Pasquale Villari (1862- 1865)

A historian, Villari was the Director of the Scuola Normale of the Kingdom of Italy.
The new Scuola Normale became part of the national legal system thanks to a Regulation issued in 1862 by the Minister of Public Education, Carlo Matteucci.
Villari changed the duration of studies at the Scuola Normale to 4 years, making it equal to that of university studies.
The “united” Scuola Normale upheld merit as an exclusive criterion for selecting students, as was the case in the Napoleonic and the Grand Ducal Scuola Normale. 
Students of Letters were also exempted from university tuition fees and received free board and lodgings.
By royal decree, science professors could also become directors of the Scuola Normale.
Villari was the first director to hold political office: in 1891 he was to become Minister of Education.