An American in Italy: Why I Left the US

I will never forget the day my daughter texted me from school saying she was hiding in her classroom because an intruder was in the building. Her classroom was in the basement with no way to get outside. I made it to her school in less than 5 minutes. When I arrived, she messaged me that the situation was resolved and they were safe. The intruder didn't have a gun that day. We were lucky. In 2025, there were 235 school shootings in the US. I had been preparing my kids for that moment for years. That day, I knew we needed to leave.

I also spent 7 years climbing the ranks of corporate America after 14 years of teaching. I eventually became a director at company headquarters in NYC. The higher I rose, the more I saw - how the company was structured, what actually motivated leadership, and how differently my global counterparts lived. Same company, same roles, same titles, just different countries. They had longer paid vacations, longer parental leave, strict limits on work hours, and real protections for their customers. Every difference I saw benefited employees and customers, not executives.

Then there was healthcare. I paid $500 a month pre-tax to insure my family of 5 - and that was considered top-tier coverage. It felt like a membership fee just to access the system. A visit to my family doctor cost $25. A specialist was $50, booked months out, if they were even taking new patients. Prescriptions had copays too. We were paying constantly, for everything.

And schools. I tried both public and private for my kids and wasn't satisfied with either. Limited course options, a handful of electives, and by the time my eldest was graduating high school, his school was laser-focused on pushing him toward university with zero actual career preparation. Want real skills? That requires a separate technical program that costs thousands on top of a high school diploma.

I have now lived in Italy with my family for 2 years, and the life we have here is nothing like what I expected - in the best way.

Italy's national healthcare system is completely free for all five of us. Our family doctor is available today or tomorrow, no copay. Monthly prescriptions? Free. Specialists, blood tests, procedures - there's a small fee based on income, never over €36. Ambulance? Free. Emergency room? Free.

My kids are in schools built around their interests - not just the curriculum, the entire school. There are no fundraisers, no bake sales, no prom committees. They get to school on fast, reliable public transport. A student pass for a full year costs no more than €238, income-based.

And it's safe. Zero school shootings in Italy. Zero.

Our family at Piazza Castello, Torino - home.

The biggest perk I wasn't expecting was the sheer freedom that comes with good public transport and healthcare that actually works. We were fortunate - my husband is a dual US/Italian citizen, which gave us a path here. Once we arrived, I focused on passing my B1 Cittadinanza exam to begin my own citizenship process. I'm still waiting on processing, still working on my Italian every day, and I have no plans to ever leave.

If you're on a similar path and preparing for the B1 exam, Ready Set Italia's B1 Cittadinanza program is what I used to pass mine.

And if you're wondering why Torino specifically - that's coming in part 2.