Mary Immaculate College is “A hive of development activity,” says Minister Power

Minister Peter Power, T.D. praises the CGDE in his opening address

Minister Peter Power officially launched an important symposium held recently at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, celebrating the culmination of three years of work by the Centre for Global Development through Education (CGDE), based at the College, under the direction of Dr Rosarii Griffin. The CGDE is the lead partner of a consortium of twelve Irish and two African Higher Education Institutes and two African Ministries of Education in Lesotho and Uganda. It is funded through the Programme of Strategic Cooperation between Irish Aid and Higher Education and Research Institutes (2007-2011).

Among those who attended the symposium entitled, “Capacity and Confidence Building in Teacher Education: Perspectives from Lesotho, Uganda and Ireland,” were Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Maria Byrne, His Excellency, Dr Paddy Fay, Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, His Excellency, Mr Azwindini Jeremiah Ndou, South African Ambassador to Ireland, Mrs Margaret Nsereko, Commissioner for Education, MoES, Uganda, Dr John Oliphant, Rector, Lesotho College of Education and Dr Margo O’Sullivan, Head of Education, UNICEF Uganda.

In his opening remarks, Minister Power said, “The CGDE is the most recent string to the bow of Mary Immaculate College, which is what I would describe as ‘a hive of development activity.’ Under the excellent leadership of Dr Peadar Cremin, global development and justice themes are central to the ethos of the College and by extension, inform the good work of many teachers in schools across the country.”
He went on to praise the work of the CGDE, saying, “I am particularly struck by the very practical nature of the research collaborations that form part of this project – focusing on teacher effectiveness, assessment practices, teaching of science and maths and special needs. We know from our experience in Ireland that these are common issues across all education systems… The institutions represented here today are making a valuable contribution to realizing the poverty reduction aims of the Irish Aid programme.”
Referring to his experience of working with the CGDE in his former role as Ambassador in Lesotho up to July 2010, Dr Paddy Fay, currently Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, said, “The projects CGDE operated in Lesotho were based on the needs of the Lesotho College of Education. The research and reports come at a time that is very apt for Lesotho, as the areas concerned are priorities. The projects and teacher exchange have greatly assisted in capacity building in the Lesotho College of Education.”
Other speakers included Dr Aiden Mulkeen and Dr Gerry Jeffers, NUI Maynooth, and a host of faculty from the partner institutions, who presented reports on their ground-breaking research findings across a wide variety of topics.

Prof. Teresa O’Doherty, Dean of Education at Mary Immaculate College, said, “As host institution for the Centre, we at MIC are particularly proud of the achievements of the Centre to date in developing a community of learning for participants and lecturers from Lesotho, Uganda and Ireland. As we head into an uncertain and difficult period, where we will actively seek additional funding to extend and promote the work of the Centre, today’s deliberations take on an additional importance as we reflect on the past and anticipate the challenges ahead.”
For further information on the Centre for Global Development through Education, please see http://www.cgde.ie/

Back Row (L-R): Mr John O’Meara (DFA); Ms Eileen O’Malley (HEA); Mr Koebu Kahalema (LCE); Dr Rosarii Griffin (CGDE Director); Mrs Margaret Nsereko (MoES, Uganda); Dr Margo O’Sullivan (UNICEF); Ms Maire Matthews (DFA) Front Row, (L-R): CGDE PhD Students: Mr John Bwayo (KYU, Uganda); Ms Puleng Mapuru (LCE); Ms Fiona Bailey (MIC); Ms Florence Aguti (MoES, Uganda); Ms Mantoetsi Jobo (LCE); Ms Deirdre O’Rourke (MIC); Ms Sarah Kisa (KYU, Uganda).

Dr Rosarii Griffin, CGDE Director, chatting with Minister Peter Power TD, Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Maria Byrne and Dr Jim Gleeson, Chair of CGDE

Back Row (L-R): Dr John Oliphant (Rector, LCE, Lesotho); Dr Jim Gleeson (UL, Chair CGDE); Louise Long (St Mary’s, Belfast) Front Row (L-R): Dr Rosarii Griffin (MIC, Director CGDE); Dr Paul Conway (UCC); Mota Sekonyela (Deputy Principal Secretary, MoET, Lesotho); Dr Róisín McEvoy (Univ. of Ulster); Prof. Teresa O’Doherty (MIC); Sheila O’Driscoll (UCC); Nkhotho Machachamise (Embassy of the Kingdom of Lesotho, Dublin)

For further information contact:
Holly Cowman
President’s Office
Mary Immaculate College
South Circular Road
Limerick
T: +353 61 204998
E: Holly.Cowman@mic.ul.ie
W: www.mic.ul.ie