She is Full Professor of Experimental Pedagogy (GSD 11/PAED-02/B) at the Faculty of Human Sciences, Education and Sport, Department of Educational Sciences and Sport of the Pegaso Telematic University (Naples).
She is also the Rector's Delegate for Social Innovation and Enhancement of Territories.
She is the Director of the P.L.A.C.E. (Participatory Local Action for Community Empowerment) Unipegaso-Espéro Research Laboratory, whose mission is to carry out research in the field of community studies to investigate small communities and territorial units in order to contribute to defining models of local development starting from a strengthening of the sense of community, and the promotion and development of the agency of local actors.
She was Researcher, type A from 2 September 2019 to 31 May 2022 and type B from 1 June 2022 to 1 September 2024, in Experimental Pedagogy at the Department of Education Sciences of the Roma Tre University (Rome).
She has obtained the following qualifications in the National Scientific Qualification:
2017 - Qualification as professor of II level in the sector 11-D1 "Pedagogy and history of pedagogy"
2021 - Qualification as professor of II level in the sector 11-D2 "Didactics, special pedagogy and educational research"
2023 - Qualification as professor of I level in the sector 11-D2 "Didactics, special pedagogy and educational research".
She obtained a PhD in "Sciences of the Mind and Human Relations" at the Department of History, Society and Studies on Man of the University of Salento (Lecce), with a thesis on "The Mapping of Needs. Semiotic-systemic-regulatory reading of the subject and social action and definition of a research-intervention device".
From July 2016 to July 2017 she was a Post Doc at the University of Foggia in "Media education, participatory design and community".
Her scientific interests lie in the field of Community Studies for the development of local communities and territories, for the activation of participatory processes, for the emancipation and inclusion of vulnerable subjects, such as migrants, the elderly, young people, through narrative and performative methodologies.
Specifically, since 2012 (ongoing), she has been conducting participatory action research in the south-eastern Salento area aimed at activating participatory processes with/for local communities, of social and cultural co-design, with a view to social and relational sustainability and the enhancement of subjective, community and territorial resources. She uses a specific model of 'Needs Mapping' which is configured as a pedagogical device for listening and promoting self-awareness and autonomy.
From January 2020 to December 2023 she conducted an action research on the "Casa Sankara" community of African migrants in San Severo (Foggia), thanks to which she investigated the entire process of birth and organization of the structure, conducted a scenario analysis of the socio-economic context of Capitanata with particular reference to the migratory phenomenon and the presence of African laborers and their processes of inclusion/exclusion in the productive and social fabric, the methods of emergence from illegality and the freeing from labor exploitation. On this research work she has published some essays in important scientific journals in the sector.
From 2021 to 2023 she provided her consultancy and professionalism in the context of the SuPrEme Project (South Protagonist in overcoming Emergencies in the context of serious exploitation and serious marginalization of foreigners) and +SuPrEme (Individualized Paths for Exiting Exploitation) of the PUGLIA REGION (Italy), implemented in Capitanata (province of Foggia) through the ATS composed of Ghetto-Out Casa Sankara (Lead Partner) of San Severo, Enac of Foggia, Leader Formazione of Bari, Sirio of San Severo, Fondazione Emmanuel of Lecce. The project actions were multi-level and included: housing mediation, training, inclusion workshops, company internships, social agriculture. Within the project actions Ada Manfreda specifically dealt with the coordination and supervision of the Listening, Support and Orientation Desk for migrants and the Social Hub: the Desk was designed and launched by her according to the CASE MANAGEMENT approach/model and provides, in addition to basic legal and health services, an individualized orientation service thanks to which migrants are profiled and equipped with a Skills Portfolio, from which to start paths to enhance experiences and previous skills (also acquired in the countries of origin) and improve their potential for work and social inclusion and therefore integration.
Within the research activities conducted at Roma Tre University, she had the scientific responsibility of local research units of national and international projects on the enhancement of tangible and intangible cultural heritage.
Social researcher at Espéro srl - born as a spin-off of the University of Salento and now an innovative SME that deals with applied research in the field of experiential learning, through metaphors and outdoor activities for advanced training -, of which she was a founding member and member of the Board of Directors from 2009 to 2024.
In EspérO she mainly took care of the branch of activities concerning projects, modeling and research-intervention actions for:
the promotion of communities and social innovation, with direct commitment to the Salento areas;
the mapping of individual and community needs for orientation, self-efficacy and self-design, assessment for social inclusion.
In these areas she has coordinated and implemented some projects aimed at territorial development in a cultural and inclusive key through the exploration, emergence and enhancement of the intangible cultural heritage of communities, with narrative and performative methodologies. From 2015 to 2020 she was the manager of the socio-cultural project "CanaliCreativi", through which EspérO managed an Environmental Center of the Municipality of Ortelle (Lecce) included in the "SAC (Environmental and Cultural Systems) Porta d'Oriente" of the Otranto-Leuca Regional Natural Park, annually proposing a structured program of educational workshops, experiential itineraries, cultural events aimed at promoting the territory, knowledge and enhancement of local agro-food and production peculiarities, as well as the cultural heritage, especially oral, of that area.
From April 2017 to September 2024 she was President and legal representative of Espéro.
She is co-director of the annual School of Performative Arts and Community Care for social innovation and territorial development.
She has professional and research assignments in the field of:
educational design,
analysis of training needs,
orientation and skills assessment,
adult education,
narrative methodologies,
educational media,
action research for community development, social innovation and the activation of bottom-up participatory processes for the emancipation and social inclusion of vulnerable and marginalized subjects, such as the elderly and migrants.
She writes for scientific journals, has edited collective books and participates with her own essays in the curatorship of others.
She has participated as a speaker in numerous seminars and conferences on pedagogical, training, community development, social intervention and inclusion issues.
She can boast many years of experience as a trainer: she collaborates with public schools and high schools, accredited training institutions and other educational structures, in the context of refresher courses, training, masters, national PON projects and regional POR projects, on the themes of orientation, skills assessment, needs analysis, training counseling, the use of media in teaching, the library as an educational agency.
She has developed specific skills in the field of training and educational design, as well as social-relational skills in relation to the coordination of project and work groups and educational intervention teams; she is an expert in new technologies in their use in teaching and education.
To research activities in the pedagogical and educational field, she has always combined strong cultural interests, with reference to the world of publishing, libraries, writing and reading.
Thus in 1997 she founded and is editorial director of Amaltea Edizioni, a decidedly important cultural publishing experience for her training, thanks to which she has gained considerable skills in the field of writing and cultural operations, the organization and management of events.
Since 2006 she has been editorial director and writes for the online magazine: "Amaltea" (ISSN: 2039-5159), on which to date over a hundred articles have appeared signed by her.
She has library and cataloging skills, thanks to which she has carried out, and continues to carry out, activities of designing and managing library and media library services on behalf of public bodies. She has numerous collaborations and consultancies with local public bodies in relation to the design and coordination of educational, training and multimedia services, including the Province of Lecce, the Municipality of Melpignano, the Municipality of Calimera, the Municipality of Cursi. For the latter in particular, she has carried out work for a decade in the design and coordination of the respective Biblio-Media Libraries. From 2001 to 2011 she was registered with the AIB (Italian Library Association), the national association that brings together Italian librarians.
In addition to work and research, she loves writing for passion (see "Il mio Blog").