President’s Gala Concludes 50th Anniversary Year Celebrations at JCU
On September 23, 2023, the annual President’s Gala was held at Rome’s Hotel Hassler. President Franco Pavoncello welcomed more than 80 guests including Trustees, administrators, alumni, faculty, staff, and members of the JCU Student Government.
Welcome by President Pavoncello
“As we conclude our 50th Anniversary, we have opened an impressive new page in the journey of our beloved institution,” said President Pavoncello. He cited a record enrollment of 1,800 students, and the soon to be created Guarini Center for the Arts, as well as the MA in International Affairs and an MBA in collaboration with the Polytechnic of Milan, which will both be launched in Fall 2024. “This long journey of 50 years from a small building in Via Pola to what John Cabot has become, has been the fruit of the work of many generations of dedicated administrators, faculty, and staff,” continued the President.
On behalf of the JCU community, the President thanked the Trustees for their valuable insights and generous contributions to the wellbeing of the University.
Frank J. Guarini Medal for Leadership in Business: Angelica Ruspoli Visconti
“As Chairman of the Board of Trustees, I am proud to be a part of the JCU community and to help further its mission to provide students with outstanding academic preparation for learning and fulfillment in a unique multicultural environment,” said Comm. Salvatore Salibello.
Chair Salibello then introduced the recipient of the Frank J. Guarini Medal for Leadership in Business, Angelica Ruspoli Visconti, a longstanding supporter and friend of JCU. Ruspoli Visconti has been involved in the JCU community for many years, attending and supporting events and activities in particular since her husband, Francesco Ruspoli, was named the President of the JCU Alumni Association.
After receiving a degree in Business and Economics from Bocconi University in Milan and participating in executive education programs at Kellogg University and NYU Stern Business School, Ruspoli Visconti started to work in Finance and Communications at Duff & Phelps and Nestle before joining the family business in 2002. At Ferragamo, she focused on the international markets, working for the Marketing and Commercial departments, in New York and Shanghai. She then returned to Italy to manage the South Europe Region and later the Global Commercial Department. In 2018 she entered the Board of Directors, and in 2022 Ruspoli Visconti was named Vice-Chairman of the Company. Ruspoli Visconti thanked President Pavoncello, Chair Salibello and John Cabot University for this honor.
2023 Distinguished Alumni Award: Journalist Rebecca Anne Proctor, Class of 2005
Francesco Ruspoli, alumnus (Class of 1994), President of the Alumni Association and JCU Trustee presented this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award to Rebecca Anne Proctor. “I am thrilled to announce the recipient of this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award, an honor bestowed upon those who have not only excelled in their chosen fields but have also demonstrated unwavering dedication to the values John Cabot University holds.”
The former Editor-in-Chief of Harper’s Bazaar Art and Harper’s Bazaar Interiors, Rebecca’s writing has been published in The New York Times Style Magazine, Bloomberg Businessweek Middle East, BBC World, and Vogue Arabia. Her book Art in Saudi Arabia: A New Creativity Economy? authored with Ali Al-Senussi will be published by Lund Humphries on November 30, 2023. In 2009 Rebecca moved to Abu Dhabi to work for an art gallery and pursue her interest in journalism. She has lived in the United Arab Emirates ever since, reporting from around the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. After graduating from John Cabot University in 2005 with a major in Art History, Rebecca obtained her M.Litt. from Christie’s London/University of Glasgow in Modern and Contemporary Art History. She then completed a double master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies and Conflict Resolution from the American University of Paris, and a master’s in Sociology of Conflicts from the L’Institut Catholique.
“This award is like a welcome home,” said Rebecca as she thanked President Pavoncello, Chair Salibello, and the JCU community. “Thank you, John Cabot University, for providing a stellar education in a campus like no other: Roma. And offering a meeting point for students from around the world, so many I studied with are still dear friends.”
