The New York State Senate approved the appointment of a restaurateur and staunch defender of Christopher Columbus, Angelo Vivolo, to the CUNY Board of Trustees last week, after Gov. Andrew Cuomo nominated him the preceding weekend. Vivolo was interviewed at the State Senate’s board confirmation hearings on June 7, where he was approved for the six-year-long term.

The Board of Trustees is the university’s governing body, which makes decisions on behalf of the colleges, such as on tuition. “My position on Columbus is very simple: education,” Vivolo told The New York Post. “The best way to deal with Columbus is to provide education, to provide knowledge and to provide the truth. I hope the controversy doesn’t prevent me from being a trustee on the CUNY board. Columbus is someone Italian-Americans look up to. There are detractors. But I’m here to serve the interests of everyone — not just Italian-Americans. I’m just one voice.”