Welcome to our latest In the Staffroom article. We love introducing you to the amazing people behind the scenes at La Academia, Manchester’s award-winning language school.
Federica Whitefoot is one our Italian language teachers. It was great to have the opportunity to learn a little bit more about her ‘sweet life’, from sizzling Sicily to Manchester, with a stint of live selling on QVC’s shopping channel in between!
Q. So you’re authentically Italian, Federica?
A. Yes, I was born and raised in Italy, so the Italian language is my mother tongue.
Q. Do you still manage to go back to Italy?
A. My family still live there so I visit often.
Q. What’s it like? What do you love about the culture?
A. Italy is a beautiful place, full of contradictions and history. It’s a nation extremely attached to traditions and it has a strong regional identity.I was born in Sicily, but I have family all over the country in Rome, Turin and Perugia. I took my university course in Bologna and Milan.Between the north and the south of Italy there’s big rivalry and lots of differences, starting with regional ways of cooking and finishing with different accents and dialects.
Q. How’s your career developed as a result of your Italian language expertise?
A. In a previous life I was working in European sales. So, I used to get contacted by the Marketing Departments to help translate their advertising and publishing materials. I was even sent twice a month to sell our products on QVC Italia. Then I changed my career path. I wanted to make more use my Italian language skills. In 2017 I qualified as a secondary school teacher. As well as the Italian language I now also teach French and Spanish in England.
Q. What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
A. I used to sing and perform on stage in musicals. Now I’m a Mum the free time has drastically reduced. I love to help people with their interior design. I’m actually studying how to do 3D drawings so I can start support my design with technical visuals, too.
Here at La Academia, we offer intermediate, advanced and business Italian language options. Give us a buzz or drop us a line if you’re keen to find out more about learning the Italian language with Federica and our Italian team.