UIndy students gain insight into motorsports industry through Sister Cities program

A new project through the University of Indianapolis Center for Global Engagement is connecting a group of students with the world of motorsports.

Six UIndy students, who are majoring in sports marketing or sports management, are visiting Monza, Italy, in December for an up-close look at the motorsports industry through the lenses of technology, engineering and performance. Monza hosts the Italian Grand Prix and is known for the Autodromo Nazionale Monza motor racing circuit. Monza is Indianapolis’ sister city in Italy, and for the past several months, UIndy’s Center for Global Engagement has worked with the Sister Cities Committee to design a program that allows the students to study the motorsports industry during the Monza Rally Show.

Students will be on the track for the Rally as well as visiting the factories where all of the braking systems and bodies for Indy Cars are made. They also will spend time at the Motorsports Technical School in Monza.

Dr. Jodie Ferise, Associate Provost for International Engagement and UIndy’s Chief International Officer, noted that the City of Monza covered transportation and associated travel costs.

“We are most grateful to them for providing this exceptional opportunity. We hope that this project might become a prototype for work we can do with all of Indianapolis’s sister cities around the world,” Ferise said.

The Center for Global Engagement will work with the City of Monza and the Sister Cities Committee during the coming year to help facilitate the program in reverse: Italian students coming to Indianapolis to study motorsports. Ferise also anticipates growing the program to industries outside of motorsports as Monza has expressed interest in future programs in areas of health sciences, business and more. 

Check back for photos and more updates from the trip!