University seeks to sell Villa Spelman

Adam Falk, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, announced this week via e-mail that the University is looking to sell Villa Spelman in order to rid itself of the financial burden associated with owning and maintaining the estate.

If the property were sold, Hopkins would not discontinue its study abroad programs in Italy and would only seek a new venue for students to study.

Upon hearing news of the decision to sell on Feb. 14, Director of Villa Spelman Walter Stevens notified all graduate students in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures of his resignation via e-mail.

Despite rumors of private negotiations, the administration asserts that only an expression of interest to buy the property has been made. Aside from that, there is no definitive buyer and no contract in place at this point.

In a letter to Krieger faculty, Adam Falk, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, explained, "The School has begun to evaluate the prospect of selling the Villa Spelman and redirecting the funds currently dedicated to maintaining and operating it into stipend support for graduate students in the Humanities."

The current semester may be the last in which Hopkins students will study at the Villa. "Our expectation at this point is that the programs at the Villa will be suspended at least temporarily after the spring semester, but that is not a decision that has been absolutely taken," Falk said.

Falk added that, in order to insure the Italy study abroad program's continuation, some money from the sale of the Villa would go towards supporting and continuing studies of Italian Renaissance art, history and culture.

Falk added, "The vitality of these programs does not depend on the use of the Villa as a meeting place, but rather on the excellence and dedication of the faculty who direct and teach in them."

The University maintains that the Villa is a significant financial burden, and when faced with other graduate funding needs, administrators are evaluating whether the Villa is affordable.

According to Falk, "The programs and the ongoing upkeep of the Villa require an operating budget of more than half a million dollars annually, the annual equivalent of approximately $15 million dollars in endowment funds."

Although the University recently received a gift of $100 million and has raised over $2.1 billion in its "Knowledge for the World" campaign, the administration says that money cannot be used to further programs at the Villa because the donations are not stipulated for use at the Villa Spelman.

Provost Steven Knapp pointed out, "Most of the gifts we have received in the current campaign (or indeed in any of our campaigns) are restricted in this way; they cannot be used for purposes other than those intended by their donors." 

Continuing maintenance of the Villa would require a more than generous donation of money.

"Given the current budget situation of the School," Falk stated, "we lack the immediate resources to undertake the repair and renovation of the Villa and it is in danger of becoming unsafe and unusable."

Executive Director of Public Relations Dennis O'Shea also said that if the sale were to be made, "the Krieger School would seek a suitable venue or venues in Italy where it could operate programs without the financial obligations that go with ownership of a large Renaissance-era property in Florence."

Villa Spelman, which houses the Charles S. Singleton Center for Italian Studies, was given to the University in the early 1970s at the request of Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Mather Spelman. The Villa Spelman, resting 700 meters from the Ponte Vecchio on acres of olive groves and gardens, houses a 25-year-old Ph.D.-level graduate studies program and a more recently founded undergraduate program that enables students to live with Florentine families while taking classes taught by visiting Hopkins professors at the Villa.

Selling the historic villa would put an end to these programs, including the annual Italian Studies Seminar.

Walter Stephens, who recently resigned from his position as director of the program, said, "This seminar, the heart of the spring semester graduate program, has for a quarter century provided a major forum for Italian, European and North American scholars, both established and in training."

However, Stephens said that he was unable to comment on the selling of the Villa: "Having resigned in my capacity as Director of Villa Spelman, I do not feel that I can make anything other than personal statements at this juncture, and personal statements would not be helpful in the present context.

"I think the administration should be allowed to speak for itself on this matter."

Senior Jessica Youdin spent her fall semester at the Villa Spelman, which she described as "something out of a fairy tale."

She said, "What makes Villa Spelman unique is that you're with a small group of students in a very stimulating environment."

"I think that without the Villa, the program wouldn't have the same appeal."

A fellow traveler, senior Sunhee Park, said, "It was an amazing experience, and there's nothing to explain how wonderful it was. I think it's a really good resource for Hopkins."

On the other hand, junior Matthew Bergman, who is currently studying in Florence through a New York University program, said his Hopkins friends have their complaints about the program.

Bergman said, "I am glad they are selling it. Every one of them [those at Villa Spellman] lives in homestays so far from each other that it makes getting together difficult and an inconvenience. If the villa is gone, then the study abroad program will enable those who go to experience the city more."