The origins of the Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro go back well beyond the birth of the autonomous university. This is what emerges from the volume «The University of Catanzaro. History of the birth of the University of the capital from the Friars of the Society of Jesus to the Consortium for the Free University”, written by Aristide Anfosso and Piero Canino and presented in the Auditorium of the “Salvatore Venuta” Campus.
During the meeting, the rector Giovanni Cuda underlined the role of the University for the territory, making an appeal to the institutions: «Accompany us and understand how important the University is as a cultural, social and economic driving force». Cuda recalled that the University today has around 12 thousand students, 70% of whom are Calabrian, highlighting how it has contributed to countering the flight of young people from the region.
The origins of the University
The authors have reconstructed a history which, according to the research carried out, began in 1563, with the arrival in Catanzaro of the fathers of the Society of Jesus, called to train young people destined for trade in the flourishing silk industry. The volume then traces the establishment of university courses during the Kingdom of Naples, their suppression with the Gentile Reform and the attempted revival started in 1959.
From the Consortium to the birth of the University
Particular space is dedicated to the establishment, in 1972, of the Consortium for the Free University, with the launch of courses in Law, Political Science, Pedagogy and Medicine. The book also traces the student mobilization between 1976 and 1979, which contributed to the birth of the public university consortium between the Municipality and the Province, a decisive stage in the path that would lead to the recognition of the University.