appeared on the History Channel’s program Angels and Demons Decoded.
Prof. Pal hails from Southern California and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Southern California in kinesiology. After teaching middle school math and science in Los Angeles, and undergoing a dramatic conversion to Catholicism, she made a bold decision to go to Rome in order to pursue graduate studies in theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas. Her studies culminated with her being awarded a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) with a specialization in Dogma and being accepted as a doctoral candidate at the same institution. Her expertise is in the dogmatic thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and her impressive Licentiate thesis is entitled, The Humanity of Christ as the Instrumental Efficient Cause of Grace and Salvation in the Theology of St. Thomas Aquinas. Her intellectual background and deep-rooted, abiding love for the Angelic Doctor make her a very good fit with Christendom’s theology department. Along with teaching as an adjunct for the Rome Program, she also is Adjunct Professor of Theology and Scripture at the Augustine Institute Distance Education Program.
Dr. Marie Cabaud Meaney Roman Perspectives An American, German, and French citizen, and currently residing in Italy, Dr. Meaney has a truly Catholic background that enhances her notable scholarly achievement and competence in the classroom. After receiving a Master’s degree in European Literature, with an emphasis on English and German literature, from Oxford University, she went on to complete her doctorate in French Literature, also from Oxford University, with a thesis entitled Literature and Apologetics: Simone Weil’s Christological Interpretations of Ancient Greek Texts. These degrees were added to degrees she had already received in philosophy from the International Academy of Philosophy in Liechtenstein and the Sorbonne in Paris. Meaney has delivered a host of lectures at scholarly conferences in Europe and America. She has many scholarly articles to her name and has even had a scholarly monograph, on the theme of her doctoral thesis, published by Oxford University Press. Regarding her teaching, Dr. Meaney taught as an instructor for three years at James Madison University and on a fellowship for three years at Villanova University.
Prof. Leigh Anne Benzaia Italian Prof. Benzaia, originally from New Jersey, has a Master’s degree in Foreign Languages for International Communication from Guglielmo Marconi University in Rome and is currently an instructor of linguistics at Gregorio Settimo University. She has extensive experience as a professional conference interpreter for the English, Italian, and German languages and serves as the director and head interpreter for the This is Mediation Linguistic Group. Informed by her vast professional experience and many years spent living and working in Rome, Benzaia will be the competent guide of the students’ encounter with the Italian language for the second year this fall.
Fallllll 22012 Fa F 00122 01
21