 For this ground-breaking research, Petrone was made an honorary Indian Chief by the Gull Bay Ojibwa and gained international recognition.After her retirement from Lakehead University, Petrone's scholarly focus shifted to the study of her Italian heritage.She formed 'I Literati', a local reading group which focused on Italy's cultural heritage in the fields of literature, art, music, history and film as well as on the Italian immigrant experience in North America.