Paola Sensi-Isolani  |  Interests  |  Scholarship  

Education:

• Ph.D. Social and Cultural Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, 1977
• M.A. Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, 1973
• M.A. English, University of Southern California, 1961
• B.A. English, University of Redlands, California, 1960

Teaching Experience:

• Saint Mary's College of California (1977 - Present)

Grant:

• Struggle and Success - Agnelli Foundation (July 1992)
  Grant to defray cost of research, indexing etc.

Presentations:

Papers Presented (last five years)

• "Gone West: An Italian Immigrant Looks Back". Sensi-Isolani, Paola Alessandra (talk, speech or lecture, invited)
  American italian Historical Association
  Keynote Address at the 40th Annual Conference of the American Italian Historical Associatoin held in Denver, Colorado
  (November 02, 2008)
• Bringing the Dead Back to Life: Dante Alighieri's Inferno. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (talk, speech or lecture)
  Museo Italo Americano: To Hell and Back with Dante
  (May 2006)
• Adaptation and Evolution: Advocating for Anthropology in a small Liberal Arts College. Sensi-Isolani, Paola Alessandra (paper)
  American Anthropological Association 104th Annual Meeting
  (December 2005)
• Cannery, Factory, Sweatshop: Italian Immigrant Women and the Fight for Worrkers' Rights. Sensi-Isolani, Paola
  Women of the World in the Bay Area: Immigrant Struggles and Challenges. International Museum of Women, San Francisco
  (April 2004)
• What is Italy? What is Italian? The Construction, Production and Consumption of Italian Identity in Las Vegas. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  Third Annual Interdisciplinary Symposium, Italian Cultural Studies, Florida Atlantic University
  (October 2002)
• "The Global and Local Dimensions of Chinese Immigration to the Florence Area.. Sensi-Isolani, Paola
  Global and Local Dimensions of Asian America: An International Conference on Asian Diasporas, UC Berkeley
  (May 2002)
• Economic Transformation and the Reaction to Chinese Immigrants in Italy's Golden Triangle. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  Race, Ethnicity and Migration: The United States in a Global Context, University of Minnesota
  (November 2000)
• In Search of New Identities and Social Policies: Europe, Multiculturalisms and Globalization: The Italian Example. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  U. C. Berkeley, Center for Western European Studies
  (March 1999)
• I Figurinai della Lucchesia: Artigiani ed Emigranti. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  Italian Department, University of California
  (February 1999)
• The Italian Immigrant Experience: East is East and West is West. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  Italian American History Day, Chico State University, Departments of Modern Languages and Literatures, English and School of Liberal Arts
  (October 1998)
• Chinese Immigration in Two Tuscan Comuni. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  In Search of New Identities and Social Policies: Europe, Multiculturalisms, Globalization, Center for German and European Studies and Townsend Center for the Humanities, U.C. Berkeley
  (May 08, 1998)
• Italian Immigration to the Promised Land: The Italian Experience in California. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  "Italy in California: The Ties that Bind," Museo ItaloAmericano
  (April 1998)
• A Multicultural Italy? Two Cities and Chinese Immigrants. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  IRAS, Center for Western European Studies, U.C. Berkeley
  (February 1998)
• Struggle and Success: Italian Immigrants in the Promised Land. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  "Una Storia Segreta An Open Forum", Chico State University
  (December 1997)
• Company Policies and Ethnic Relations: Italian and African American Workers in California's Lumber Industry. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  "Shades of Black and White: Conflict and Collaboration Between Two Communities," 30th Annual Conference of the American Italian Historical Association, Cleveland, Ohio
  (November 1997)
• Exploited Radicals and Exploiting Conservatives: Two Sides of the Italian Immigrant Experience in California. Sensi-Isolani, Paola (paper)
  "The Lost World ofItalian American Radicalism: Labor, Politics and Culture," City University of New York and John Calandra Institute, New York
  (May 1997)

Publications:

• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. 2007. Planting Roots, Reaping the Harvest, Museo ItaloAmericano
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. 2004. Italian Radicals and Union Activists in San Freancisco: 1900-1920., the Lost World of Italian American Radicalism, Praeger
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "What is Italy, What is Italian? Virtual Reality in Las Vegas." VIA: Voices in Italian Americana, April 2003
• Italian Americans: A Retrospective on the 20th Century. : American Italian Historical Association, 2001.
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "The Italians." A Nation of Peoples: A Source Book on America’s Multicultural Heritage. Ed. Barkan, Elliott Greenwood Press, 1999
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "Dalle Alpi ad Atitlan: Italian Emigration to Guatemala." Studi Emigrazione 1998
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "The Italians." A Nation of Peoples: A Source book on America's Multicultural Heritage. Ed. Barkan, Elliott Greenwood Press, 1998
• Struggle and Success: Italian Americans in the Golden State. : Center for Migration Studies, 1995.
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "Early Italian Immigrants in the Lumber Industry." Insieme June 1991
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "Occidental: An Italian American Experience." Insieme March 1991
• Italian Americans Celebrate Life: the Arts and Popular Culture. : AIHA and Purdue University Press, 1991.
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "La Pelle in California, I Soldi in Italia: The Italian Strike in McCloud, California, 1909." Studi Emigrazione 1990
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. Shattering the Stereotype: Italian Immigrants in Northern California. : WRC, 1989.
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "Italian Language and Culture Promotion: The Pitfall of Cross-Cultural Misunderstanding." Italian Ethnics: Their Language, Literature and Lives. Ed. Candeloro, Giordano and Gardaphe AIHA, 1988
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola. "Tradition and Transition in a California Paese." Italian Immigrants in Rural and Small Town America. Ed. Vecoli, Rudolph University of Minnesota Immigration History Research Center, 1987
• Sensi-Isolani, Paola.. Various Book reviews in Journal of American Ethnic History, Studi Emigrazione, AltreItalie, The Italian American Review

Performances:

Exhibit

• Planting Roots, Reaping the Harvest. Mueo Italo Americano, COPIA. (October 2007)
  This exhibit which traces the contribution of Italian Immigrants and their Descendents to the Napa and Sonoma Wine Industry opened at the Museo ItaloAmericano in San Francisco October 11 2006 and ran to January 28, 2007. It then moved to COPIA the Museum of Food and Wine in Napa California where it will run until September 30, 2007.