Instructor: Gabrielle Orsi

Biography: Originally from southern California, Gabrielle Orsi studied as an undergraduate at the Universit� di Bologna and in Florence while earning her BA in comparative literature at Brown University. She has also lived in Milan, Rome, Munich, and New Zealand. She earned her PhD in Italian at the Department of Italian of Columbia University in New York in 2008. She has taught Italian language at CUNY, Columbia University, the University of Kentucky, and the World Languages Institute of Bellevue College, WA. She also taught Italian literature and history at the University of Denver. Gabrielle is also passionate about the outdoors and is a certified Leave No Trace trainer and Wilderness First Responder. She enjoys backpacking, mountaineering, backcountry skiing, snowshoeing, and trail running. She currently works in higher education administration at COCC.

Classes by this instructor

Italian for Travelers

Fully enjoy your visit to Italy by gaining an understanding of Italian language and culture. Focus on essential words and phrases. Learn to meet people, order in restaurants with confidence, get around the cities and more. No textbook required.
April 29, 2026 to May 20, 2026 | 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT | Online

Backpacking 101: Start Your Adventure

Spend more time outside! Bridge the gap between day trips and experiencing the wilderness overnight in time for the peak local backpacking months of June through September. Learn all you need to be skilled, safe and successful on overnight to multi-day backcountry trips in the Pacific Northwest. You will learn about planning, gear, nutrition, tips and tricks to help make overnights comfortable in the wilderness.
June 22-24, 2026 | 6:00pm-7:30pm PDT | Bend

Literature Studies: Exploring Boccaccio's Decameron

In 1348, with the Black Death ravaging Europe, a group of young people flee to a Tuscan villa, where they decide to pass the time telling stories... and so begins Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron, a book of 100 stories. We will read several stories for each of our 4 sessions. Discover this vivid, funny, bawdy and always entertaining masterpiece of Italian literature, which influenced Shakespeare, Chaucer and Pasolini among others.
July 8-29, 2026 | 5:30pm-6:30pm PDT | Online