Soraya Cipolla is a PhD Candidate in Italian Studies and Queer Studies. Her research focuses on LGBTQIA+ representation in 20^th and 21^st Italian literature and cinema. Her dissertation “Queer Specters: Sapphic Desire in Italian Literature and Cinema (1980 – 2023)” illuminates how gatekeepers of distribution made sapphic narratives ghost-like in Italian culture. Her interests include as well gender identity exploration within contemporary language and literature, gender-inclusive language in the classroom, and inclusive pedagogy.