Managing Bologna university museums and collections (1970-2015)

The literature on university museums abounds with accounts of new initiatives to reposition these institutions by opening them up to the general public as they move away from core of university activities like teaching and research. However, what is seldom analyzed is the long-term impact of such initiatives, and whether they survive the initial phases and live up to expectations. The study reports on the administrative history of the museums and collections of the University of Bologna across a continuous period of more than four decades, starting in the late 1970s and ending in 2015. Using a holistic framework, attention is addressed to institutional changes, trends in human and financial resources management, activities and visitors' profiles across an extended period. The paper highlights the difficulties experienced in consistently supporting the vision developed in the late 1970s, and presents some proposals for change.