At school with Spadolini: “Overcoming the divorce between politics and culture”

Europe, defence, education. But also culture, the Constitution and, above all, politics. The memory of Giovanni Spadolini, former president of the Council and of the Senate, several times minister and secretary of the Italian Republican party, takes shape through the Academy named after him. Yesterday the presentation of the training offer that will involve the young people of the ‘school’ chaired by Luigi Tivelli, a long-time political scientist and former parliamentary councilor, took place. Tivelli himself explains the goal: “Overcoming the divorce between politics and culture, recovering that sense of historical memory in many ways lost”.

The event, entitled “From Spadolini to the present and the future” took place in the Sala Cenacolo of Montecitorio, the seat of the Chamber of Deputies. Representatives from the academic and political worlds took turns at the microphone. In the audience, among others, also the young people who will take part in the cycle of lessons. General Leonardo Tricarico opened the proceedings by speaking of defense and war in Ukraine. Spadolini, moreover, was also defense minister and Fabrizio Tomada, collaborator of the former prime minister, tells of when he “called a meeting of all the countries of the European Union to talk about defence”. All of this – he underlines – “without questioning the Euro-Atlantic relationship”. Beniamino Quintieri, Professor of Economics at Tor Vergata is convinced of the need to create a “common European defence”. Which he adds: with the war in Ukraine “politics has taken over the economy”.

The beginning of the Academy falls one year after the thirtieth anniversary of Spadolini’s death. 2025 will also be the centenary of his birth. An opportunity to retrace the life of the republican leader and the issues he faced during his years in government. Starting with education, of which Spadolini was the minister. “It is necessary to raise the skills of the boys”, began Mauro Antonelli, head of the technical secretariat of the Ministry of Education and Merit. As? “By raising the competence of teachers” and enhancing technical and professional institutes, which – he articulates – “should not be considered second-class”

Antonelli also adds that the much-discussed ‘made in Italy high school’ is on Minister Valditara’s table, but that first of all a systemic discourse will have to be made, providing for “the strengthening of professional technicians and raising the competence of teachers”. Another issue The hot topic – and which involves the government – is that of institutional reforms. In this regard, the constitutionalist Tommaso Edoardo Frosini intervenes, who says he is “fully in favor” of the premiership on which Prime Minister Meloni has also recently opened. Tivelli, on the other hand, makes one question of method: “We need to elect a constituent assembly with drafting powers and made up of capable people, not amateurs. ” The reference – he says it bluntly – is the government in office.