The approaching Women’s History Month is proving to be exciting for Cav. Gilda Rorro Baldassari, Ed.D. Her tireless efforts to preserve and promote Italian Cultural heritage in all schools and communities in New Jersey and beyond has drawn national and international attention.
In addition to being the Honorary Vice Consul for Italy and Consular Correspondent for Italy, in Trenton, Emerita, she is the current Chairperson for the following committees: New Jersey Italian Heritage Commission (NJIHC), Chairperson Emerita; Chairperson, NJIHC Curriculum Project: The Universality of Italian Heritage; Mercer County Italian American Festival Scholarship Committee; Mercer County Columbus Day Observance Committee; Columbus Statue Restoration Committee; Associate Vice President for Italian Heritage Curriculum for The Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations in the United States (COPOMIAO).
Her love of Italian heritage was influenced by meeting six Popes and engaging in private audiences with two: Pope Pius XII and Pope Francis. As a National Origin Coordinator and Director of the Office of Equal Educational Opportunity (OEEO) at the NJ Department of Education, she initiated professional development workshops and ongoing symposia on multicultural education, including the Italian Legacy to the United States and the world, and the Italian American Experience.
In her subsequent position as Assistant Superintendent for the Trenton Board of Education, she was invited to speak at the University of Perugia, in Umbria. In 1998, Dr. Rorro was appointed Honorary Vice Consul for Italy in Trenton. She was invited to speak at the Vatican, in Parliament in Rome, and with dignitaries at the Augustinianum in Rome.
In Margherita Di Savoia, the town and comune named after the first Queen of Italy in 1879, in Apuglia, southern Italy where her father was born, Drs. Gilda and her daughter Dr. Mary Rorro, were made Honorary Citizens by Mayor Lodispoto.
Her membership in the Conference of Presidents of Major Italian American Organizations in the United States, COPOMIAO, afforded her the honor of being invited to the White House two times, and to a private dinner at the home of former Iitalian Ambassador to the United States Mariangela Zappia.
Arcadia University, (formerly Beaver College), Dr. Rorro’s Alma Mater, conferred on her its 50 Year Gold Key Achievement Award for her efforts to decrease prejudice and discrimination.
Her numerous awards include Outstanding Young Woman of America, Teacher of the Year in Hamilton Township, Finalist for the New Jersy Teacher of the Year, Equity Leader of the Year, the Hela Young award from the New Jersey Office of Holocaust Education, and the Jefferson Award for Volunteerism from the United States Senate.
She received the honorific title of Cavalierato, Knighthood, by the President of Italy. She is also a Dame (Knighthood), of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, Eastern Lieutenancy.
The Department of Women’s Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Rutgers University, in partnership with the New Jersey Office of Commissions and AAPI New Jersey is celebrating her as a Trailblazing Woman. The Federation of Italian American Societies will celebrate its annual award ceremony where it will bestow the Lifetime Achievement Award to Cav. Rorro for her unstinting service to preserve and promote Italian Cultural Heritage throughout all schools and communities in Hamilton Township, the Garden State and beyond.
