Sightseeing at the Colosseum

Author: Allison Primm | Majors: International Business Marketing, Political Science | Semester: January Intersession 2023

When I first boarded the plane to Rome, I had no idea the lessons I would take away in just a short intersession. My name is Allison Primm, and I am a senior in the Walton College of Business and Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. I am majoring in International Business Marketing and Political Science with a minor in Spanish. I had the opportunity to travel to Rome, Italy over the January Intersession of 2023. This program, led by Walton faculty Molly Jensen and Heather Sprandel, was focused on building a partnership between Walton students and the Roma Faber business consortium in the Rione Ponte neighborhood of Rome.

I initially chose this course because I saw it as a fun way to enrich my academic experience through cultural experiences and broadening my horizons, but as I learned more about what the focus of the course would be, I grew more passionate about the partnerships that our group would help to form. The University of Arkansas Rome Center hosted our group, and the neighborhood surrounding campus was our focus. Several businesses in this neighborhood, which has a long and rich history of artisans, have formed a business consortium that they call “Roma Faber.” Their goal is to build a brand around their businesses and the consortium, ultimately growing their area of town into a tourist destination and mecca of artisanal craftsmanship. Our groups were assigned a few of the businesses to focus on, and leading up to the trip we did research into the area and the target markets for the industries of our assigned businesses. My group worked with three stores that sold antiquities and vintage accessories and one store which specializes in vintage costume jewelry from the 30s and 40s. Over the 12 days we spent working with them, we visited their stores, interviewed the business owners about their strategies, and did research about the current customer base. The project culminated in a presentation wherein we delivered our research findings to an audience of local business owners, university faculty, and even a few Roman city officials. The summary of their target markets, first impression write-up, SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis, and our final presentations were delivered to each business owner as a tool they can use in the future and as a way to provide a foundation for future student groups and this continuing partnership.

The experience of working hands-on with real business owners in Italy is something that will have forever changed me. The time I spent working with my group and our business partners in Rione Ponte helped me to become a better critical thinker, and cross-cultural communicator, and more adept at coming up with creative, outside-the-box solutions to complex issues. One of the biggest barriers was the language barrier, as most of our group members had limited knowledge of Italian, and the majority of the business owners did not speak English. Google Translate became one of my favorite tools, as we had to learn to think on our feet as we tried to figure out the best way to communicate about things like business strategies and changing market trends, which can be hard enough on its own even when you are speaking the same language. It was important for us to think critically about the questions we asked based on the knowledge we wanted to glean from our partners. This practice in communication and critical thinking on my feet was instrumental to the program. In the course of our partnership, we also had to adjust to differences in culture and social values. While doing our research and talking to business owners, it became clear that many of the things that American society values in the way we approach business and work are not the same in Italy. One example of this was that business hours were not consistent and could be difficult to find. We also discovered that not many businesses utilize social media as a marketing tool. Both of those things are not common in America, and this was an adjustment we had to make as we approached the partnership. Finally, our research showed us that while many of the weaknesses we found seemed simple, there were a lot of nuances that made coming up with solutions difficult. This forced us to think outside of the box and give constructive feedback to our partners that they could put to use.

This class was different than any other I have taken at the U of A because it was focused on experiential learning. While we did spend time in classrooms, (at the beautiful home of the Rome Center, Palazzo Taverna. Yes a literal palace) most of our work and research was done out in the field. We became uniquely acquainted with the neighborhood, Roman culture, and our business partners due to this format, and I found it the most beneficial part of the experience. Our instructors served as amazing guides and resources when we needed help, but they also gave us a lot of freedom to dive into our projects and take control of the direction we went. Having this freedom and trust from then only added to the academic, personal, and professional lessons learned throughout this program.

In addition to the amazing experience that was our project, we also got to learn all about the rich history all around us in Rome. Every day we went to different city sights and learned from our amazing tour guide, Luciana, about the historical, artistic, architectural, and cultural significance of each site. We got the chance to visit the National Roman Museum, Castel Sant’Angelo, the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, Trajan Market, the Pantheon, Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and Villa Borghese. Each of these sites was beautiful and fascinating in its own right, and I’m fairly certain my breath was taken away at every single one. My favorite excursion we took was the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. Seeing the place where Rome is said to have been founded and where emperors walked was truly amazing. I enjoyed it because of the architectural ruins, but also because you could see years of history unfolding almost in front of your eyes through the different buildings and their architectural features. Some of us took the rare free afternoon to visit other cities in Italy as well. I was able to spend an afternoon in Florence and almost a full day in Venice. Hopping on a train and being able to experience a new city and its own unique culture is an opportunity I will never pass up.

This experience shaped me in many ways, and I would make the decision to go again in a heartbeat. One of the things I enjoyed most was knowing that our group was the first of many University of Arkansas students to come to Rione Ponte and partner with these incredible people. I would recommend this program to anyone who wants to be pushed outside of their comfort zone and is interested in learning in a nontraditional way. Because trust me, you will learn a lot! If I were to do it over, I would practice Italian as much as I could, and I would also recommend investing in a good pair of walking shoes. 8+ miles per day on cobblestones is no joke. Overall, I am thankful to have had this opportunity, and I look forward to returning home and sharing all about this trip with my friends and family. I also can’t wait to put my pasta-making skills to the test, using the recipe we learned in our Italian cooking class, of course!