This paper analyses an experience of participatory evaluation during the initial phase of an Italian university’s Public Engagement (PE) policy. It integrates social research, evaluation, and co-design. The aim is to understand how PE is reflected in the practices and perceptions of the academic community, and to build a shared vision for its future development.
The case study demonstrates how participation can represent an epistemological and political dimension of evaluation, generating knowledge in pluralistic manner, fostering a shared narrative of the university’s public role, transforming internal relationships, and laying the foundations for a more structured, inclusive, and socially impactful PE policy.