One High School, Infinite Possibilities
Five distinct pathways, one shared Jesuit identity
“Faithful to the Jesuit tradition of "service to others" and "promotion of justice"...”
— PTOF Licei 2026
For New Challenges, New Answers
The Gonzaga Licei read today's educational challenges as opportunities to renew methods and languages, strengthen alliances and prepare every student for a life of purpose, competence and service.
A School That Prepares for Life
Many big questions face humanity's future but risk staying outside the classroom. Research shows 76% of students feel teachers do not know what matters in their life outside school. The separation between lived experiences and theoretical reflection fails to meet the demand for meaning and purpose of today's young people.
We open "a window on the world" — bringing the crucial questions of our time into the classroom: integral ecology, conflicts, technological progress, artificial intelligence. A solid humanistic base typical of the Jesuit tradition combines with multidisciplinary paths on the great challenges of the present and the future.
Italian at advanced level, classical languages and culture, history and philosophy at advanced level
Geopolitics, integral ecology, health and wellbeing as cross-cutting themes
Debates on ethical questions, symposia, conferences and expert encounters
Interdisciplinary contexts connecting human, spiritual and scientific formation
Connecting generations, knowledge, disciplines, approaches and spaces
Key Characteristics
What sets the Gonzaga Licei apart — an innovative model that combines Jesuit tradition with the demands of contemporary education.
35 Lessons/Week (8:10–14:40)
7 lessons per day, Monday to Friday, each 50 minutes. Two generous 20-minute breaks at 10:40 and 12:40 with access to the campus bar and outdoor spaces. A rich, intensive morning curriculum that frees the afternoon for campus life.
Channel School System
Unique in Italy: open classes that mix students across all five programs. Channels replace traditional sections — grouping students heterogeneously for humanities and homogeneously for languages. More socialisation, diverse perspectives and flexible regrouping even mid-year.
Professor Ordinary + Associate
Department-based teaching: the ordinary professor delivers the lectio to all students; associate professors work with smaller groups in lab-based repetitio for deeper interiorisation. Student assistants support concrete aspects of class life.
Personalised Curriculum
Solid biennio foundations followed by a triennio with progressive option choices: economics & law, science enrichment or language deepening. Education to choice and discernment — discovering personal talents and aligning them with future university and life paths.
University Prep in School Hours
Logic, verbal reasoning and mathematical modelling integrated into the triennio curriculum. PCTO pathways with particular attention to volunteering and the third sector. A natural bridge from school to university — no external courses needed.
Digital Campus
iPad for every student. Labs for physics, chemistry, biology, earth sciences, computer science, STEAM and art/multimedia. Flexible modular classrooms, Apple TV, Promethean panels, VR visors. Campus-wide Wi-Fi including outdoor spaces.
Organisation & Curriculum
An innovative organisational model — unique in Italy — that combines flexible grouping, progressive personalisation and collaborative teaching.
The "Scuola a Canali" — A Channel-Based School
Instead of fixed class sections, students are grouped into "channels" — flexible class compositions that change depending on the discipline. Inspired by university course systems, channels mix students from different liceo programs: more heterogeneous for humanities (Italian, philosophy, history) to maximise diversity, more homogeneous for languages to enable level-based progression towards certifications. A student has not one class but several, with different classmates in each — dramatically expanding socialisation and perspectives.
Crucially, channels are flexible: a student can be moved to a different channel mid-year if they accelerate, struggle, or if teacher-student dynamics need adjustment — a level of personalisation impossible in traditional fixed sections.
Key Advantages
Community Building
Creates a year-group community where all students know and walk together, with frequent interactions across all programs.
Flexible Group Sizes
Activities can be modulated in groups of different sizes — from large lectures to small lab groups — depending on pedagogical needs.
Raising Standards
Students from programs where a discipline is weaker work alongside those where it is stronger, being pushed upward by the higher level.
Diverse Perspectives
In subjects like philosophy, the co-presence of more scientific and more humanistic ways of reasoning enriches dialogue and critical thinking.
Multiple Teachers
Having more than one teacher per discipline enables different teaching approaches, tailored to different learning needs and moments.
Campus Life
A school-campus to be lived from morning to late afternoon — an intensive morning of study followed by a rich afternoon of support, passions, formation and community.
Daily Schedule
An intensive morning from 8:10 to 14:40 — 35 lessons per week, each 50 minutes. Two generous breaks allow students to use the campus bar and outdoor spaces for socialisation. The rich curriculum frees the afternoon for optional campus life activities.
Special Programme Schedules
Optional canteen is available, valorising the meal as a moment of socialisation. A campus bar and rest areas encourage students to stay for afternoon life. The idea: a school-campus to be lived from morning to late afternoon.
The Broader Curriculum
In a campus perspective, the Gonzaga curriculum extends far beyond academic disciplines. Spiritual, formative, cultural and pedagogical choices shape the entire educational offer and contribute to the integral formation of the person. Four "red threads" — tutoring, global citizenship, technology and pastoral care — connect all five programmes into one coherent experience.
Tutoring and Guidance
The tutor figure is the privileged expression of cura personalis — promoting reflection and self-awareness so that each student becomes the protagonist of their own growth and formulates their own life project. The system evolves from guided support in the biennio to student-chosen, deeply personal accompaniment in the triennio, always oriented towards helping students "know how to choose in life."
Personal Tutoring
In the biennio, the class tutor is also each student's individual tutor — guiding study methods, group dynamics and self-discovery. In the triennio, students choose their own individual tutor from a list of available teachers, who accompanies them in orientation, university preparation and life-project discernment.
Orientation Programme
30 curricular hours per year dedicated to orientation. The Ministry's "Unica" platform provides a portfolio tracking academic history and growth. Tutors guide students towards self-awareness through the 8 EU key competencies, helping them discover their dreams and make conscious life choices.
PCTO — Work-Based Learning
90 hours across the 3rd, 4th and 5th year of experiential learning. Partners include UniPa, LUISS and LUMSA with seminars in biomedical technology, Walking Lawyers in law, and UN simulations in New York. A portion must be social-sector focused, reflecting the Jesuit mission of service.
Spiritual Exercises & Cognitive Autobiography
Two signature Ignatian experiences for 5th-year students. The Spiritual Exercises offer a time of personal discernment and deep reflection. The Cognitive Autobiography is a powerful self-assessment tool where students narrate their intellectual and personal journey, illuminating talents, dreams and the path ahead.
Our Laboratories
Where theory meets practice and learning engages the whole person — head, heart and hands. Our laboratories are spaces of discovery, collaboration and wonder, equipped to nurture the scientists, artists and thinkers of tomorrow.
STEAM Lab
An innovative space uniting Fab-Lab, Media-Lab and User-Lab — where collaborative design-thinking and hands-on making meet digital innovation.
- 3D printing, laser cutting and prototyping stations
- Educational robotics and programmable drones
- VR visors and augmented reality for exploration
- Tinkering, Making and Design-based learning
Computer Science Lab
Multimedia workstations with dual-boot technology — Windows 11 and Linux Ubuntu — for professional-grade computing and creative coding.
- Autodesk AutoCAD for technical drawing
- Python programming and LEGO Mindstorm robotics
- Central teacher station with scanner and projector
- Coding, computational thinking and digital productivity
Drawing & Art History Lab
A large, naturally lit room serving both the Liceo Scientifico and STEAM programmes for technical drawing and art history.
- 29 tilting desk stations with portfolio storage
- Apple TV and ceiling projector with full blackout
- Immersive art history projection sessions
- Live technical drawing demonstrations
Physics Lab
A historic laboratory with ten workstations, four sinks and extensive glass-fronted cabinets spanning the full physics curriculum.
- Mechanics: air track, dynamics carts, dynamometers
- Optics: spectral lamps, spectrometers, lenses
- Electrology: Van de Graaff generator, Tesla coil
- Waves: tuning forks, oscilloscopes, organ pipes
Chemistry Labs
Ceramic-topped workbenches with water and gas taps for Bunsen burners — learning through all senses: colours, heat, smells and hands-on practice.
- Fume hood, refrigerator and secure reagent storage
- Individual stations with safety-valve Bunsen burners
- From everyday substances to complex salts and reagents
- Distillation, filtration and decanting equipment
Biology Lab
Collaborative work tables with microscopes, surrounded by display cases showcasing a remarkable collection of Sicilian biodiversity.
- Power outlets at every table for microscope work
- Taxidermied specimens of local and regional fauna
- Direct observation of cell life and biological systems
- Collaborative, student-led discovery approach
Earth Sciences Lab
A space designed to inspire wonder — minerals, fossils and geological specimens brought to life through augmented reality and scenic display.
- QR codes linking each specimen to detailed information
- Flexible, mobile seating for any teaching format
- LED lighting and scenic display of geological collections
- Cross-curricular: ecology, history, civic education