Being born in Palermo and growing up in Sicily, Monica Valenti Niespodziany used to gather her friends and play “pretend school,” putting herself in the role of the teacher. When she decided to become a teacher, her family wasn’t the least bit surprised, she says.

Valenti Niespodziany has taught Italian at St. Joseph Catholic Academy in Kenosha since 2016. There, she has grown the Italian language program by starting an Italian Honor Society, launching an AP Italian course, and partnering with a school in Rome through the Italian Consulate in Chicago. She is also the world language department lead at the school.